ABC will develop Latinx-themed series Chicano with the help of executive producers Eva Longoria (Overboard) and Forest Whitaker (Criminal Minds). Natalie Chaidez (Queen of the South) is set to write the script for the potential series, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Chicano will be a family drama adapted from Richard Vasquez’s novel under the same name. The logline, as told to The Hollywood Reporter is: “The epic, multigenerational saga of the Sandovals, a Mexican-American family that immigrates to Los Angeles in pursuit of the American dream. Inspirational and timely, Chicano follows the struggles and triumphs of the Sandovals from 1920 through present and explores the question of what it means to be American. Inspired by the classic novel by Richard Vasquez.”
Along with Chaidez, Longoria and Whitaker, Ben Spector (Wedding Band) from Longoria’s production company UnbeliEVAble Entertainment, Nina Yang Bongiovi (Dope) from Significant Productions and Doug Pray (The Defiant Ones) will executive produce.
The network’s acquisition of the series is also an attempt to remedy a lack of Latinx representation on TV after its decision to cancel The Baker and the Beauty. The show starred Nathalie Kelley (Dynasty), Michelle Veintimilla (Gotham) and Victor Rasuk (Lords of Dogtown) and was about a blue-collar baker who falls into an unlikely relationship with an international superstar. The Baker and the Beauty is also still available to watch online at ABC. The series created by Dean Georgaris (The Meg) and Keshet Studios was cancelled due to low viewership. Fans of the show petitioned for a second season, but the network decided not to renew. ABC Entertainment’s president Karey Burke said that Chicano was one of many series in the works to ramp up Latinx programming for the network. “With Forest, Nina, Natalie and Doug also at the helm of this project, we know we have the perfect powerhouse team to bring this Mexican-American family’s story to life and cultivate the next generation of Latinx storytelling,” via to The Hollywood Reporter.