Tag Archives: NBC Sports

Apple Renews “Ted Lasso,” Featuring Cristo Fernández, for Third Season

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Cristo Fernández will still be bending it like Beckham…

Apple’s hit comedy Ted Lasso, featuring the scene-stealing Mexican actor as part of the ensemble cast, is returning for a third go-round.

Cristo Fernández

The streamer has given an early season 3 renewal to the comedy starring Saturday Night Live alum Jason Sudeikis in the title role, following the series’ breakout first season, early second season renewal, and before production even starts on Season 2 in London in early January.

Ted Lasso, which hails from Sudeikis and Bill Lawrence, is Apple’s No. 1 comedy across all top 50 countries, including the U.S., UK, Germany, France, Canada, Russia, Japan and more. It has broken audience records for Apple TV+, ranking as the No. 1 comedy each week, drawing 25% new viewers to the service since its August 14 launch, according to the streamer. The pop culture phenom has grown its viewership more than 600%, fueled by binge watchers, setting new records for completion and engagement worldwide.

Co-written by Sudeikis and Lawrence, Ted Lasso is based on the popular Coach Ted Lasso character Sudeikis played in NBC Sports videos several years ago. It was developed for television by Sudeikis, Lawrence, Joe Kelly and Brendan Hunt. It stars Sudeikis as Ted Lasso, a small-time college football coach from Kansas hired to coach a professional soccer team in England, despite having no experience coaching soccer. Hannah Waddingham, Brendan Hunt, Jeremy Swift, Juno Temple, Brett Goldstein, Phil Dunster and Nick Mohammed also star.

Sudeikis also serves as executive producer, alongside Lawrence (Scrubs) via his Doozer Productions, in association with Warner Bros. Television and Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group.

All episodes of Ted Lasso‘s first season are available for streaming on Apple TV+

Fernández’s previous credits include the short films Jaguar and Mis Mejores Días.

Melissa Fumero Taking Part in NBCUniversal’s New “The More You Know” Social Justice, Equality and Equity PSAs

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Melissa Fumero is helping people get in the know…

NBCUniversal will launch a new series of its popular The More You Know PSAs that tackle systemic racism and speak up for social justice, equality and equity, with the 38-year-old Cuban American actress and Brooklyn Nine-Nine star among the artists taking part.

Melissa Fumero

Fumero joins a roster of NBC talent that includes Dulé Hill, James Roday Rodriguez and Kelly Clarkson, among others.

The campaign was developed in collaboration with social and racial justice organizations Fair Count, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, the NAACP, the National Action Network and the National Urban League, and focuses on standing up against injustice, teaching children about equity, and the importance of voting and completing the census, especially for how it impacts the Black community and communities of color.

The campaign kicked off this week on NBC’s Today with a spot on teaching children about inclusion and acceptance. The campaign will be rolling out over the next few weeks, with spots now available on TheMoreYouKnow.com and YouTube.

The More You Know site also includes comprehensive resources and educational guides.

“For over 30 years, ‘The More You Know’ has sought to bring light to the nation’s most pressing social issues,” said Craig Robinson, Executive Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer, NBCUniversal, “and we hope this new iteration will continue to educate, encourage and inspire people of all ages to take an active role in improving the world we live in.”

In addition to Fumero, Hill, Roday Rodriguez and Clarkson, stars participating in the campaign include: Carlos Adyan (En Casa con Telemundo), Freema Agyeman (New Amsterdam), Notah Begay III (NBC Sports), Gizelle Bryant (The Real Housewives of Potomac), Kandi Burruss (The Real Housewives of Atlanta), Victor Cruz (E! News), Dexter Darden (Saved by the Bell), Ester Dean (Songland), Ryan Eggold (New Amsterdam), Soleil Moon Frye (Punky Brewster), Damon Hack (Golf Channel), Zuri Hall (Access Hollywood), Ana Jurka (“En Casa con Telemundo and Titulares y Más), Aneudy Lara (100 Días Para Enamorarnos), Howie Mandel (America’s Got Talent), Christopher Meloni (Law & Order: Organized Crime), Wendy Osefo (The Real Housewives of Potomac), Jeimy Osorio (Telemundo), Nina Parker (E! News’ Nightly Pop), Nichole Sakura (Superstore), Jocko Sims (New Amsterdam), Chris Sullivan (This Is Us”), Justin Sylvester (E! News’ Daily Pop), Elyfer Torres (Enemigo Íntimo) and Reno Wilson (Good Girls).

Quintanilla Joins HBO’s Emmy-Winning “Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel”

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It’s about to get real for Carl Quintanilla…

The Latino award-winning broadcast journalist and CNBC anchor has joined HBO’s Emmy-winning Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel.

Carl Quintanilla

HBO and Gumbel made the announcement on Monday.

“Carl’s experience and on-air skills figure to boost our lineup tremendously,” said Gumbel in a statement. “Since the focus at Real Sports is primarily on financial and social issues in the world of sports, Carl’s background makes him a great fit for what we like to do.”

Quintanilla’s responsibilities at CNBC will remain the same; he’ll still anchor weekday programs Squawk on the Street and Squawk Alley.

“The quality of [Real Sports‘] reporting is as good as there has ever been on television, led by correspondents I’ve admired my entire career. I couldn’t ask for a better team on which to play a part,” added Quintanilla.

Real Sports has a long history of bringing on correspondents who work with other networks.

Veteran TV sports reporter Andrea Kremer is the chief correspondent of the NFL Network‘s recently formed health and player safety unit. Soledad O’Brien, who joined the show last year, also reports for Al Jazeera America. And Mary Carillo has several other jobs including a significant presence on NBC Sports during coverage of the Olympics.