Prolific director and producer Ava DuVernay is currently working on a new TV comedy series that will be inspired by Colin Kaepernick’s high school years.
Not much has been shared about the upcoming show, which draws inspiration from the former NFL quarterback and activist. The news first appeared in a Vanity Fair article sharing behind-the-scenes details about Hollywood’s top showrunners, including DuVernay.
From Vanity Fair (emphasis mine):
She’s four weeks out from a trip to serve on the Cannes Film Festival jury, and DuVernay has a lot to do: casting for her yet-to-be-named Netflix limited series about the Central Park Five; working with editors, directors, and writers on the third season of Queen Sugar, which started airing May 29; putting the finishing touches on her CBS pilot, Red Line; and meeting with her Wrinkle producer Jim Whitaker on two new projects, including the Battle of Versailles movie at HBO and a TV comedy series with Colin Kaepernick that centers on his high school life.
Last year, DuVernay spoke at length with GQ about her admiration for Kaepernick, whom she counts as a friend since meeting him at the Time 100 event in April last year.
“I see what he’s done as art,” DuVernay told GQ. “I believe that art is seeing the world that doesn’t exist. You know a lot of people excel at creativity—making TV, movies, painting, writing books—but you can be an artist in your own life. Civil rights activists are artists. Athletes are artists. People who imagine something that is not there.”
DuVernay also called the famed athlete-activist “history walking around” and disputed speculation that Kaepernick had his worldview “shaped” by others, including his girlfriend, Nessa Diab. The director-producer added that Kaepernick was well aware that he may never play professional football again.
“He has to find new ways to be in the world and do the things that he wants to do,” she said. “And I believe that he’ll find a way to do that.”