HBO and Russell Simmons Enter into Overall Production and Development Deal July 30, 2015
Network Developing Several New Series And Specials With
Simmons For Premium Television;
Pact Builds Upon Successful Producing Partnership Beginning With
Hit Series Def Comedy Jam And Def Poetry Jam
LOS ANGELES - HBO has made an overall first-look deal for premium television with visionary multi-platform producer Russell Simmons' new media company All Def Digital (ADD). Under the terms of the agreement, the Def Jam Records co-founder and his team will create and develop a wide range of television projects for HBO.
Simmons has five active projects with the world's leading premium television service, three of which are being developed through his media company, All Def Digital (ADD).
HBO and Simmons are collaborating on:
* A new series that curates the best acts from All Def Digital's weekly live comedy night. Every week, ADD produces a live event in Hollywood featuring the best new comedians in the country.
* HBO and ADD are also developing These Are My Friends, a new comedy series created by independent filmmaker Shaka King that takes an original and authentic look at hip-hop culture. The series follows four real-life rap and hip-hop artists as they struggle to keep their dream alive. Real friends, real rappers, real comedy, real life.
* A comedy series through ADD with the Broken Lizard comedy troupe, which brought audiences cult classics like Super Troopers and Beerfest. The Broken Lizard Show will take an innovative and comedic look at race when, hundreds of years in the future, a space ship exploring the galaxy discovers the last white man in the universe.
* Simmons is also executive producing the highly-anticipated HBO limited series Codes of Conduct, directed and developed by Academy Award -winner Steve McQueen ( 12 Years a Slave ). The six-episode limited series is written by McQueen and screenwriter Matthew Michael Carnahan ( World War Z ), and executive produced by McQueen, Simmons, Iain Canning ( The King's Speech ), Emile Sherman ( The King's Speech ) and Alan Poul (HBO's The Newsroom ). Codes of Conduct stars newcomer Devon Terrell as a young man with a mysterious past who enters New York's high society. Paul Dano, Helena Bonham Carter and Rebecca Hall are also featured
* Simmons, alongside Stan Lathan, is producing a Def Comedy Jam 25th Anniversary Special that will feature an all-star lineup of comedians celebrating the longest-running and most influential comedy showcase on cable television.
We always speak of having distinct voices at HBO, and few in the industry are as unique and intelligent as Russell, says Michael Lombardo, president, HBO Programming. He's been a part of our family for a long time, and we are so pleased to be continuing our relationship.
HBO has been like a home to me for a generation, says Simmons. I am enormously proud of the broad range of programming they have nurtured. Together, we have discovered new voices and helped launch emerging artists that deserved a mainstream platform. I am even more excited by the next generation of talent and shows that we are developing through All Def Digital TV.
Simmons' relationship with HBO dates back to 1992, when he co-created Def Comedy Jam, the landmark series that helped make household names of Jamie Foxx, Chris Tucker, Martin Lawrence, Bernie Mac, Dave Chappelle, Kevin Hart and many others. In 2002 Simmons launched the Peabody Award-winning Def Poetry Jam. A Broadway version of the series earned Simmons a Tony Award.
As co-founder of Def Jam Recordings with producer Rick Rubin in 1984, Simmons oversaw the signing of seminal hip-hop acts, including Run-DMC, Beastie Boys, Public Enemy, LL Cool J, Jay Z and Kanye West. He also founded the iconic retail brands Phat Farm and Baby Phat and the trailblazing Rushcard debit card business. He has written three New York Times bestselling books on happiness and well-being, including 2014's Success Through Stillness: Meditation Made Simple.
ABOUT HBO
Home Box Office, Inc. is the premium television programming subsidiary of Time Warner Inc. and the world's most successful pay TV service, providing the two television services - HBO and Cinemax - to approximately 122 million subscribers worldwide. The services offer the popular subscription video-on-demand products HBO On Demand and Cinemax On Demand , as well as HBO GO and MAX GO , HD feeds and multiplex channels. HBO NOWSM, the network's internet only premium streaming service, provides audiences with instant access to HBO's acclaimed programming in the U.S. Internationally, HBO branded television networks, along with the subscription video-on-demand products HBO On Demand and HBO GO, bring HBO services to over 60 countries. HBO and Cinemax programming is sold into over 150 countries worldwide.
ABOUT ALL DEF DIGITAL
All Def Digital (ADD) is the leading multi-platform media company for millennials focusing on urban youth culture through video programming across comedy, music, lifestyle and topical and timely social commentary. The company nurtures new and established artists and produces and incubates a broad spectrum of original content through an efficient and transformative media model leveraged across social video platforms, traditional and premium television and motion picture development, live events, and its own record label in partnership with Universal Music Group. ADD also includes a highly curated and growing network of talent - from traditional writers and stand up comics to social video stars, from poets to hip hop recording artists. ADD partners with global brands to create immersive and authentic social content experiences with unique talent voices. In its first year of ope
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HBO and Russell Simmons Enter into Overall Production and Development Deal July 30, 2015
