Posted on 04/20/2019 10:06:49 AM PDT by rktman
Jimmy Kimmel and Norman Lear will host and exec produce the 90-minute special. Woody Harrelson will take on Archie Bunker, while Jamie Foxx will play George Jefferson in the May 22 event.
ABC is putting a new spin on the live TV production.
The Disney-owned broadcast network is teaming with Jimmy Kimmel and legendary producer Norman Lear for a live, 90-minute, star-studded tribute to classic sitcoms All in the Family and its spinoff, The Jeffersons. The event — Live in Front of a Studio Audience: Norman Lear's All in the Family and The Jeffersons — is set to air May 22 and will feature Woody Harrelson taking on Carroll O'Connor's famed role of Archie Bunker. Jamie Foxx will play George Jefferson in the role originally made famous by Sherman Hemsley.
(Excerpt) Read more at hollywoodreporter.com ...
I’ll be willing to bet serious coin that the opening scene with Archie will have him wearing a MAGA hat.
Whoops, beat me to it.
And talking about “kikes” and “those black fellas” and “wetbacks”? “Edith. Are my “whites” clean?”
Woody Harrelson will be putting on white face to smear conservatives as bigoted racists, no doubt. ‘Modern day Archie Bunker’. He’s a modern day Meathead espousing dope, getting his hitman daddy out of prison, and global warming.
Horribly miscast.
Wanda Sykes is intellectually dishonest. She said that if Barack won, black people would have to find a new excuse... Can’t go around blamin’ The Man when you ARE The Man.
Is Mr.Jefferson still going to be against interracial marriages?
“...Ferrell will appear as George and Louise’s friend, Tom Willis.”
I always thought that the Willises were more like acquaintances, fish out of water like the Jeffersons ( rich people building ) and were there mostly because they were neighbors.
Interracial couples were rare back then. So now with the new one neither the class warfare angle or interracial marriage apply. Both were major driving forces on the original and the source of much of their comedy.
I considered Harry Bentley ( the UN interpreter ) their friend.
In 1972, nobody knew what Carroll O'Conner's actual views were.
As it turns out, he was probably to the left of his fictional son-in law "Meathead", Rob Reiner.
But the actor played the role so well, everyone assumed that O'Conner was actually Archie.
Why did it work?
Because of the ACTING, and great, somewhat believable scripts.
Norman Lear initially wanted Meathead to be the hero, but to his horror, he found out that the average working class guy identified with Archie.
So Archie became an icon.
Nowadays, we all know what Woody Harelson's views are, so we won't *buy* him in the role of the "lovable bigot".
We'll be onto him, so to speak, because he isn't credible in the least.
CBS did not want this?
Watched 20 minutes until Wanda Sykes came on. Harrelson was OK as Archie, Tomei was good as Edith, but Meathead and Gloria sucked.
You got a lot farther than I ever would have. :-)
Almost forgot, Jovan Adepo played Lionel Jefferson pretty good.
NOT WATCHING! I have better things to do. My TV hasn’t been on for at least four weeks now ..
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.