Paramount Global Showcases Full Scale and Power of IP-Driven, Multiplatform Content Company During Historic In-Person Upfront Presentation at Carnegie Hall
Built on the Strength of Iconic Brands, Premium Programming and Massive Reach Across Linear and Streaming to Deliver Unmatched Marketing Solutions for Advertising Partners
New York, NY — May 18, 2022 — Paramount Global (NASDAQ: PARA, PARAA) today presented a special edition of 60 Minutes to explore its powerhouse portfolio of leading media platforms, hit content and advertising capabilities during its first in-person Upfront event as a combined company. Through in-depth interviews, profiles and appearances, the talent-packed program featured Paramount’s accelerated momentum and differentiated playbook to reach everyone, everywhere, at scale.
“I’m thrilled to be back at Carnegie Hall as Paramount with a great story that showcases our broad leadership and expertise as a premium, multiplatform content company,” said Jo Ann Ross, President and Chief Advertising Revenue Officer, U.S. Advertising Sales, Paramount. “We’re transcending platforms with the best IP across every genre and demographic, leveraging our leading broadcast, cable and ad-supported streaming assets to deliver a huge footprint of engaged audiences with the highest-quality video reach for our clients.”
Paramount continues to be the gold standard for advertising partners, creating enormous value with the most sophisticated suite of data-driven and creative marketing solutions — all optimized for maximum efficiency and ad effectiveness. Offerings include:
- Super Franchises: Allowing advertisers to tap directly into the company’s diverse roster of major franchises, deploying high-impact media and premium access across linear, streaming and social, custom marketing integrations and exclusivity.
- Streaming at Scale with EyeQ: One of the biggest premium video ad platforms in digital media, EyeQ makes it easier for partners to activate their marketing across the company’s massive digital portfolio in one simple, scaled solution. EyeQ has experienced meteoric growth since its 2020 launch with more than 80 million full-episode monthly viewers — fueled by Paramount+, the fastest growing brand in streaming, and Pluto TV, the No.1 free ad-supported streaming television service in the U.S.
- Inclusive Storytelling with Content for Change: In addition to expansive multicultural marketing solutions reaching diverse audiences, the company’s Content for Change initiative underscores Paramount’s unique leadership position in the DE&I space by applying research, rigor and data to transform the entire creative ecosystem across content, the creative supply chain that powers it and the culture.
- Advanced Advertising with Vantage: The industry’s most sophisticated audience targeting platform, delivering relevance and results across every consumer touchpoint — linear, digital and an addressable TV footprint of more than 50M households.
- Creative Excellence: Providing award-winning creative services, including in-show integrations, custom ad creative, branded programming, and influencer extensions.
- More Measurement Currencies: Leading the charge to offer buyers additional choice with VideoAmp, Comscore, and soon iSpot, powered by OpenAP’s XPm to provide cross-publisher, cross-platform reach and frequency optimization.
Today’s presentation also underscored Paramount’s first-class lineup of entertainment, kids and family, news and sports content. In addition to revealing the
2022-2023 CBS Fall Primetime schedule, the following new programming was highlighted from BET, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Paramount+ and more:
- 1883: The Bass Reeves Story (Paramount+) – Created by Academy Award nominee Taylor Sheridan and starring Emmy Award nominee David Oyelowo, the series is an epic limited series that will bring the legendary lawman of the wild west, Bass Reeves (Oyelowo), to life. Known as the greatest frontier hero in American history, and also believed to be the inspiration for The Lone Ranger, Reeves worked in the post-Reconstruction era as a federal peace officer in the Indian Territory, capturing over 3,000 of the most dangerous criminals without ever being wounded.
- 1932 (Working Title; Paramount+) – Created by Yellowstone co-creator Taylor Sheridan, and starring Academy Award winner Helen Mirren and Academy Award nominee Harrison Ford, the series introduces a new generation of the Dutton family and is the next chapter following the enormously successful 1883. The story will explore the early twentieth century when pandemics, historic drought, the end of Prohibition, and the Great Depression all plague the mountain west, and the Duttons who call it home.
