Live All in the Family and The Jeffersons for One-Night Only on ABC!

[Pavan]

JIMMY KIMMEL BRINGS AN UNFORGETTABLE NIGHT OF TELEVISION TO ABC WITH

‘LIVE IN FRONT OF A STUDIO AUDIENCE: NORMAN LEAR’S ‘ALL IN THE FAMILY’ AND ‘THE JEFFERSONS,’’ WEDNESDAY, MAY 22



ALL-STAR CAST INCLUDES ELLIE KEMPER, JAMIE FOXX, JUSTINA MACHADO,

MARISA TOMEI, WANDA SYKES, WILL FERRELL AND WOODY HARRELSON



ABC’s late-night host Jimmy Kimmel presents a live, 90-minute prime-time event in tribute to classic television sitcoms. “Live in Front of a Studio Audience: Norman Lear’s ‘All in the Family’ and ‘The Jeffersons’” teams Kimmel with television icon Norman Lear and executive producers Brent Miller, Will Ferrell, Adam McKay and Justin Theroux. This special, airing live WEDNESDAY, MAY 22 (8:00-9:31 p.m. EDT), on The ABC Television Network, will take viewers down memory lane, recreating an original episode from each of the Emmy® Award-winning series “All in the Family” and “The Jeffersons.” This legendary night of television will be hosted by Lear and Kimmel, and directed by 10-time Emmy winner James Burrows.



“All in the Family” and “The Jeffersons” were groundbreaking shows that changed American television. In this new, one-night-only event, Woody Harrelson will take on the role of Archie Bunker, alongside Marisa Tomei who will be playing Edith Bunker, with Jamie Foxx and Wanda Sykes playing George and Louise Jefferson. Ellie Kemper will play Gloria Stivic; Will Ferrell will appear as Tom Willis, and Justina Machado is set to play Florence Johnston. More stars will be named later.



“The fact that a group of Oscar® winners eagerly agreed to play these iconic characters is a testament to the greatness of these shows and their creator, Norman Lear. To be a part of this is a dream come true for me and for everyone involved,” said Jimmy Kimmel.



“We are so honored to partner with our brilliant friend Jimmy Kimmel and trailblazer Norman Lear to bring some of the most iconic sitcoms ever made back to television,” said Karey Burke, president, ABC Entertainment. “These revered shows are as culturally relevant today as they’ve ever been, and the talent they have gathered makes this the can’t-miss television event of the year … make that decade.”



“They have said over and over again that these two shows were meant for the ‘70s and would not work today. We disagree with them and are here to prove, with two great casts depicting ‘All in the Family’ and ‘The Jeffersons,’ the timelessness of human nature. I cannot wait to see what these glorious performers make in our time of these indelible characters, and I couldn’t be more grateful for Jimmy Kimmel, Sony and ABC for their collective willingness to conceive and pursue this never-been-done-before event,” said Norman Lear.



“We are honored and elated to be involved in retelling these groundbreaking stories, which are as relevant today as they were 40 years ago when they first aired. And to be working with such brilliant icons as Norman Lear and Jimmy Kimmel, as well as this dream cast, in this exciting new format, is nothing short of amazing!” said Sony Pictures Television Studios President Jeff Frost and Co-Presidents Chris Parnell and Jason Clodfelter.



From 1971 through 1979, “All in the Family” was in the homes of millions of Americans, tackling controversial subjects for the first time such as women’s rights, racism and homosexuality. The series followed Archie Bunker as the highly opinionated, working-class family man who viewed the world on his terms. When not arguing with his liberal son-in-law, Archie took refuge in his wife, Edith, who tried to understand Archie's conservative ways and outdated beliefs. The award-winning series shaped ongoing political and social conversations among American families in the post-civil rights era.



The success of “All in the Family” launched “The Jeffersons,” running from 1975 to 1985. It was the first television series to feature an interracial couple, and it would go on to be one of the longest-running African-American shows on TV. The series followed George and Louise Jefferson moving on up to the east side and showcasing what it was like to be successful in a predominantly white world. The series changed the landscape and helped shift conversations about race and class, paving the way for other African-American actors and TV shows.



“Live in Front of a Studio Audience: Norman Lear’s ‘All in the Family’ and ‘The Jeffersons’” will be produced by Smoking Baby Productions, ACT III Productions, Gary Sanchez Productions and Sony Pictures Television. Norman Lear, Jimmy Kimmel, Brent Miller, Will Ferrell, Adam McKay and Justin Theroux will executive produce; and the live special will be directed by James Burrows.



About ABC Entertainment

ABC Entertainment airs compelling programming across all day parts, including the new dramas “A Million Little Things” and “The Rookie,” starring Nathan Fillion; and new comedies “The Conners,” “The Kids Are Alright” and “Single Parents.” The ABC Television Network is also home to the groundbreaking dramas “The Good Doctor,” “How to Get Away with Murder” and “Grey’s Anatomy”; the Emmy® Award-winning “Modern Family” and trailblazing comedy favorites “black-ish,” “American Housewife,” “Fresh Off the Boat,” “The Goldbergs,” “Speechless” and “Splitting Up Together”; hit game shows “The $100,000 Pyramid,” “Celebrity Family Feud,” “Match Game” and “To Tell the Truth”; star-making sensation “American Idol”; reality phenomenon “Shark Tank,” iconic “The Bachelor” franchise, long-running hits “Dancing with the Stars” and “America’s Funniest Home Videos”; “General Hospital,” which has aired for over 50 years on the network; and late-night talk show “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” The network also boasts some of television’s most prestigious awards shows, including “The Oscars®,” “The CMA Awards” and “The American Music Awards.”



