Boots Riley is looking to follow up his darkly comic, satirical “Sorry to Bother You” with another Bay Area-set project.
The directors teased via Twitter that he is developing a new series titled “I’m A Virgo,” which will star “When They See Us” and “Moonlight” alum Jharrel Jerome in the lead role.
Riley says the series is about a 13-foot Black man who lives in Oakland, describing it as “dark, absurd, hilarious, and important,” all of which would apply to his 2018 big screen directorial debut. Precisely where the series will end up is yet to be decided, as Riley says, however, given his and Jerome’s involvement, a bidding war could well be on the cards.
Riley is developing the series in conjunction with Michael Ellenberg’s Media Res, the studio behind Apple’s “The Morning Show” and the upcoming drama “Pachinko,” based on Min Jin Lee’s novel.
Here’s Riley’s tweet announcing the development news:
https://twitter.com/BootsRiley/status/1275095710732414976?s=20
“Sorry to Bother You” starred Lakeith Stanfield as Cassius “Cash” Green, a struggling telemarketer whose career takes off when he starts adopting a “white voice” to speak with his customers over the phone. The film also starred Tessa Thompson, Terry Crews, Danny Glover, Steven Yeun and Armie Hammer. It dealt with themes of gentrification and the rapid expansion of the tech industry in the Bay Area.
Jerome’s other small screen credits include “Mr. Mercedes” and “Tales.” He won an Emmy last year for playing Korey Wise in Ava DuVernay’s “When They See Us,” and will next star in “Concrete Cowboys,” a feature starring Idris Elba about Black urban cowboys in Philadelphia.
