On Wednesday, Variety revealed that HBO Max has enlisted Keke Palmer, Jermaine Crawford, and Amy Aniobi to develop an upcoming comedy series titled ‘Unfriendly Black Hotties.’ The only problem is that the concept of the show was said to have been created by TV producer Shay Caldwell, who is stunned that the same format she had pitched to the network has been greenlit without any of her involvement.
Caldwell took to her Instagram where she shared a series of photos proving that ‘Unfriendly Black Hotties’ had been something she had been pitching in Hollywood for the last two years, including potential cast members, mood boards, and more. One particular image showed a screenshot of an email from the Copyright Office, which indicated she may have copyrighted the title, yet HBO Max allegedly still went ahead and took her idea.
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“It strikes me as odd that the very project execs believed stood no chance with its title in the climate we live in would go on to find a life with the exact title and very similar content matter,” she wrote. Caldwell said she began receiving congratulatory messages from her industry peers who weren’t aware that she and her writing partner, Cassady, had been shunned from being part of their own project.
“It was surreal to see my phone light up with congratulations from my peers and execs who know about my pitch about my project I did not indeed sell,” Caldwell continued to explain.
“I thought long and hard about making this post, but I derived that we need to share our experiences about the let downs of this industry as up and coming black narrators. We talk so much about spearheading change, but the first step is speaking out when injustice is happening.
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Given the photos she provided in her post, Caldwell makes it clear that ‘Unfriendly Black Hotties’ was a show that she developed alongside Cassady, and she trusts that executives at HBO Max will find it in themselves to rectify the situation as soon as possible.
In Variety’s exclusive report, the publication claims that Palmer, Crawford and Aniobi will serve as co-writers and executive producers, though it remains unclear if any of them will have starring roles in the comedy series itself.