Eva Gutowski, the fashion and beauty star behind YouTube channel MyLifeAsEva, will topline YouTube Red’s latest original series: a scripted buddy comedy about her attempts to make it big in Hollywood with her sixty-something grandmother.
“Me and My Grandma,” a half-hour single-camera series, will premiere on the YouTube Red $10 monthly subscription service in 2017. The show is executive produced by Gutowski and SelectNext’s Adam Wescott and Scott Fisher, along with “How to Survive High School” writer Annie Stamell and showrunner Jill Condon, whose producing credits include “Friends,” “The Cosby Show” and “Grounded for Life.”
“As a child growing up, my grandma and I had so many great adventures together and I am grateful that she is still a big part of my life today!” Gutowski said in a statement. “I am excited for viewers to experience all the laughs I have shared with her but in a longer-form, scripted series!”
The deal exemplifies YouTube’s originals strategy: It wants to embrace homegrown talent so they don’t take more ambitious projects to other platforms. Gutowski has more than 12.5 million followers across social platforms, including 6.9 million subscribers on YouTube. Last year, she released a satirical music video entitled “Literally, My Life” that spent 14 weeks at No. 1 on iTunes.
Series co-creators Stamell and Gutowski previously teamed with SelectNext on Gutowski-starrer “How to Survive High School,” one of the most-watched short-form scripted series on YouTube to date with more than 43 million views.
“Me and My Grandma” marks the first digital foray for TV vet Condon. “I’m so excited to bring my network television experience into the digital space and to collaborate with YouTube Red and Eva on this series,” she said. “And, I’m looking forward to finally understanding what my kids are talking about.”
“We are thrilled to be in business with a rising star and dynamic creator like Eva,” said Susanne Daniels, YouTube’s global head of original content. “I’m excited about how ‘Me and My Grandma’ will tell this multi-generational story from different perspectives.”
In another project for YouTube Red, SelectNext is producing its first feature-length film, a documentary about YouTube star Gigi Gorgeous, slated to premiere in late 2016.
YouTube Red, launched last year, provides ad-free access to all videos on the service, the ability to save videos to watch offline on mobile, and access to millions of songs on Google Play Music. Other originals on YouTube Red have include “Scare PewDiePie” and “Escape the Night With Joey Graceffa.”
