Fans of the 1999 film The Wood are in for a treat, as Showtime is developing a comedy pilot based on the movie and some of the original cast members are involved.
Per Variety, rapper Vince Staples stars alongside Xavier Mills, Karen Obilom, Melvin Gregg, and Essence Renae. Richard T. Jones and Tamala Jones are set to return as Slim and Tanya.
The series is “an honest look at friendship and dating from the perspective of three young Black males born and raised in the gentrifying L.A. suburb of Inglewood. The trio’s struggles to balance fatherhood, ambition and loyalty force them to question if they are growing apart, or closer together.” The film’s writer/director Rick Famuyiwa is executive producing and directing the pilot.
While the film focused on three friends coming to terms with adulthood in the hours before one of them gets married, the series seems to be following a younger crew as they make decisions about their futures.
Staples is aspiring photographer Jamal, whose upper class parents cut him off when he decides not to attend Morehouse College, and Mills (Legacies) is Dame, who is only open and honest with his high school sweetheart Brielle—a confident engineer—played by Obilom (Doom Patrol).
Gregg (Snowfall) and Renae (Bosch: Legacy) are Pokémon card reseller Shawn and aspiring fashion designer Ashley, a couple deciding if it’s time to move forward and settle down or make a change in their relationship status.
From Cobra Kai, to Chucky, to The Mandalorian, to The Best Man: Final Chapter, TV continuations of popular films have become the newest trend. In an overly populated entertainment landscape, studios will always go with the proven, familiar commodity over a much riskier new title.
If you’re looking to rewatch or catch it for the first time, The Wood is available to rent or buy on Amazon Instant Video and Google Play.