SCAD TVfest 2025 brings galaxy of TV stars to Atlanta for panels, screenings
The 13th annual SCAD TVfest this year will feature big shows with Atlanta ties such as “Found,” “Cobra Kai” and “Stranger Things,” as well as an array of upcoming TV shows from the likes of Amazon, Netflix, HBO and the broadcast networks.
Among the actors and producers scheduled to appear include Laverne Cox for a new Amazon show “Clean Slate;” Uzo Aduba from an upcoming Netflix mystery drama “The Residence;” Shanola Hampton on NBC’s “Found;” Morris Chestnut of CBS’s “Watson;” Caleb McLaughlin on “Stranger Things;” and longtime “Amazing Race” host Phil Keoghan.
The three-day festival runs Wednesday-Friday, Feb. 5-7, with a mix of panels and screenings at different SCAD locations in Atlanta. A three-day pass will cost $125 for the general public or $100 for SCAD cardholders and SCAD alum at scadtvfest.com. Day passes go for $50 for the general public and $25 for SCAD cardholders and alum. Individual events cost $5-$10.
Among the talent set to receive honors at SCAD TVfest is Hiroyuki Sanada, one of the leads in the popular and critically acclaimed Hulu/Disney+ series “Shōgun,” who will accept a Lifetime Achievement Award.
Cox is pocketing an Impact Award, while Noah Centineo of Netflix’s “The Recruit” gets a Distinguished Performance Award, Sophie Skelton of “Outlander” lands the Lumiere Award and Aduba will receive the Hollywood Report’s Trailblazer Award. The Duffer Brothers (Matt and Ross Duffer), creators of “Stranger Things,” will receive the Variety Showrunner Award.
Winners will attend screenings and participate in conversations about their performances and careers.
The Amazon Prime comedy “Clean Slate,” shot in Savannah and starring Atlanta comic George Wallace, features 107 SCAD alumni, students and faculty in different roles such as production, camera operations, costume, set design, casting and acting. SCAD said “Stranger Things” includes six SCAD alumni in various roles. Two other upcoming shows shot in Atlanta will be featured: NBC drama “Grosse Point Garden Society” and CBS’s daytime soap “Beyond the Gates.”
Many major networks are involved in SCAD TVfest this year, including Adult Swim, BET, CBS, Hallmark, Hulu, Max, NatGeo, Peacock, Showtime, Sony Pictures Television, Starz and Warner Bros. Television.
Here is the list of participants expected from 22 shows, which is subject to change.
- “The Amazing Race” (CBS) with host and executive producer Phil Keoghan
- “Beyond the Gates” (CBS) with actors Clifton Davis, Daphnee Duplaix and Karla Mosley and executive producer and president of the CBS Studios NAACP venture Sheila Ducksworth.
- “Clean Slate” (Sony Pictures Television, Prime Video) with cast members Laverne Cox, George Wallace, Telma Hopkins, D.K. Uzoukwu, Jay Wilkison, Norah Murphy and writer and SCAD alum Shomari Kirkwood
- “Cobra Kai” (Sony Pictures Television, Netflix) with creators and executive producers Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg; and actors William Zabka, Tanner Buchanan, Mary Mouser and Gianni DeCenzo
- “Doc” (Sony Pictures Television, Fox) with cast members Molly Parker, Omar Metwally, Amirah Vann, Jon Ecker, Anya Banerjee, Scott Wolf and Patrick Walker, executive producer Hank Steinberg and showrunner and executive producer Barbie Kligman
- “Found” (Warner Bros. Television, NBC, Universal Television) with cast members Shanola Hampton, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Gabrielle Walsh and Arlen Escarpeta and executive producer, showrunner and creator Nkechi Okoro Carroll
- “Grosse Pointe Garden Society” (NBC) Panelists to be announced
- “Home Is Where the Heart Is” (Hallmark) with host Luke Macfarlane, creator and executive producer Jessica Sebastian-Dayeh and designer Olivia Westbrook, as well as head of Hallmark Unscripted Programming David Stefanou
- “Marvel Animation’s Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man” (Disney+) with showrunner, head writer and executive producer Jeff Trammell
- “Marvel Television’s Agatha All Along “(Disney+) with creator, showrunner, director and executive producer Jac Schaeffer
- “No Taste Like Home with Antoni Porowski” (National Geographic) with host and executive producer Antoni Porowski
- “Oh My God, Yes! A Series of Extremely Relatable Circumstances” (Adult Swim) with executive producer and creator Adele “Supreme” Williams, executive producer Dominique Braud and Adult Swim Director of Development Missy Laney
- “Outlander” (Sony Pictures Television, Starz) with actor Sophie Skelton
- “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” (Disney+) with actor Walker Scobell
- “The Recruit” (Netflix) with actor Noah Centineo
- “The Residence” (Netflix) with actors Uzo Aduba, Susan Kelechi Watson, Jason Lee, Bronson Pinchot and executive producer Betsy Beers
- SCAD Presents: “chefATL” (SCAD)
- SCAD Presents: “Lodged” (SCAD)
- “Shōgun” (FX) with actor and producer Hiroyuki Sanada
- Tyler Perry’s “Sistas” (BET) with cast members Novi Brown, Mignon Baker, Crystal Hayslett, Devale Ellis and Chido Nwokocha
- “St. Denis Medical” (NBC) with cast member Allison Tolman and creators and executive producers Eric Ledgin and Justin Spitzer
- “Stranger Things” (Netflix) with creators, executive producers and showrunners Matt and Ross Duffer and actor Caleb McLaughlin
- “Surface” (Apple TV+) with writer, executive producer, showrunner Veronica West and Lauren Neustadter, executive producer on behalf of Hello Sunshine.
- “Watson” (CBS) with actor-executive producer Morris Chestnut and creator, showrunner and executive producer Craig Sweeny
About the Author
Rodney Ho writes about entertainment for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution including TV, radio, film, comedy and all things in between. A native New Yorker, he has covered education at The Virginian-Pilot, small business for The Wall Street Journal and a host of beats at the AJC over 20-plus years. He loves tennis, pop culture & seeing live events.
