Originally posted Friday, January 31, 2020 by RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com on his AJC Radio & TV Talk blog
An effort to reboot "The Game," last seen on BET in 2015, fell through on the CW, according to Deadline.com.
Creator Mara Brock Akil and "American Soul" co-creator Devon Greggory had conceived the reboot in Baltimore where some of the original cast members would guide a bunch of knuckle-head new-schoolers through the ruthless game of football on and off the field.
The first version aired from 2006 to 2009 on the CW and was a spin-off of “Girlfriends” set in San Diego. After the CW cancelled the how, BET picked it up a year later, retooled it and moved the show’s production to Atlanta. The revival opened with huge ratings on BET (7.7 million viewers) and lasted six seasons there.
The show was one of the earliest ones to take advantage of social media and an online campaign to encourage BET to bring “The Game” back.
It also was retooled from a traditional three-camera sitcom to a one-camera dramedy.
The original series featured Tia Mowry, who left after season 5. Brandy Norwood was one of the later additions to the show.
Only two cast members - Wendy Raquel Robinson and Hosea Chanchez - appeared in all 144 episodes.
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