Peacock May Finally Take Flight Thanks To “Bel-Air”

“Anytime you do a reboot or develop well-known IP, we always ask, ‘Why now?’” Lisa Katz, president of scripted entertainment content for TV and streaming at Peacock’s parent company NBCUniversal, told BuzzFeed News. “Morgan [Cooper] had a really strong vision for how to take the story from a family comedy and turn it into [an] aspirational drama that felt very modern and relevant.”

Bel-Air’s Season 2 showrunner Carla Banks-Waddles, who was an executive producer and writer on the first season, praised Peacock for a willingness to depict “nuanced conversations” around race, mental health, queer identity, and education.

“[Peacock was] on board with these culturally nuanced conversations we wanted to tell and creatively willing to take those risks with us, helping us push the envelope and saying, ‘Don’t hold back,’” she told BuzzFeed News.

There are also the show’s aspirational elements, which are a cornerstone of the Fresh Prince brand. In the reboot, coveting Hilary’s wardrobe and ogling over the family mansion may hook viewers, but Banks-Waddles believes the key to the show’s success isn’t dreamy elements. It’s capturing the spirit of a modern-day Black family.

“By this point, we’ve seen rich Black families on television, so that doesn’t feel like the story, and we never led with that,” Banks-Waddles said.

Then there’s the show’s cast, another notable distinction from Fresh Prince. Banks-Waddles said it was important the show found “young fresh faces [that helped give] people the room to not come to this show with a preexisting notion of who the cast was.” This includes newcomer Jabari Banks as Will and former child actor Coco Jones as Hilary. 

That’s not to say Bel-Air hasn’t benefited from the classic reboot trope of bringing original actors back. Tatyana Ali, who played Ashley Banks in Fresh Prince, is playing schoolteacher Mrs. Hughes in Season 2. 

Regardless of Bel-Air’s success, a single show does not make a network. Peacock “having a moment” — as Vulture recently phrased it — may also be the result of the Natasha Lyonne–led whodunnit Poker Face. The series debuted in third on Nielsen’s streaming rankings earlier this month, behind only Netflix properties Ginny & Georgia and You People. Peacock can also boast being the streaming home to high-profile theatrically released films like M3GAN and Nope.