‘Big Bang Theory’ creator Chuck Lorre says his new show is about how ‘immigrants make America great’
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}One of Hollywood’s most prolific executive producers is now wearing a new hat.
Chuck Lorre, co-mastermind behind “The Big Bang Theory," “Two and a Half Men” and many other television hits, is again turning his attention to comedy. But it's in a way he reckons will be unfathomable to some viewers.
“Bob Hearts Abishola” chronicles the life of a Detroit sock businessman -- played by “Mike & Molly” star Billy Gardell -- who suffers a heart attack, then falls for his cardiac nurse, a Nigerian immigrant played by Folake Olowofoyeku.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Lorre also brought stand-up comedian Gina Yashere into his writers' room to help ensure that the series offers an authentic take on Nigerian culture.
Donning a yellow “IMAG” cap, Lorre, 66, said his new series is about “immigrants making America great” -- a thinly veiled reference to President Trump’s “MAGA” slogan.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Gina Yashere, Chuck Lorre, Billy Gardell, Folake Olowofoyeku and Al Higgins of "Bob Hearts Abishola" speak during the CBS segment of the 2019 Summer TCA Press Tour at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on August 1, 2019, in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Amy Sussman/Getty Images)
"This show, on the surface, looks like a romantic comedy, but I've done that and I didn't want to do it again,” Lorre told the Television Critics Association during a CBS presentation at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Thursday. “It is our entrance point to the series, these two very different people meeting and finding, over a very slow process, a relationship. But the story I wanted to tell is about the greatness of first-generation immigrants … the hard work, the rigorous honesty that goes with coming here and grabbing hold of the American dream."
But political undertones are but one element of the series.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“It’s not a political show,” Lorre said. “It’s an homage of what we’ve been through, what our ancestors have been through, which is coming here and somehow finding a foothold and making a life for ourselves and for our children, and descendants.”
"Mike & Molly" (CBS)
“If you dig deep, maybe every show is a political show. This is just a show that takes the time to recognize the greatness in that endeavor,” Lorre added.
The executive producer was pressed by a reporter about whether Abishola’s character migrated to the U.S. legally or illegally – to which Lorre responded: “We’re not commenting about legal or illegal immigrants. We’re making a comment on the people who are working here and working their hearts out.”
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