Gabrielle Union has officially filed a complaint against NBC Universal after they failed to negotiate with her regarding the "toxic" work culture on the set of America's Got Talent, and Dwyane Wade has a lot to say now that he can finally speak on the matter. Gabrielle's negative experiences during her time as a judge on AGT were initially revealed back in November of last year, and after months of attempting to work with the network on how to solve their internal issues, the actress has filed a complaint against NBC Universal, Fremantle, Simon Cowell, and SYCO Entertainment, and will be filing a separate lawsuit against Cowell.
New York Magazine and HuffPost Contributor Yashar Ali initially broke the news on Twitter, after which Gabrielle's hubby, D-Wade, finally went off about how he really feels. He retweeted Yashar's post and directed his message at NBC, letting months of bottled up frustration out and revealing that the negotiating process has been hell for his family. "Y’all have deemed her a liar after months of trying to inform y’all of the issues in the work place and also make sure other employees of color that comes after her won’t have the same experiences," he wrote. "Instead of looking thru the lens of someone who has been an advocate for the black and brown community, for women and for rape victims."
"So instead of making sure your work environment is a a better place for everyone. Y’all have decided that she what? Made it all up because she lost a job?" he continued. "She’s a black women in Hollywood she has lost out on many jobs."
"When these negotiations started my house started being watched and my family started being followed," he revealed. "My daughter couldn’t even go to swim class without us being trailed by people looking for answers. Well y’all have the answers and y’all still don’t wanna listen to them."
Last week, Gabrielle went into greater detail about her experiences while working on America's Got Talent in Variety's cover story.
Seth MacFarlane Leaves Fox, Signs $200 Million Deal With NBC Universal
Seth MacFarlane is moving to NBC.
Seth MacFarlane signed a new deal with NBC Universal for five years and a total of $200 million, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
"Seth’s voice resonates across multiple demographics and mediums. We all admire his ability to create audacious commentary with bold, yet relatable, humor and I look forward to working with him behind and in front of the camera,” said Bonnie Hammer, chairman of NBCUniversal Content Studios.
MacFarlane is best known for creating the hit show Family Guy and has previously worked with 20th Century Fox Television for over two decades.
“All of us at UCP are huge fans of Seth’s work in television and film," said UCP president Dawn Olmstead. "In my household, where the ages range from 11 to 52, Seth falls somewhere between an icon and a god. Whether it’s comedy, drama, science fiction, animation or musicals, his virtuoso knows no boundaries. This, combined with our shared desire to play in every sandbox that the industry has to offer, is why I believe we can be a great home for all of his creative pursuits. Plus, working with him just made me much cooler to my kids.”
With NBC Universal, MacFarlane will create and develop new TV projects for both cable TV and streaming.
"I am extremely honored to be partnering with Dawn Olmstead and the entire UCP team," MacFarlane said. "My relationship with Universal predates this new chapter, and if my experience producing television with UCP is anything like the experience I’ve had producing films with the company, it will be an exciting and creatively fulfilling one for me and for Fuzzy Door. I’m especially inspired by all of the opportunities that NBCUniversal Content Studios has to offer with George and Bonnie at the helm. I will remain indebted to my good friend Dana Walden and the team at 20th for their collaborative partnership over the years, and I look forward to our continued work together on Family Guy, American Dad and The Orville."
Read more about the deal at The Hollywood Reporter.
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson Lands Comedy Series On NBC
The Rock has a new TV series on the way.
NBC has given a straight-to-series order for a comedy series based on the childhood of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.
According to Variety, Johnson will star in all eleven episodes of the upcoming comedy titled The Young Rock, as well as serve as executive producer. Nahnatchka Khan, who directed Always Be My Maybe and created ABC's Fresh off the Boat, co-wrote the pilot with Jeff Chiang. Khan has also written for American Dad!. Khan is under contract with Universal Television which will serve as the studio.
The Young Rock will not be Johnson's first television show. He starred in Ballers, which ran on HBO for five seasons from 2015 through 2019 and also hosts NBC's competition series The Titan Games.
Johnson's most recent work is his starring role in Jumanji: The Next Level. The film has grossed over $600M worldwide and also stars Kevin Hart, Jack Black, and Karen Gillan. Critics and fans alike enjoy the film. It has a 71% rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes and an 87% rating from fans.
In other NBC-related news, the studio just inked a $200 million deal to bring in Seth MacFarlane from 20th Century Fox. MacFarlane is the creator of Family Guy and had been at Fox for over 20 years.