- All the Queen's Men (BET, BET+) – Based on the popular book Ladies Night, created by Christian Keyes, the one-hour drama will pick up on the life of “Marilyn ‘Madam’ DeVille,” played by Eva Marcille. In season one, viewers witnessed Madam’s swagger as a fierce businesswoman who rules all in the lucrative male exotic nightclub industry. She is surrounded by a band of trusted employees who are down to make sure that Madam and her empire is successful. As her journey continues in season two, she is hell bent on expanding her Queendom. However, she soon discovers that more money and more power mean more problems. Season two will pick up to see her navigate this sexy yet dangerous world if she wants to stay alive and ahead of the game. Fans will also rejoin Madam’s loyal team as the following series regulars return: Skyh Alvester Black as “Amp ‘Addiction’ Anthony,” Candace Maxwell as “DJ Dime,” Racquel Palmer as “Blue,” Michael ‘Bolo’ Bolwaire as “Doc,” Keith ’Fatal Attraction’ Swift as “Babyface,” Dion Rome as “El Fuego,” and Jeremy ‘Masterpiece’ Williams as “Midnight.” Keyes will also reprise his intriguing role as “The Concierge.” Additionally, recurring cast member Carter the Body returns as “Trouble” solidifying her spot in Club Eden amongst a roster of hot male counterparts. All The Queen’s Men season two is executive produced by Tyler Perry and Christian Keyes. Elon D. Johnson serves as co-executive producer and Angi Bones, Mark Swinton, Will Areu and Tony L. Strickland are producers. All The Queen’s Men is one of the first shows from Tyler Perry Studios’ scripted development arm, Pitch Black Development LLC. It will debut the second season later in 2022.
- Beavis and Butt-Head (Series; Paramount+) – Beavis and Butt-Head are back and stupider than ever.
- Beavis and Butt-Head Do the Universe (Film; Paramount+) – In perhaps the dumbest space movie ever made, Beavis and Butt-Head are sentenced to Space Camp by a “creative” judge in 1998. Their obsession with a docking simulator (huh huh) leads to a trip on the Space Shuttle, with predictably disastrous results. After going through a black hole, they reemerge in our time, where they look for love, misuse iPhones and are hunted by the Deep State. Spoiler: They don’t score.
- Buckhead Shore (MTV) – The shore franchise heads to Buckhead, Georgia to follow the interpersonal lives of a group of friends making a name for themselves in the "Beverly Hills of the South” as they escape their everyday life and head to the lake shore to let loose.
- College Hill: Celebrity Edition (BET, BET+) – BET goes back to school to revive the nostalgic reality series College Hill: Celebrity Edition. In the reimagined new season, celebrities will live together and join the Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) Texas Southern University as students. Nene Leakes, Ray J, Lamar Odom, Big Freedia, Stacey Dash, DreamDoll, India Love, and Slim Thug will head back to class to expand their educational horizons. Premiering Summer 2022, the 8-episode series will explore college life through a celebrity lens while showcasing the unique cultural and academic experience of HBCUs. Despite their respective fame and notoriety, each cast member is committed to focusing on their higher education as a personal challenge to prove it’s never too late. Enrolled alongside current Texas Southern University students, the cast will work towards completing a specialty certificate program to cross the graduation stage. Though to triumph, like any ordinary college student, they must complete their course work along with required internships, extra credit opportunities, group projects, and more. Who will take the lead on group projects? Who will pull an all-nighter? College Hill is executive produced by Tracey Edmonds for Edmonds Entertainment, Sean Rankine and Mark Seliga for This Way Out Media, and Tiffany Lea Williams for BET.
- DIGMAN! (Comedy Central) – An adult animated adventure comedy series set in a world where archaeologists are cooler than rock stars.
