By Beth Harris
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) --Chuck Lorre is bringing his take on immigrant life in America to CBS, and claims it has nothing to do with President Donald Trump's hardline stance on the crisis at the southern U.S. border.
The creator of such hits as "The Big Bang Theory" and "Young Sheldon" told a TV critics meeting Thursday that "Bob Hearts Abishola" is about the greatness of first-generation immigrants and the hard work and focus they bring to their new lives in America.
"I have no idea what the reaction might be. I hope it's what's in our heart," Lorre said. "We're all immigrants or grandchildren of immigrants or greatgrandchildren of immigrants. It's not a political show in that sense. It's about people."
Lorre pulled a yellow baseball cap with the black letters IMAG out of a plastic grocery bag, explaining it stood for Immigrants Make America Great as he donned it.
He said the show is about people he's known who have come to America.
"I've always thought that is a great story," he said.
On the surface, the show resembles a romantic comedy in the vein of Lorre's hit "Mike & Molly," which co-starred Billy Gardell, who plays one of the title characters in the show debuting Sept. 23.
But Lorre said the romance is merely a way to get into the story of Bob, a middle-aged compression sock salesman from Detroit, who falls for his cardiac nurse, a Nigerian immigrant, while recovering from a heart attack.
"I don't think he cares where she's from," Gardell said. "He just thinks there's a moment of safety after a moment of danger."
Folake Olowofoyeku (fola-ke-olo-wo-foy-e-ku), a Nigeria native, plays Abishola. Producer Gina Yashere, a Brit whose parents are Nigerian, was brought in to help Lorre and fellow executive producer Al Higgins with authenticity.
Yashere quickly asked the name of the nurse. Higgins said they were thinking Lupita, inspired by actress Lupita Nyong'o.
Yashere pointed out Nyong'o was born in Mexico and grew up in Kenya. She gave Lorre and Higgins a list of Nigerian names and they chose Abishola, which she said means to guide.
"Not too complicated for the American palate once you get used to it," Yashere said.
SCHROM x Yacht Club and Be Electric Studios Launch Electric XR for Virtual Production
SCHROM x Yacht Club, a full-service live-action, tabletop, and postproduction company, has teamed with Be Electric Studios, a soundstage, equipment rental, and virtual production company, to launch Electric XR, a virtual production collective.
Industry veteran Thomas Rossano will lead the new venture, which provides advanced virtual production solutions across multiple facilities. He brings over 25 years of experience in live-action, tabletop, postproduction and talent curation to enhance Electric XR’s offerings as a resource for brands and agencies, as well as other production companies in need of virtual production solutions. Additionally Rossano continues to serve as EP at XR New York (XR-NY), a role he’s held since December 2022. SCHROM x Yacht Club originally established XR-NY to help provide XR services for third-party rentals. While XR-NY will continue to function independently for SCHROM X Yacht Club, it now operates under the Electric XR umbrella.
Rossano’s expertise spans producing live-action commercials, branded content, interactive and experiential content. In addition to leading Electric XR, he holds responsibilities at SCHROM x Yacht Club which include driving business development, collaborating with sales reps and expanding the company’s creative talent network. Rossano’s career includes serving as an exec producer at Hungry Man for about 11 years, right from that company’s inception. He then went on to become a partner at Station Film where he also had a lengthy tenure. Later he was a partner at PRISM. Then after the pandemic hit, he became a freelance EP for nearly two years, looking into opportunities in virtual production, which led him to XR NY and now Electric XR. Over the years, he has produced high-profile... Read More