FX Orders Late-Night Series Produced By Chris Rock And Starring W. Kamau Bell

FX has greenlighted a new weekly half-hour late-night series executive produced by Chris Rock and starring standup comedian W. Kamau Bell. The network has ordered six episodes of the show — in which Bell will dissect politics, pop culture, race, religion, the media and sex — for a premiere this summer. FX’s EVP Original Programming Nick Grad said the series order was made after the network reviewed the project’s “terrific” presentation. “Kamau is a tremendous young comedian who has a very smart and sharp take on life,” Grad said. “Working with Chris will only bring out the best of his talents.” This is FX’s second late-night series order following the pickup of Russell Brand’s Strangely Uplifting, also for a summer premiere. The two shows “put FX on really solid footing in the late-night arena,” Grad said. The untitled Chris Rock/W. Kamau Bell series is produced by FX Prods, with Rock, Chuck Sklar, and Bell executive producing. “I think Kamau is one of the funniest guys out there and I can’t wait to work with the good people at FX,” Rock said. This marks ICM-repped Rock’s return to the late-night arena following his eponymous 1997 talk show, which ran on HBO for three seasons and earned a best writing Emmy.