New ring, new show: ‘Bel-Air’ spinoff ‘Hilary’ in the works starring Coco Jones
TheGrio...
Fresh off her honeymoon, the Grammy-nominated singer could potentially be stepping back into a role that proved she was a multi-hyphenate.
One of the breakout stars from Peacock’s ‘Bel-Air‘ is getting her own show.
Four years after the reimagined version of “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” became one of the first hit shows on NBC’s streaming platform, the network is developing a spinoff, based on Coco Jones’ portrayal of Hilary Banks. The news was first reported by Deadline.
“Hilary,” which will star Jones, will have notable TV and film veteran Tracy Oliver (“Girls Trip,” “Harlem,”) serving as lead writer and according to the proposed spinoff, the show would find Jones trading the sunshine and palm trees of Bel Air, California, for New York City. After accepting a job from celebrity chef Yvonne Durand, Hilary takes the leap and bets on herself, focusing on being seen for more than her connections back home. But a new city brings new identities, new friendships, new loves and more, including serious, unexpected life choices she must navigate.
For fans of “Bel-Air,” the spinoff would be a detour from how that show ended. Growing into her own as an acclaimed chef, Hilary opted to stay in Bel Air and open her own cafe. In this version, Hilary would be in line with how things went during the end of the original “Fresh Prince,” which saw her take her TV show to New York City.
Based on Morgan Cooper’s short film, “Bel-Air” aired for four seasons on Peacock, with its final season concluding in December. It starred newcomer Jabari Banks as Will Smith and helped introduce cast members such as Adrian Holmes, Olly Sholotan and Jordan L. Jones to wider audiences.
When she first took on the role, Jones immediately heard the comparisons to the OG Hilary Banks, Karyn Parsons. But the singer and actress made certain to take the role in her own unique vision, showcasing that there were definitely two different Hilary Banks out there.
“The pressure really just came from myself,” she told Harper’s Bazaar in 2022 about wanting her Hilary to be different from Parsons. “I wanted to give quality to everything, and not forget my intentions playing Hilary and my intentions representing a dark-skinned version of this role. I was nervous about what everyone else was going to think, but because I have been in the industry for a minute, I knew they were hungry for me to be on pretty much anything. And I wanted to further open the door for other people that look like us on this cast. That’s my favorite part. More Black everything! More Black shows, Black writers, Black all of it.”