NICKELODEON SETS DATE FOR NEW BUDDY COMEDY SERIES
STARRING THAT GIRL LAY LAY,
THURSDAY, SEPT. 23, AT 7:30 P.M. (ET/PT)
Share it: @Nickelodeon @thatgirllaylay #thatgirllaylay
HOLLYWOOD, Calif.--Aug. 26, 2021--Nickelodeon is bringing magic to life with That Girl Lay Lay, an all-new buddy comedy series premiering Thursday, Sept. 23, at 7:30 p.m. (ET/PT). That Girl Lay Lay follows Lay Lay (Alaya “That Girl Lay Lay” High), an avatar from a personal affirmation app that magically comes to life, and her best friend Sadie (Gabrielle Nevaeh Green) as they navigate life as teenagers and discover who they truly are.
In the premiere of That Girl Lay Lay, Sadie wishes upon a star that her hype-girl avatar, Lay Lay, were real, causing Lay Lay to magically come to life. Now that she is in the real world with Sadie, Lay Lay decides that she wants a teenage experience herself and enrolls in the local school. Using her innate charm, Lay Lay convinces Sadie that she needs to come out of her shell and the best way for her to stand out is to run for student council.
That Girl Lay Lay follows Lay Lay, an avatar from a phone app, and Sadie, a girl who is struggling to make her mark in school and in need of a best friend to talk to. After Sadie wishes upon a star that her hype-girl avatar Lay Lay was real, she magically comes to life, and the two friends learn that when they are together, they can accomplish anything. That Girl Lay Lay also stars Peyton Perrine III as Sadie’s brother, Marky; Tiffany Daniels as Sadie’s mom, Trish; Thomas Hobson as Sadie’s dad, Bryce; and Caleb Brown as Lay Lay and Sadie’s classmate, Jeremy.
The series marks Nickelodeon’s first project under an overall deal with That Girl Lay Lay to develop original multiform programming and music initiatives, and build a cross-category consumer products business. In addition to her new comedy series, Nickelodeon’s comprehensive strategy for That Girl Lay Lay includes supporting her music career and an exclusive line of consumer products, with merchandising agreements spanning categories such as softlines, toy, publishing and more.
That Girl Lay Lay is produced by Will Packer Media (Bigger), with Will Packer (Little, Ride Along) and Carolyn Newman serving as executive producers and Toy Monique Hawkins and Peggy Cheng overseeing. The series is created and executive produced by David A. Arnold (Side Hustle, Fuller House, Bigger), who also serves as showrunner. John Beck & Ron Hart (Side Hustle, Fuller House, Liv and Maddie) serve as executive producers.
Production of That Girl Lay Lay for Nickelodeon is overseen by Zack Olin and Shauna Phelan, Co-Heads of Nickelodeon & Awesomeness Live-Action. Jessica Brown serves as Nickelodeon’s Executive in Charge of Production for the series.
About Will Packer Media
Led by Hollywood producer Will Packer, Will Packer Media is a first-of-its-kind production and branded content company focused on the New American Mainstream audience. In partnership with Discovery, Inc. and Universal Pictures, the company produces episodic scripted and unscripted series across television and digital platforms, compelling content for brand clients, and short-form digital content for millennial audiences. Will Packer’s films have earned more than $1 billion, with ten openings at number one at the box office.
About Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon, now in its 42nd year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The brand includes television programming and production in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, digital, location-based experiences, publishing and feature films. For more information or artwork, visit http://www.nickpress.com. Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of ViacomCBS Inc. (Nasdaq: VIACA, VIAC).
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Emoji Challenge with That Girl Lay Lay and Gabrielle Nevaeh Green
That Girl Lay Lay x SpongeBob Theme promo:
From Kidscreen:
How David Arnold brought the laughs to Nickelodeon
The stand-up comedian known for Fat Ballerina and Fuller House went back to his roots to develop That Girl Lay Lay, which premieres September 23.
Stand-up comedian David Arnold may have traded in his mic for a pen when he created Nickelodeon’s upcoming comedy That Girl Lay Lay, but he didn’t stray too far from his roots, infusing the series with plenty of humor centered on family, which he considers his comedy signature.
Arnold serves as an executive producer and showrunner on the live-action Nickelodeon show that’s set to premiere on September 23. That Girl Lay Lay (13 x 24 minutes) centers around teenager Sadie, who discovers an avatar from a motivational app that comes to life and helps her learn to be more confident.
Arnold was working as a writer and supervising producer on Nickelodeon series Side Hustle when he learned that the studio was looking for someone to pitch a series starring young rapper and social media star That Girl Lay Lay. Armed with a one-sentence summary of the general direction for the show (“Weird Science meets Young Frankenstein when a teenage wiz kid creates her own best friend”), he went to work.
To create the concept, Arnold wove in his own kids’ love of their phones, the struggles that parents have as children grow up, and played on the comedy around how different the exuberant Lay Lay is from the meek protagonist Sadie.
“I wanted to balance the drama with the humor,” says Arnold. “So while the show features some fantastical elements, it is really about how vulnerable teenagers feel at that stage in their lives.”
To make sure what he was writing was funny, he posted clips from his comedy routine and content featuring his family on his Facebook page to see how people reacted to the various bits, giving him valuable insights into what audiences might find funny on the series.
Arnold also dug deep into his stand-up roots, pulling jokes from the series scripts to turn into a routine for LA comedy clubs. Preforming for an adult audience ultimately gave him a better understanding of what would resonate with families tuning into the show, he says.
A comedian who has done stand-up for 27 years, Arnold often touches on mature topics like sex, race and divorce to fuel for his routines. But from his early days performing on Def Comedy Jam, Jamie Foxx Presents Laffapoalooza and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, up to his 2020 Netflix comedy special Fat Ballerina, the core of his comedy has always revolved around families.
After a number of years on the stand-up circuit, he expanded into narrative storytelling in 2004 with the short film Because My Stand-Up Is Not Enough!! He later landed a gig writing on comedy show The Tony Rock Project, where he met producer Anthony Hill (Raven’s Home), who asked Arnold to write for Tyler Perry’s Meet the Browns in 2009. Arnold has since had credits on series including House of Payne, Real Husbands of Hollywood, Bigger and Fuller House.
While That Girl Lay Lay hasn’t launched yet, Arnold is hopeful that Nickelodeon will order a second season, and he’s in conversations about additional episodes now.
In the meantime, he’s lined up an 18-city stand-up tour called “It Ain’t For the Weak,” which will culminate in a Netflix special recorded in his hometown, and he’s working with Opera’s OWN Network to create a show based on his family and social media presence. He’s also in the process of writing a romantic comedy—his dream project as a self-described sucker for sappy stories—to bring to market.
“I’m thankful I’ve been able to play in all these different lanes, and now my fans can see there are more sides to me—not just the me they see at my shows,” he says. “I’m excited for people to see [That Girl Lay Lay], and also for what’s to come.”
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Originally published: August 26, 2021 at 19:38 BST.
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