Facebook’s ‘Red Table Talk’ Garners Daytime Emmy Nomination
By Todd Spangler
LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Facebook is now in the awards hunt: Its popular original series “Red Table Talk” hosted by Jada Pinkett Smith was nominated for a 2019 Daytime Emmy.
It appears to be the first-ever Daytime Emmy Awards nomination for a Facebook-funded show, although a company rep was unable to confirm that.
“” is nominated in the Daytime Emmys informative talk-show category, up against NBC’s “Today Show with Kathie Lee & Hoda” and syndicated programs “Access Live,” “The Dr. Oz Show,” and “Rachael Ray.”
HuffPost’s “Food Interrupted,” sponsored by Panera Bread, also picked up a Daytime Emmy nomination, in the special class – short format daytime program category. “Food Interrupted” is distributed on Facebook Watch but isn’t funded by Facebook.
Last week, Facebook renewed “Red Table Talk” for a second season of more than 20 new episodes, slated to hit starting in May 2019. The show has built a community of millions of Facebook fans, who tune in to the discussion on a range of topics hosted by Pinkett Smith, her daughter Willow Smith and her mother Adrienne Banfield Norris (aka Gammy) along with guests.
The most recent episode of “Red Table Talk,” featuring an emotional interview with Jordyn Woods, set a new record as the most-viewed Facebook original episode in the first 24 hours, with 7.5 million people watching for at least one minute on the first day. It now has over 31 million views (as counted among viewers who watched at least 3 seconds).
In the episode, Woods addressed rumors that she had sex with NBA star Tristan Thompson, the father of Khloe Kardashian’s daughter, at a party over this past Presidents Day weekend. Woods — who has been Kylie Jenner’s best friend — admitted she kissed Thompson and got “touchy-feely” with him, but denied sleeping with him.
“Red Table Talk” now has 5.6 million followers on Facebook, while the official companion discussion group has more than 477,000 members. The show is produced by Westbrook Studios, a short-form content company owned by Pinkett Smith, Will Smith and Miguel Melendez and Very Tall Productions.
Westbrook Studios also is producing another Facebook Watch show — from Pinkett Smith’s husband: “Will Smith’s Bucket List,” with the actor engaging in different adventures around the world. “Bucket List” has one of the biggest debuts for a Watch series. The first episode, in which Will convinces Jada to go skydiving in Dubai, has over 41 million views (of at least 3 seconds) since its Feb. 27 bow.
