Issa Rae signs on to knock HBO audiences out with new boxing comedy
Untitled Male Friendship Show will presumably also include fisticuffs.
Issa Rae, best known for her hit show Insecure, is set to bring her writing and executive producing skills to a new HBO project - a half-hour sitcom titled Untitled Male Friendship Comedy. This comes after HBO cancelled Rae's previously successful show Rap Sh!t after its second season in 2024. Rae, who recently signed a three-year TV and film production deal with Paramount, had been developing Untitled Male Friendship Show under that title.
The new series will focus on the friendship between two male characters, a barber and a future professional boxer. The show, set in Las Vegas, promises to delve into themes of ambition, loyalty, and the sacrifices that come with pursuing dreams. Prentice Penney, a long-time collaborator with Rae, will direct the pilot and serve as showrunner.
While a cast has not been announced, Rae's history of assembling strong casts suggests another compelling series filled with race, love, sex, success, and failure testing the characters' bond. Rae, currently juggling various projects including producing for SZA and Keke Palmer and a role in Spider-Verse, is also set to support Anna Kendrick and Seth Rogen in their upcoming film Babies.
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