- East New York (CBS) – Stars Amanda Warren as Deputy Inspector Regina Haywood, the newly promoted boss of the 74th Precinct, in East New York – a working-class neighborhood on the edge of Brooklyn in the midst of social upheaval and the early seeds of gentrification. With family ties to the area, Haywood is determined to deploy creative methods to protect her beloved community with the help of her officers and detectives. But first, she has the daunting task of getting them on board, as some are skeptical of her promotion, and others resist the changes she is desperate to make. Her team includes her mentor, shrewd veteran two-star Chief John Suarez (Emmy Award winner Jimmy Smits); Marvin Sandeford (Tony Award winner and current nominee Ruben Santiago-Hudson), a highly respected training officer and expert on the neighborhood; Tommy Killian (Kevin Rankin), a detective with some old-school approaches to policing; Capt. Stan Yenko (Richard Kind), Haywood’s gregarious and efficient right hand; Crystal Morales (Elizabeth Rodriguez), an intuitive detective who can’t be intimidated; Andre Bentley (Lavel Schley), a trainee from an upper middle-class background; and ambitious patrol officer Brandy Quinlan (Olivia Luccardi), the sole volunteer to live in a local housing project as part of Haywood’s plan to bridge the gap between police and community. Regina Haywood has a vision: she and the squad of the 74th Precinct will not only serve their community – they’ll also become part of it.
- Fire Country (CBS) – Stars Max Thieriot (SEAL Team) as Bode Donovan, a young convict seeking redemption and a shortened prison sentence by joining an unconventional prison release firefighting program in Northern California, where he and other inmates are partnered with elite firefighters to extinguish massive, unpredictable wildfires across the region. It’s a high-risk, high-reward assignment, and the heat is turned up when Bode is assigned to the program in his rural hometown, where he was once a golden all-American son until his troubles began. Five years ago, Bode burned down everything in his life, leaving town with a big secret. Now he’s back, with the rap sheet of a criminal and the audacity to believe in a chance for redemption with Cal Fire. Inspired by series star Max Thieriot’s experiences growing up in Northern California fire country.
- George & Tammy (Paramount Network) – Chronicles country music’s king and queen, George Jones and Tammy Wynette, whose rocky relationship inspired some of the most iconic country music of all time.
- Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies (Paramount+) – The musical series takes place four years before the original Grease; in 1954 before rock ‘n’ roll ruled, before the T-Birds were the coolest in the school, four fed-up, outcasts dare to have fun on their own terms, sparking a moral panic that will change Rydell High forever.
- Hall of Love: The Ultimate Dating Experience (VH1) – In this new dating experiment, we’ll bring the choices and excitement of dating apps to life! Three single best friends will enter a literal “hall” of eligible men, who are all ready to commit. Inside this dating utopia, the women are in control as they search for real love. But they quickly realize having too many ideal choices is harder than it seems. In the end, they’ll have to answer the question, “If you’re offered everything you want…will you ultimately choose what you need?”
- Honor Society (Paramount+) – A live-action comedic film that follows Honor (Angourie Rice, Spider-Man: No Way Home, Mare of Easttown), an ambitious high school senior whose sole focus is getting into Harvard, assuming she can first score the coveted recommendation from her guidance counselor, Mr. Calvin (Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Kick-Ass, Superbad). Honor concocts a plan to take down her top three student competitors, until things take a turn when she unexpectedly falls for her biggest competition, Michael (Gaten Matarazzo, Stranger Things, Prank Encounters). Additional cast members include Armani Jackson (Chad, Palm Trees and Power Lines) and Amy Keum (Evil).
- Jersey Shore 2.0 (Working Title; MTV) – It’s been 13 years since the iconic cast of Jersey Shore fist-pumped their way into our lives and stole our hearts. Now, the time-honored tradition continues with a new group of roommates moving into their own Shore house. They may have traded their poofs for plumped pouts and UV rays for spray tans, but when things heat up in Jersey, the Shore is still the place to be to make memories all summer long.
- Jodie (Comedy Central) – A spinoff film of the cult classic Daria, follows Jodie Landon as she leaves college, moves to a gentrifying city and begins a job at Firstfinity, a mysterious Google-like tech company.
