As the summer days cool off (eventually), we'll soon be entering the early months of fall. With that, college students — or future college students — nationwide will have to handle the uncertainties that come with this unorthodox year, and that's true to the tube as well. As a spin-off of The CW's acclaimed All American, All American: Homecoming will follow two young students as they navigate the difficulties that come with being top-tier athletes in a prestigious Black university. With the series not set to premiere until sometime in 2022, we're still learning more details about this new show, but we have some notable tidbits of information about this upcoming program, which we'll share with you now. Here's what we know so far about this All American spin-off series.
All American: Homecoming Will Premiere During The CW’s Midseason 2022 Line-Up
At the moment, it's unclear when All American: Homecoming is set to air, though we do know that it's expected to be part of The CW's midseason 2022 line-up, likely around the time All American Season 4 returns. That's obviously a while away, so it'll be a few months before we get anything official regarding this premiere date. But when the series debut date is announced, we'll be sure to keep you posted here at CinemaBlend.
Geffri Maya Will Reprise Her Role As Simone Hicks In This Spin-Off
Starting in Season 2, Geffri Maya gained a recurring role on The CW's All American as Simone Hicks, Jordan Baker's love interest. Now, she'll have a show of her own with All American: Homecoming. Elsewhere, Maya is best known for her parts in ABC's Private Practice and FX's Snowfall. Her other television credits include The Pre-Quarter Life Crisis, black-ish, Everybody Hates Chris, Jericho, Finding Carter, and WTF, Baron Davis.
All American: Homecoming’s Cast Includes Peyton Alex Smith, Kelly Jenrette, Cory Hardrict, And More
Alongside Geffri Maya, All American: Homecoming will also star Peyton Alex Smith, Kelly Jenrette, Cory Hardrict, Sylvester Powell, Camille Hyde, and Netta Walker. More specifically, Smith is signed on to play Damon, a promising basketball superstar, while Jenrette will be playing Amara Patterson, Simone's aunt. Additionally, Hardrict will appear as Coach Marcus Turner, Powell will play JR, Damon's childhood friend and fellow basketball player, Hyde is attached to the part of Thea, the tennis team's competitive queen bee, and Walker is signed on to the role of Keisha, the school's unofficial mayor.
Most notably, Peyton Alex Smith played Rafael Waithe in The CW's Legacies. Also, Kelly Jenrette is an Emmy-winning actress for her guest part in Hulu's The Handmaid's Tale, Cory Hardrict starred in Crackle's The Oath, and Sylvester Powell was seen in Facebook Watch's Five Points. Moreover, Camille Hyde played the Pink Power Ranger in Power Rangers Dino Charge and Netta Walker recently provided a guest turn in Chicago Fire.
The Freshman Series Follows Two Young Athletes Navigating College Sports And Young Adulthood At A Historical Black University
As the upcoming show's press release notes, All American: Homecoming follows two young athletes who are navigating the challenges that come with college sports and young adulthood while studying in Bringston University, a prestigious institution that's part of the HBCU, i.e. the Historically Black Colleges and Universities. More specifically, the spin-off series will follow a young tennis hopeful (Geffri Maya) and an elite Chicago-based basketball player (Peyton Alex Smith), notably as these student athletes handle "the highs, lows, and sexiness of unsupervised early adulthood at a prestigious HBCU."
All American: Homecoming Is Written And Executive Produced By All American’s Nkechi Okoro Carroll
As the showrunner behind The CW's All American, Nkechi Okoro Caroll is a key player in the acclaimed show's success. Therefore, fans should be relieved to know that she'll also work on All American: Homecoming as a writer and executive producer. Currently, it's unclear if she'll be as involved in this show as she is with the original All American, but her influence is expected to be felt throughout this university-based drama series.
The Pilot Is Directed By All American’s Michael Schultz
A Hollywood mainstay with close to 50 years of experience under his belt, Michael Schultz is one of the most accomplished directors working today — both in film and television. As a filmmaker, Schultz is best known for helming Cooley High, The Last Dragon, Car Wash, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, Which Way Is Up?, Krush Groove, Greased Lightning, and Disorderlies. Moreover, as a TV director, Schultz has called the shots on episodes of Everwood, Arrow, black-ish, Black Lightning, New Girl, The Mysteries of Laura, Chuck, Hart of Dixie, Brothers & Sisters, Touched By An Angel, Charmed, The Practice, Ally McBeal, The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones, Chicago Hope, Picket Fences, Gilmore Girls, and All American, to name only a handful of credits.
Certainly, Michael Schultz's involvement with the latter show made him an easy pick for this spin-off series. Suffice to say, the veteran director is a hard-working man, and All American: Homecoming is only the latest addition to Schultz's ever-expansive resume.
Nkechi Okoro Carroll Wants All American: Homecoming To Broaden The Horizon For Young Viewers
Representation matters. While our blooming television and streaming era has allowed more stories to be told and more perspectives to be shared, we only rarely get the opportunity to see the HBCU experience shared on screen. Well, that's set to change with Nkechi Okoro Caroll's forthcoming spin-off series, All American: Homecoming.
In an interview with EW, the showrunner admitted that she wasn't aware of HBCUs growing up. Her gateway into this world was found with A Different World, The Cosby Show spin-off that followed the students at Hillman College. While we've gotten movies like Drumline and Stomp the Yard, as well as shows like BET's The Quad, this university lifestyle gets less screentime compared to other movies and shows based in Harvard, Princeton, or Juilliard. Therefore, Caroll hopes to "introduce the HBCU experience" to young viewers and "widen the horizon for our youth" on the whole, because "these kids, especially kids who look like me, deserve to be inspired, celebrated, and motivated."
Here's what the showrunner said:
This is my way of hoping I can introduce the HBCU experience and widen the horizon for our youth as a whole. I'm completely surrounded by people who went to HBCUs, and [they have this] sense of finding themselves and finding a place where they felt permission to be whatever version of Black they were and really explore what that means.
All American: Homecoming is expected to premiere sometime in 2022.
