Starz announced today the official greenlight of "Survivor's Remorse," a half-hour scripted comedy series from LeBron James, Tom Werner, Mike O'Malley, Maverick Carter and Paul Wachter. Mike O'Malley, who in addition to being a consulting producer and writer on "Shameless" is also an Emmy-nominated actor for his role on "Glee," will serve as executive producer and writer. The series was fast-tracked in development and will debut its six episode first season in the fall of 2014 on STARZ.
"Survivors Remorse" is set in the world of professional basketball and explores the comedy and drama of an experience that everyone reads about, but few understand - what truly happens when you make it out.
"Ever since I got cut from the freshman hoop team at Bishop Guertin High School in 1980, I've wanted to write about my love and hatred of basketball," said Mike O'Malley. "Starz has given us great freedom to explore an authentic world inspired by Maverick and LeBron. Tom's legendary TV career and his experiences as a professional sports owner combined with Paul's wealth of business and entertainment industry relationships have given this team a truly strong foundation to build a successful series."
"Mike has infused the world of 'Survivor's Remorse' with humor and heart," said Chris Albrecht,
Starz CEO. "Along with LeBron, Maverick, Tom and Paul, we feel we really have an all-star team to
Capture the complexity and comedy inherent to this series."
The story follows Cam Calloway, a basketball phenom in his early 20's who is suddenly thrust into the limelight after signing a multi-million dollar contract with a professional basketball team in Atlanta. Cam, along with his cousin and confidant Reggie Vaughn, move to Georgia to start Cam's journey to success. The two confront the challenges of carrying opportunistic family members and their strong ties to the impoverished community that they come from. Cam, Reggie and an Unforgettable group of characters wrestle with the rewards and pitfalls of stardom, love and loyalty.
Mike O'Malley is a Boston native, with an extensive career in film, television and theater both on and off the screen. He starred in the hit
CBS comedy "Yes, Dear," has appeared in "Justified," "Parks and Recreation," and "Parenthood," and received a
Primetime Emmy Award nomination for his role in "Glee." He has written several plays as well as the screenplay for the film Certainty that won multiple awards during its premiere at the Boston Film Festival in 2011.
LeBron James will serve as an Executive Producer along with Tom Werner, currently Chairman of the Boston Red Sox. James, a nine-time NBA All-Star and Olympic Gold medalist, recently led the Miami Heat to a second straight NBA Championship win and captured his fourth straight MVP trophy. As co-founder of The Carsey-Werner Company, Werner has produced some of the best half-hour comedies in television, including "The Cosby Show," "Roseanne," "3rd Rock from the Sun," and "That '70s Show." Werner's shows have garnered 24 Emmy Awards, and 18 NAACP Image Awards. Werner has also been inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame.
LeBron James and Maverick Carter have been in business with Tom Werner since 2011, when they partnered with Fenway Sports Group (FSG), one of the largest sports, media and entertainment companies in the world. Werner is Chairman of FSG, which owns soccer's Liverpool Football Club in partnership with James and Carter as well as baseball's Boston Red Sox. Paul Wachter, a prominent Los Angeles-based financial advisor to the sports and media industry, has been partners with James and Carter since 2004 and with Werner since he sold the Padres as Werner's investment advisor in 1995.
Since taking over LeBron's business portfolio ten years ago, Maverick Carter, LeBron's longtime friend and manager, has become one of the most important figures in sports business. Along with his management firm, LRMR, Maverick has built one of the most dynamic, successful athlete business models for LeBron James and recently signed Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel. Carter also served as executive producer on the documentary "More Than A Game," and on the upcoming film "Ballers," starring Kevin Hart.
Paul Wachter is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Main Street Advisors, one of the most important and influential investment advisory firms in Los Angeles. Wachter leads investment strategies, negotiations, and business enterprises for prominent athletes, entertainers, and business executives and serves on a number of prominent boards including Time Warner, Beats Electronics LLC and Beats Music LLC.
Mike O'Malley is represented by CAA, KLWGN and Jonathan Shikora of Lichter Grossman Nichols Adler. Tom Werner is represented by CAA and Jim Jackoway of Jackoway Tyerman Wertheimer Austen Mandelbaum Morris.
The series will shoot in Atlanta, Georgia.
Starz will retain all domestic and international multiplatform rights including television, home entertainment, and digital.
About Starz
Starz (NASDAQ: STRZA, STRZB) is a leading integrated global media and entertainment company with operating units that provide premium subscription video programming on domestic U.S. pay television channels (Starz Networks), global content distribution (Starz Distribution) and animated television and movie production (Starz Animation), www.starz.com.
Starz Networks is a leading provider of premium subscription video programming through the flagship STARZ® and ENCORE® pay TV networks which showcase premium original programming and movies to U.S. multichannel video distributors, including cable operators, satellite television providers, and telecommunications companies. As of September 30, 2013,
Starz and ENCORE serve a combined 57.0 million subscribers, including 22.0 million at STARZ, and 35.0 million at ENCORE, making them the largest pair of premium flagship channels in the U.S. STARZ® and ENCORE®, along with
Starz Networks' third network MOVIEPLEX®, air more than 1,000 movies monthly across 17 linear networks, complemented by On Demand and authenticated online offerings through
Starz PLAY, ENCORE PLAY, and MOVIEPLEX PLAY.
Starz Distribution develops, produces and acquires entertainment content, distributing it to consumers globally on DVD, digital formats and traditional television.
Starz Distribution's home video, digital media and worldwide distribution business units distribute original programming content produced by Starz, as well as entertainment content for itself and third parties.
Starz Animation produces animated TV and movie content for studios, networks, distributors and audiences worldwide.
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