- Monster High: The Movie (Paramount+) – Mattel, Inc. and Nickelodeon have produced an original live-action TV movie musical based on Monster High, the iconic franchise about the children of famous monsters and creatures. The movie musical event, which marks the first time Monster High will be brought to life in live action, follows Clawdeen Wolf (Miia Harris, Just Beyond), who was born half human and half werewolf, after she arrives at her new school, Monster High. She quickly makes friends with her classmates Frankie Stein (Ceci Balagot, Dispatches from Elsewhere) and Draculaura (Nayah Damasen, Grey's Anatomy), and for the first time in her life, Clawdeen feels like she has finally found a place where she fits in, despite keeping her human half a secret. When a devious plan to destroy Monster High threatens to reveal her real identity, Clawdeen must learn to embrace her true monster heart and find a way to save the day. Monster High: TV Movie will be available on Nickelodeon platforms globally fall 2022.
- Rabbit Hole (Paramount+) – In Rabbit Hole, nothing is what it seems when John Weir (Kiefer Sutherland), a master of deception in the world of corporate espionage, is framed for murder by powerful forces with the ability to influence and control populations.
- Real Husbands of Hollywood: More Kevin, More Problems (BET, BET+) – Kevin, Boris, J.B., Nick, Robin, Nelly and Duane are back together after five years. Their lives have changed since the last time we saw them. Divorces have been finalized, babies have been born, careers have almost been canceled, but Kevin is still up to his shenanigans. This time, trying to win a celebrity charity competition with an out-of-this-world prize. Due to his busy schedule, Kevin is limited on time, but Duane devises a plan to help him lift some of the load off of his plate in hope of his acting career restarting. However, the plan’s consequences ripple throughout the friend group causing destruction and now the guys and Trina must figure out how to navigate the mess that they’ve made.
- Sacrifice (BET, BET+) – Legal thriller Sacrifice starring Paula Patton (Precious, Traffik) takes place in Los Angeles following Daniella Hernandez (Patton), a highly sought-after entertainment lawyer, as she navigates the nefarious lives of her rich and famous clients.
- So Help Me Todd (CBS) – Academy Award winner Marcia Gay Harden and Skylar Astin as razor-sharp, meticulous attorney Margaret Wright (Harden) and Todd (Astin), her talented but scruffy, aimless son whom she hires as her law firm’s in-house investigator. As the black sheep of the well-heeled Wright family, Todd is a laid-back, quick-thinking, excellent former private detective who fell on hard times after his flexible interpretation of the law got his license revoked. Margaret’s penchant for excellence and strict adherence to the law is at complete odds with Todd’s scrappy methods of finding his way through sticky situations: by the seat of his wrinkled pants. When Todd inadvertently teams with his mother on a case, she’s surprised to find herself duly impressed by – and proud of – his crafty ability to sleuth out information with his charm and his wide-ranging tech savvy. At last, Margaret sees a way to put her son on a “suitable” path to living an adult, financially solvent life she approves of, and she asks him to join her firm. Todd agrees, since it means getting his license back and once again doing the job he excels at and loves. Mother and son working together is a big first step toward mending their fragile, dysfunctional relationship, and they may even come away with a better understanding of each other at this pivotal point in their lives. But whether Todd and Margaret will be able to accept each other for who they are is another case entirely.
- Teen Wolf the Movie (Paramount+) – A full moon rises in Beacon Hills and with it a terrifying evil has emerged. The wolves are howling once again, calling for the return of Banshees, Werecoyotes, Hellhounds, Kitsunes, and every other shapeshifter in the night. But only a Werewolf like Scott McCall (Tyler Posey), no longer a teenager yet still an Alpha, can gather both new allies and reunite trusted friends to fight back against what could be the most powerful and deadliest enemy they’ve ever faced.
- The Challenge: World Championship (Working Title; Paramount+) – Winners from four new Challenge series (The Challenge: U.S.A., The Challenge: Argentina, The Challenge: Australia and The Challenge: U.K.) will advance to The Challenge global championship and battle for the first-ever title as The Challenge World Champion.
