Starz has ordered a pilot from “Boomerang” writer Leigh Davenport and “Dear White People” co-showrunner Yvette Lee Bowser. According to Deadline, “Run the World” has been on “fact-track development” at the cabler. Written and created by Davenport, the comedy centers on four female friends making it in Harlem. Davenport and Bowser are exec producing and Millicent Shelton (“Black-ish”) will direct the pilot.
The project hails from Lionsgate TV, where Bowser and her SisterLee Productions are under an overall deal.
“‘Run the World’ is the story of a group of four black, vibrant, fiercely loyal best friends who work, live, and play in Harlem as they strive for world domination,” the source describes. “At its core, it’s an unapologetically female show about friendship and not only surviving — but thriving together.”
Two of the four main characters have already been cast. Amber Stevens West (“The Carmichael Show”) will play Whitney, “the kind of woman who’s so perfect it’s driving her insane. She’s a type-A investment banker who never misses a SoulCycle class and is on track to marry the love of her life — if she can forget the other guy she just woke up with.”
Bresha Webb (“Marlon”) will take on the role of Renee, “a walking firecracker of cynicism and in-your-face realness. She’s ready to go to war for her girls and her beliefs, and she’s not exactly concerned about collateral damage.”
“Boomerang,” the BET series based on the 1992 rom-com, will return for Season 2 in 2020. Davenport is a staff writer on the comedy. She wrote the upcoming Gabrielle Union vehicle “The Perfect Find,” a drama about a woman risking her career on a secret romance. Nzingha Stewart (“Tall Girl”) is attached to direct. Davenport previously produced BET reality show “Harlem Heights.”
Bowser created “Living Single,” “For Your Love,” and “Lush Life.” Her other writing and producing credits include “A Different World,” “Lipstick Jungle,” and “Black-ish.” Season 3 of “Dear White People” dropped in August, and was recently renewed for a fourth and final season.
