Lee Daniels, Karin Gist to Redevelop Drama ‘Our Kind of People’ for Fox

By Joe Otterson

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Fox is redeveloping the drama project “Our Kind of People” with Lee Daniels and Karin Gist.

Gist will now serve as writer and executive producer on the project via TheGistofIt Produtions, with Daniels also joining as an executive producer under his Entertainment banner.

The project is inspired by the non-fiction book “Our Kind of People: Inside America’s Black Upper Class” by Lawrence Otis Graham.  Variety exclusively reported the project was in development back in 2017.

Gist takes over writing the project from Wendy Calhoun. Gist’s version follows single mom Angela Vaughn, who risks it all and moves her family to Martha’s Vineyard with hopes of taking her natural hair care line to the next level by infiltrating the African American elite in Oak Bluffs. But she soon discovers a secret about her past that just might change her position and shake up her life and this influential community forever.

Ben Silverman and Montrel McKay are still attached to executive produce. Along with Silverman, fellow Propagate executives Jay Weisleder, Howard T. Owens, and Rodney Ferrell will also executive produce. Pam Williams and Marc Velez of Lee Daniels Entertainment will executive produce as well. 20th Century Television will produce along with Fox Entertainment.

Gist was previously the showrunner on fellow Fox show “Star,” which was co-created by Daniels. She is also set to serve as showrunner on the upcoming ABC comedy “Mixed-ish.” Her other credits include “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Revenge,” and “House of Lies.”

Daniels is currently prepping the final season of the hit Fox series “Empire,” while “Star” was canceled earlier this year after three seasons.