ABC’s multiplatform business initiative also allows viewers to watch current episodes of their favorite ABC shows anytime, anywhere on ABC.com and the ABC app for desktop, smartphone, tablet or connected TV devices.



ABOUT SONY PICTURES TELEVISION

Sony Pictures Television (SPT) is one of the television industry’s leading content providers, producing, distributing and carrying programming worldwide in every genre and for every platform. In addition to managing one of the industry’s largest libraries of award-winning feature films, television shows and formats, SPT is home to a thriving global content business, operating 24 wholly-owned or joint-venture production companies in 12 countries, as well as linear and digital channels around the world. Sony Pictures Television is a Sony Pictures Entertainment Company.

[Heenan Fan]

I'm gonna give it a try. Jamie Fox as George and Woody Harrelson as Archie Bunker is enough for me to at least give it a chance. Marissa Tomei is always great. I liked both shows, so maybe I'm thinking more with my heart more than my brain. Plus it's live.

Will it suck? Probably. But don't knock it 'til ya tried it.

[SitcomsHeydayfan]

Gonna check it out eventhough there's NO WAY they live up to the originals!

[MA]

https://www.apnews.com/4c28fb3751c64d598a613e3a6dc88be2

The producers are not revealing which episodes are being restaged.

[SitcomsHeydayfan]

Jamie Foxx is too tall and too dark to play George if you want to actually be accurate in recreating George's character like you should be.

[PracTz]

Not only was Jamie Foxx far too tall to be believable as George since Sherman Helmsley was a virtual midget next to Isabel Sanford and it added to the comedy of George trying to overcompensate via his newfound success for being so small but I also thought Fran Bennett was far too big and tall to have played Mother Jefferson. The late Zara Cully had been downright pixie sized even compared to Sherman Helmsley (and had actually been quite striking when she was young) which enhanced the comedy of this tiny bird-like creature dominating the physically intimidating Isabel Sanford solely due to being older and Louise's mother-in-law (in much the same way seeing tiny Estelle Getty dominate the lofty Bea Arthur on 'Golden Girls' was pure gold) ! Having a performer virtually the same size as her daughter-in-law as Miss Bennett was to Miss Sykes just didn't have the same punch!

[SitcomsHeydayfan]

Mother Jefferson was horribly miscast. So was Louise. Wanda Sykes is nothing like Isabel Sanford.

[Heenan Fan]

Originally Posted by SitcomsHeydayfan

Mother Jefferson was horribly miscast. So was Louise. Wanda Sykes is nothing like Isabel Sanford.

Agreed. And Will Ferrell couldn't be bothered to wear a blonde wig?

[SitcomsHeydayfan]

So Jacke played the other maid right?

[PracTz]

Originally Posted by SitcomsHeydayfan

So Jacke played the other maid right?

Right- and I have to say that Jackee actually did a fairly good job playing someone not a total flirt this time. The only problem here was that the character Diane had been an older woman (and appeared to have been roughly Louise's age) while Florence started her stint as a 'go gettum' relatively young woman. Pauline Myers was already 61 to Marla Gibbs's 43 at the time but Jackee is now 62 and Ms. Gibbs is now 87[!] (and a bit more 'chill' than she'd been in 1975) so it somewhat altered the dynamic- although it still was a treat to have Ms. Gibbs back (and interesting to see her and 'Sondra' have another time together).

[SitcomsHeydayfan]

Originally Posted by PracTz

Right- and I have to say that Jackee actually did a fairly good job playing someone not a total flirt this time. The only problem here was that the character Diane had been an older woman (and appeared to have been roughly Louise's age) while Florence started her stint as a 'go gettum' relatively young woman. Pauline Myers was already 61 to Marla Gibbs's 43 at the time but Jackee is now 62 and Ms. Gibbs is now 87[!] (and a bit more 'chill' than she'd been in 1975) so it somewhat altered the dynamic- although it still was a treat to have Ms. Gibbs back (and interesting to see her and 'Sondra' have another time together).

Normally when you do a reboot you cast actors of a similar age, height, & appearance but obviously Norman Lear doesn't care about that!

[Heenan Fan]

I still liked it overall though. Especially George, Helen, and Florence. The set looked good, and Jennifer Hudson was great singing the iconic Jefferson's theme song. I liked both shows.

[Johnny be good!]

I thought it was hilarious.

[Chocolate Moose]

this would be great for other shows too.

[magellan333]

I enjoyed it. I agree that Jamie Foxx’s size made George Jefferson much more intimidating than when the late great Sherman Hemsley played the role. Wanda Sykes was good as Louise. Will Ferrell as Tom Willis was just strange.