Central Ave is touted as covering “Every Voice. Every Angle. Every Weekend,” but that may not be the case much longer.
Multiple individuals with ties to the Atlanta-based entertainment magazine show say executives notified staffers earlier this month that production will end in February 2021.
“They’re looking for a new home,” said one source, who was not authorized to speak on behalf of the show. The individual added that the possibility of the freshman strip finding a new home is “not likely.”
A second source added, “Everyone on the show knows it’s ending.”
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The weekly series from Will Packer Media and Lionsgate’s Debmar-Mercury launched its 2020-2021 season in September, after a test run in 2019. The show targets a multicultural audience, with stories presented through a “provocative, socially conscious and diverse lens.”
The program airs on weekends with two half-hour episodes on network-owned Fox Television Stations, and on other affiliate stations in syndication. Fox referred inquiries about the show’s future to the production companies.
Asked if the entertainment magazine had been canceled, a rep for Will Packer Media responded with “no comment.”
Meanwhile, Debmar-Mercury, which also distributes the program, issued a statement to Urban Hollywood 411 saying, “Production will continue to provide episodes through the end of the broadcast season. A decision on the future of the show has not been made.”
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When told the production companies are tap-dancing around insider reports of a cancellation, another source said, “I don’t know why they’re trying to front, since they already told us.”
Central Ave is hosted by Julissa Bermudez (106 & Park) and Sanya Richards-Ross, a former Olympic track star and five-time gold medalist. Producers have described the pair as the first women of color to co-host a magazine show.
The program features a diverse group of correspondents, including Van Lathan, Kennedy-Rue McCullough, Sloane Glass, Melissa McCarty, Neima Abdulahi and Zack Greenburg.
Recent segments include an insightful report on Hollywood’s Afro-Latina “casting crisis,” as well as an in-depth look at the #FreeBritney movement, and an explainer on how the entertainment industry is navigating awards season amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The series was co-created by Los Angeles-based entertainment magazine veteran Monique Chenault, who also serves as showrunner and executive producer alongside Kelly Smith and film producer Will Packer.
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