UNFORTUNATELY HOLLYWOOD TAKES ADVANTAGE OF THE UP & COMING

A young black Hollywood producer is claiming she received congratulations for getting her show picked up by HBO Max but the only problem was the show was not hers. She says she shopped her show for over two years to Hollywood executives. Her name is Shay Caldwell and she took to her Instagram to write an interesting post about the whole situation.

"It strikes me as odd that the very project execs believed stood no chance with its title in the climate we live in would go on to find a life with the exact title and very similar content matter. In the thread posted you are seeing the sizzle of the show idea that we paid for out of our own pockets and registration spanning the past few years. To know this work has been taken with no acknowledgment of the people who formulated the Unfriendly Black Hotties story of 4 black female leads dealing with political correctness in a non-monolithic representation of black characters is devastating. I highly respect the players listed in the trades, but it’s peculiar that a story I’ve pitched to people with connections to the parties involved is now coming to light.

It was surreal to see my phone light up with congratulations from my peers and execs who know about my pitch about my project I did not indeed sell. I thought long and hard about making this post, but I derived that we need to share our experiences about the letdowns of this industry as up-and-coming black narrators. We talk so much about spearheading change, but the first step is speaking out when injustice is happening.

I’m trusting that some resolve can be made to rectify this situation. Understanding thoroughly how many hands pitch and script materials can go through from assistants doing coverage to various production staff, and execs who hold the green light, things can happen. I’m in hopes an amicable reprieve is possible because it’s disheartening to see people you admire become a part of your feeling of defeat. I truly feel for everyone who has dealt with this historically in Hollywood.

At the end of day, I’m still a girl from
the southside of Chicago .. "

We empathize with young Hollywood creatives that come to pursue a dream and get taken advantage of and it's been happening for years. Hopefully, by shedding some light on this story, it can show others how to move in a "room full of vultures." 
 

SO WHAT'S THE SHOW ACTUALLY ABOUT? & WHO'S IN IT?

HBO Max is developing the comedy series “Unfriendly Black Hotties” from Keke Palmer, Jermaine Crawford, and Amy Aniobi. It is a story of four high school girls in a generation Z timeline and is actually has a comedic tone to it. According to Jermaine Crawford,  Unfriendly Black Hotties will be the first time he's been credited as a writer. He played Duquan Weems in the legendary series The Wire. It looks like Keke Palmer will be one of the main characters, speaking of Keke Palmer, I would like to explain how she gained her celebrity status in Hollywood. She rose to fame after starring on her own Nickelodeon series, True Jackson, VP, from 2008 to 2011. Three years after wrapping the Nickelodeon show, Palmer made history in more ways than one. She landed her own BET talk show and was also the first Black actress to play Cinderella on Broadway. She is prego right now with her partner Darius Jackson's baby and is extremely excited about the news.