- The Ms. Pat Show (BET, BET+) – Based on Ms. Pat’s stand-up comedy and memoir, The Ms. Pat Show is the story of a former convicted felon turned suburban mom and stand-up comedian, whose hustle and resilient spirit were forged on the streets of Atlanta. To much reserve, she now finds herself in conservative middle America alongside her penny-pinching husband played by J. Bernard Calloway (City On A Hill), a struggle of a sister played by Tami Roman (The Family Business), and two distinct sets of kids played by Theodore Barnes (The Prince of Peoria), newcomer Briyana Guadalupe, Vince Swann (50 Central) and Brittany Inge (Boomerang), the latter two raised under very different circumstances.
- The Real Love Boat (CBS) – The new reality romance adventure inspired by the classic hit scripted series The Love Boat, sets sail on Princess Cruises in 2022. The Real Love Boat brings singles together to travel the Mediterranean on a luxury cruise ship while looking for love. Destination dates, challenges and surprise singles will test the couples’ compatibility and chemistry. Like the beloved original scripted series, the indispensable crew members, including “captain” and “cruise director,” who will be selected from actual Princess crew members, will play pivotal roles in the matchmaking and navigation of the romantic (and sometimes turbulent) waters ahead. After almost a month at sea, only one winning couple will make it to the final port and take home a cash prize plus a once-in-a-lifetime trip courtesy of Princess Cruises, the series’ exclusive cruise line partner.
- The Tiny Chef Show (Nickelodeon) – Herbivore social media sensation The Tiny Chef brings his culinary adventures to Nickelodeon later this year in a brand-new series, produced in association with Imagine Kids+Family, Tiny Chef Productions, and Nickelodeon Animation. Each 11-minute installment follows the talented chef as he whips up tasty ‘weshipees’ and the world’s tiniest plant-based dishes from his tree-stump home with the help of his robot sous chef.
- Transformers: EarthSpark (Paramount+) – Based on the iconic Transformers property, the brand-new animated action-comedy series Transformers: EarthSpark is set to premiere globally on Paramount+ in November. Produced in partnership between Nickelodeon Animation and Hasbro’s Entertainment One (eOne), the series introduces a new generation of Transformers robots--the first Transformers robots to be born on Earth--and together with the human family who welcomes them in and cares for them, they'll redefine what it means to be a family.
- True Lies (CBS) – Inspired by James Cameron’s hit action/comedy film of the same name, follows Harry (Steve Howey), a first-class international spy for U.S. intelligence agency Omega Sector, and his wife, Helen (Ginger Gonzaga), a language professor bored with her daily routine, who makes the shocking discovery that her seemingly ordinary husband is leading an extraordinary double life. With the secret out, Omega recruits Helen, who impresses everyone with her formidable skills (thanks to Tae Bo and yoga), and she joins Harry and his team of top-notch operatives, embarking on covert missions around the globe and an exhilarating life of danger and adventure. The renewed bond between them adds much-needed sizzle to the Taskers’ emotionally distant marriage and upends the top-secret world of Omega Sector. But, as Harry says, if you’re going to save the world, you might as well do it for the ones you love.
- Tulsa King (Paramount+) – Creator and Academy Award nominee Taylor Sheridan serves as executive producer alongside Academy Award nominee and Emmy Award winner Terence Winter. The series stars Academy Award nominee Sylvester Stallone as New York mafia capo Dwight “The General” Manfredi, just after he is released from prison after 25 years and unceremoniously exiled by his boss to set up shop in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Realizing that his mob family may not have his best interests in mind, Dwight slowly builds a “crew” from a group of unlikely characters to help him establish a new criminal empire in a place that to him might as well be another plan.
- Tyler Perry's Bruh (BET, BET+) – Tyler Perry’s second original series for BET+, the dramedy follows four longtime friends as they navigate life and relationships through the strength of their brother-like bond. In a society where relationships between men of color are often misjudged and misrepresented, Tyler Perry’s Bruh, embraces male vulnerability versus hypermasculinity. “Bruh,” a slang term made popular by Black-Greek culture, refers to a friend so close they are more like a brother. Whether fulfilling career dreams or finding love, these four college buddies now in their 30’s find themselves learning to stand on their own two feet, while leaning on each other for support and guidance. Sometimes their love is tough and their honesty brutal, but they manage to see each other through every scenario with levity and laughter. Tyler Perry’s Bruh is executive produced, written, and directed by Tyler Perry.
