“All Americna” showrunner Nkechi Okoro Carroll is developing a sequel to the 1990s ABC drama “Life Goes On” under a new overall deal at Warner Bros. Television, the studio announced on Thursday.
The project, which will see original star Kellie Martin reprise her on-screen role, will “revisit a grown-up Becca Thatcher (Martin), now an accomplished doctor, and her extended family as she returns to her hometown.” Chad Lowe, who co-starred on later seasons of the drama opposite Martin, will serve as a producer.
Okoro Carroll will write and executive produce the sequel series via her new production company, Rock My Soul Productions. Martin Braverman, creator of the original series, will serve as executive consultant.
“Life Goes On,” which ran for four seasons on ABC between 1989 and 1993, was the first TV series to center around a character with Down syndrome. Chris Burke starred in the series alongside Martin, Bill Smitrovich, Patti LuPone, Tracey Needham and Michele Matheson. Lowe joined the series in its second season as Martin’s on-screen boyfriend.
Okoro Carroll, who has been under an overall deal with WBTV since 2018, has also signed a new exclusive multi-year agreement with the studio. She continues to serve as showrunner of “All American” and the upcoming spinoff “All American: Homecoming.”
“I am so excited to continue my partnership with Channing Dungey, Brett Paul, and the extended WarnerMedia family,” Okoro Carroll said in a statement. “We’ve only just scratched the surface of the stories we want to tell together. Our mission at Rock My Soul Productions is to create content that leaves the world a little bit of a better place than how we found it. Warner Bros.’ continued support of this mission means everything to me.”
Added Warner Bros. Television Group Chairman Channing Dungey, “We are thrilled to extend our relationship with Nkechi and are honored to continue as her storytelling partner. She and her All American team have done incredible work bringing a vivid and diverse picture of African American life to the screen, and we are so excited to see her expand that vision to include the world of Historically Black Colleges and Universities with the upcoming All American: Homecoming. Nkechi’s work is endlessly entertaining and inspiring, and we look forward to collaborating and telling important stories with her for many years to come.”
Lindsay Dunn, a veteran of AGBO and WME, has been named head of television for Rock My Soul.
“I am thrilled to be joining Nkechi as she builds her new company at Warner Bros,” said Dunn. “As her agent, I was always blown away by Nkechi’s talent as both a writer and producer, but her true gift is that of being an incredibly kind and generous human being. I am thankful to Nkechi for the opportunity to work with her as she continues to make meaningful and entertaining television with our partners at Warner Bros.”
