‘The Neighborhood’ Spinoff ‘Crutch’ Starring Tracy Morgan Ordered By Paramount+
The Neighborhood universe is expanding with a second series, Crutch. Paramount+ has picked up the half-hour, multi-camera comedy headlined by Tracy Morgan. It is set in the world of the popular CBS sitcom starring Cedric the Entertainer, which has been renewed for a seventh season.
Crutch hails from Owen Smith, who penned the pilot script, and The Neighborhood‘s production companies, Cedric’s A Bird and a Bear Entertainment, Aaron Kaplan’s Kapital Entertainment, Wendi Trilling TrillTV and CBS Studios.
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It centers on its titular character Francois “Frank” Crutchfield (Morgan) – or “Crutch” to those who know him well – a Harlem widower whose empty-nest plans are put on hold after his millennial son and free-spirited daughter move back home.
Morgan and Cedric starred together on Morgan’s TBS comedy series The Last O.G., with Cedric as a series regular on Season 1 before segueing to recurring when The Neighborhood was picked up to series.
The idea for an offshoot of the CBS sitcom built around Morgan has been percolating for a couple of years. During Season 4 of The Neighborhood, the SNL alum guest starred in the episode “Welcome to Bro Money, Bro Problems,” written by then-showrunner Meg DeLoatch, as Calvin’s (Cedric) rich younger brother, Curtis. While not a formal backdoor pilot, the episode had been envisioned as proof of concept for a potential spinoff.
That project didn’t move forward. The new idea, which landed a series order by Paramount+, comes from a new writer, Smith, who is reuniting with Morgan and Cedric after serving as showrunner and executive producer on The Last O.G.. It features Morgan as a different character, Crutch, who is Calvin’s cousin.
“I’m excited to be expanding our The Neighborhood universe by producing a show with the legendary comedian Tracy Morgan,” Cedric The Entertainer said. “This new character is the close cousin to my character Calvin Butler, and you will enjoy some of their many similarities. Morgan plays Crutch, a ‘say-it-like-it-is’ widowed father who is challenged when his two adult children and a couple of grandchildren need to move back home, and let’s just say there will be several comedic complications.”
Cedric and Eric C. Rhone executive produce Crutch via A Bird and a Bear along with Smith, Kaplan for Kapital Entertainment; Trilling for TrillTV; and Morgan. Filming on the CBS Studios series is slated to begin later this year.
“Crutch will be navigating the ups and downs of having his kids and grandkids back under one roof, and you know if I am doing this, there will be plenty of laughs along the way,” Morgan said. “I am so happy to be able to do this with my brother Cedric The Entertainer, Owen Smith and the rest of the amazing crew we have put together. Get ready for your new favorite show!”
This is the second current hit CBS series to get a spinoff on Paramount+, joining NCIS, whose Tony and Ziva offshoot was recently greenlighted by the streamer. With Crutch, Paramount+ is expanding its portfolio of multi-cam originals, adding to another franchise extension, the new Frasier series starring Kelsey Grammer.
“Our subscribers love CBS’ The Neighborhood, so it’s a natural fit to bring Crutch to Paramount+,” said Jeff Grossman, EVP of Programming, Paramount Streaming. “We can’t wait to see what the immense talents behind Crutch – Tracy Morgan, Cedric The Entertainer and Owen Smith – bring to this new series.”
Crutch, distributed by Paramount Global Content Distribution, marks Kapital’s return to Paramount+; the company produced thriller anthology series Tell Me A Story for predecessor CBS All Access. At CBS, Kapital also has the upcoming drama series Watson.
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