- Wolf Pack (Paramount+) – Based on the book series by Edo Van Belkom, Wolf Pack follows a teenage boy and girl whose lives are changed forever when a California wildfire awakens a terrifying supernatural creature and drives it to attack a highway traffic jam beneath the burning hills. Wounded in the chaos, the boy and girl are inexplicably drawn to each other and to two other teenagers who were adopted sixteen years earlier by a park ranger after another mysterious wildfire. As the full moon rises, all four teens come together to unravel the secret that connects them - the bite and blood of a werewolf.
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| Paramount's Jo Ann Ross with the cast of CBS' Ghosts during a musical moment |
About Paramount
Paramount Global (NASDAQ: PARA, PARAA) is a leading global media and entertainment company that creates premium content and experiences for audiences worldwide. Driven by iconic studios, networks and streaming services, Paramount's portfolio of consumer brands includes CBS, Showtime Networks, Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon, MTV, Comedy Central, BET, Paramount+, Pluto TV and Simon & Schuster, among others. Paramount delivers the largest share of the U.S. television audience and boasts one of the industry's most important and extensive libraries of TV and film titles. In addition to offering innovative streaming services and digital video products, the company provides powerful capabilities in production, distribution and advertising solutions.
For more information about Paramount, please visit
www.paramount.com and follow @ParamountCo on social platforms.
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The Paramount Upfront Is 60 Minutes
Not often is TV news the centerpiece of a major media company’s upfront, but the 2022 Paramount upfront event was certainly unique.
Paramount ad sales chief Jo Ann Ross kicked off the live, in-person event, held Wednesday at Carnegie Hall, by noting this year’s presentation was scheduled to run 60 minutes and be 60 Minutes-themed: “This is the Paramount upfront in 60 Minutes,” Ross proclaimed.
While the event ran over the planned 60 minutes, it was indeed formatted like a live edition of the acclaimed newsmagazine. 60 Minutes correspondents appeared on stage throughout the presentation, introducing various parts of the Paramount content portfolio as if they were 60 Minutes reports. While not as flashy as some other upfronts, this was clever idea by Paramount that was executed pretty well.
Scott Pelley did the voiceover for multiple sizzle reels, before appearing on stage to tease his story featuring interviews with Trevor Noah and other Paramount talent. Lesley Stahl appeared on stage later to tease her 60 Minutes-style segment about Paramount’s reality TV offerings. Her piece consisted of interviews with stars from the various shows. Norah O’Donnell appeared on stage to tease her interview with Tyler Perry about his work at BET over the years. Perry also recently made his first foray into kids programming with a new Nickelodeon show. Bill Whitaker appeared on stage and teased his interview with BET CEO Scott Mills about his “Content for Change” initiative at Paramount, which addresses narratives around race, ethnicity, age, LGBTQ+, disability status and mental health.
CBS Mornings represented at the upfront as well. Two of the show’s co-hosts Tony Dokoupil and Nate Burleson, as well as actress/comedian Nicole Byer, were contestants in a fictional game show hosted by Let’s Make a Deal host Wayne Brady named “Climb That Mountain.” The contestants were quizzed on company stats, offerings, etc.
Fellow CBS Mornings co-host Gayle King also appeared at the upfront, wearing a cast and noting she has “an Achilles issue.” King discussed Paramount’s uber-popular Yellowstone franchise and introduced co-stars Kevin Costner and Kelly Reilly, who arrived on stage to significant applause. Following the Yellowstone duo were Faith Hill and Tim McGraw from 1883, David Oyelowo from the forthcoming 1883: The Bass Reeves Story—and Sylvester Stallone from the upcoming Tulsa King—all came to the stage to praise their shows and producer extraordinaire Taylor Sheridan’s work.
So, while CBS News wasn’t given a specific block during the Paramount upfront event, its shows and personalities were front and center throughout.
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Originally published: May 19, 2022.
