Bryshere Y. Gray, Elijah Kelley, Luke James, Keith Powers,
Algee Smith and Woody McClain Join the Cast of BET's Much-Anticipated
Three-Part Miniseries
Chris Robinson to Direct Series with Principal Photography Starting
in Los Angeles in May 2016
JCE Films, a Division of Jesse Collins Entertainment to Produce
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
COOL IT NOW! BET Networks announces cast of the much-anticipated New
Edition biopic: NEW EDITION: THE MOVIE. Bryshere Y. Gray (Empire),
Elijah Kelley (The Butler, The Wiz Live!),
Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Luke James, Keith
Powers (Straight Outta Compton) and new comers Algee
Smith and Woody McClain have joined the cast of the original
miniseries based on the iconic music group New Edition. Acclaimed
director Chris Robinson(ATL) signs on as director with Brooke
Payne, Ricky Bell, Michael Bivins, Ronnie DeVoe, Johnny Gill,
Ralph Tresvantand Bobby Brownsigned on as co-producers for
the film. Written by Abdul Williams(Lottery Ticket) the
three-night miniseries event is scheduled to premiere on BET in 2017
with principal photography starting in Los Angeles in May 2016.
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Bryshere Y. Gray will play Michael Bivins as an
adult and Dante Hoagland will play Michael as a child.
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Elijah Kelley will play Ricky Bell as an adult and Caleb
McLaughlinwill play Ricky as a child.
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Luke James will play Johnny Gill.
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Algee Smith will play Ralph Tresvant as an
adult and Jahi Winstonwill play Ralph as a child.
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Keith Powers will play Ronnie DeVoe as an adult and Myles
Truitt will play Ronnie as a child.
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Woody McClain will play Bobby Brown as an adult and Tyler
Williams will play Bobby as a child.
New Edition laid the foundation for how modern-day boy bands look, feel,
and sound. Boyz II Men, N'SYNC, The Backstreet Boys, and New Kids On The
Block all took their cues from Ronnie, Bobby, Ricky, Mike, Ralph and
Johnny. After 30 years of breaking hearts on the record and from the
stage, New Edition finally gets the biopic that their stellar tenure in
entertainment so richly deserves. This 3-part miniseries follows the
group from their humble beginnings as kids in Boston to global
megastardom - weathering the highs and lows of controversy, personnel
changes, and the ultimate cost of fame.
"NEW EDITION: THE MOVIE" is executive produced by Jesse Collins
(Real Husbands of Hollywood) for JCE Films, a division of Jesse Collins
Entertainment; and directed by Chris Robinson (ATL).
For more information on NEW EDITION: THE MOVIE log on to BET.com
and join the conversation on social media using the hashtag
#NewEditionBET.
About BET Networks
BET Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIA.B), is the
nation's leading provider of quality entertainment, music, news and
public affairs television programming for the African-American audience.
The primary BET channel reaches more than 90 million households and can
be seen in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, the United Kingdom
and sub-Saharan Africa. BET is the dominant African-American consumer
brand with a diverse group of business extensions: BET.com, a leading
Internet destination for Black entertainment, music, culture, and news;
CENTRIC, a 24-hour entertainment network targeting the African-American
Woman; BET Music Networks - BET Jams, BET Soul and BET Gospel; BET Home
Entertainment; BET Live, BET's growing festival business; BET Mobile,
which provides ringtones, games and video content for wireless devices;
and BET International, which operates BET around the globe.
About Jesse Collins Entertainment
Jesse Collins Entertainment is a full service television and film
production company founded by entertainment industry veteran Jesse
Collins. For more than a decade, Collins has played an integral role in
producing some of television's most memorable moments in music
entertainment. Formerly Executive Producer/EVP of Cossette Productions,
Collins has produced ground-breaking and award winning television
programming including the BET Awards, the GRAMMY Awards, Soul Train
Awards, BET Honors, UNCF An Evening of Stars, ABFF Awards and the BET
Hip Hop Awards. Collins is an executive producer of the hit TV series,
Real Husbands of Hollywood starring Kevin Hart and the upcoming original
miniseries based on the iconic music group New Edition. He has worked
with a myriad of superstar talent including Will Smith, Chris Rock,
Jay-Z, Rihanna, Kanye West, Kendrick Lamar, Drake, Prince and Mariah
Carey. Follow Jesse Collins Entertainment @JesseCollinsEnt on Twitter
and Instagram and go to http://www.jessecollinsent.com/
for more information on the company.
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160421006066/en/
Media:
BET Networks
Luis Defrank, 212-205-3156
Luis.defrank@bet.net
or
Jesse
Collins Entertainment
Staci R. Collins Jackson, 312-600-7774
SRCJ@TheCollinsJacksonAgency.com
Source: BET Networks
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