ABC Nabs Family Comedy ‘The Turners’ From Naomi Ekperigin, Wilmer Valderrama & Damon Wayans Jr. With Penalty

Denise Petski

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EXCLUSIVE: ABC has given a script commitment with penalty to The Turners, a half-hour single-camera autobiographical family doctors comedy from writer Naomi Ekperigin (Mrs. Fletcher), Wilmer Valderrama and his WV Entertainment, Damon Wayans Jr. and his Two Shakes Entertainment and CBS Television Studios where both Valderrama and Wayans are under deals.

Written by Ekperigin, in The Turners, a close-knit family of black doctors faces major changes when the recently retired parents decide to get back into the workforce. Now, three siblings at the height of their success are forced to work alongside their parents, and assert their independence everywhere from the emergency room to the living room.

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The project is based on the real life of the Turner Family, a family in Houston, Texas whose family photo went viral in 2019. Dr. Rod J. Turner has his own OB/GYN practice, Health Solutions of Clear Lake, where his wife Roslyn works alongside him as an office manager and ultrasound sonographer. His son, Dr. RJ (Rod Jr.) Turner is a second year family medicine resident and practices in the Texas Medical Center. Both daughters, Rachel and Angelique, are in their second year of medical school at Tulane and McGovern, respectively.

Ekperigin executive produces with Valderrama for WV Entertainment and Wayans Jr for Two Shakes Entertainment. Kaitlin Saltzman and Jessica Acevedo co-executive produce via WV Entertainment along with Kameron Tarlow for Two Shakes. CBS Television Studios is the studio.

Ekperigin is a comedian/actor/writer whose writing credits include HBO’s Mrs. Fletcher, TBS’ Search Party and Broad City. As an actor. Ekperigin has appeared in Single Parents, Alone Together and will be seen in the upcoming Mythic Quest on Apple. . She travels the country doing stand-up and has appeared on the podcast and series, 2 Dope Queens for HBO, as well as having her own half-hour special on Comedy Central. Ekperigin also co-hosts the popular live show and podcast Couples Therapy.

This is WVE’s second sale to CBS this development cycle. Valderrama’s WVE also is executive producing The Trail, an hourlong crime drama with Rosewood writer David Harrington Miller and CBS TV Studios. Previously produced projects include Handy Manny for Disney Jr., The Hollywood Puppet Show for Fuse, and Douglas Family Gold for Oxygen. On the feature side, WVE produced the animated films Charming and Trouble. WVE is repped by UTA and Silver Lining Entertainment.

Two Shakes also is executive producing CW drama pilot Glamorous starring Brooke Shields and Ben J. Pierce and directed by Eva Longoria, with writer Jordan Nardino.

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