Prentice Penny’s a Penny for Your Thoughts Entertainment Signs Multiyear Overall Deal With Disney General Entertainment’s Onyx Collective

Prentice Penny has entered into a new, multiyear overall deal with Disney General Entertainment’s Onyx Collective. Under the terms of the agreement, Penny will produce, write and direct new projects through his production company, A Penny For Your Thoughts Entertainment, across all Disney platforms, including Hulu, which serves as the primary home for Onyx Collective titles. 

 

Penny and A Penny For Your Thoughts Entertainment will have the ability to develop projects that Penny would produce, write and/or direct himself, as well as develop and supervise projects from other writers. A Penny For Your Thoughts Entertainment’s president and partner, Chris Pollack, will continue in his role, leading the company alongside Penny under the new deal. The company’s development team, led by Alex Soler, will also make the move, continuing in their respective roles.

 

“When we mapped out our strategy and ideal partners for Onyx Collective, Prentice Penny was at the top of the vision board,” stated Tara Duncan, president, Freeform and Onyx Collective. “Prentice has a depth of experience telling wildly entertaining, culturally specific stories. His prolific ambitions, both as a writer and director, and his unique ability to identify trends make him the perfect creator to help build our brand. I’m honored he chose Onyx Collective to be his creative home.”

 

“I could not be more excited to partner with Onyx Collective for the next phase of my career. The second I sat down with Dana and Tara, I knew I wanted to work with them and make this my new home. To be at the ground floor of what Tara and the entire Onyx Collective team wants to be is an honor,” stated Prentice Penny. “The types of projects that Onyx, Chris (Pollack), and my fantastic team want to make line up perfectly. We are also ecstatic that we can continue to foster and develop more one-of-a-kind artists under this deal. As a writer/director/producer, you always want to have as many tools at your disposal to create your art, and all of the various platforms under the Disney brand just made for a beautiful marriage.”

 

With a passion for storytelling that inspires audiences to reconsider how they view the world, Penny has dedicated his creative efforts, as well as those of the company, to tell stories that offer fresh perspectives and explore beyond the beaten path to challenge the way we think about our culture and one another. The partnership will enable A Penny For Your Thoughts Entertainment to continue to create and champion these types of premium comedy, drama and late-night series while also expanding their work into new areas of content.

 

Penny is an Emmy®-nominated and Peabody- and Golden Globe®-winning writer, director and producer who has brought his unique voice and sensibilities to some of today’s most beloved projects. He is best known for his role as showrunner, executive producer and frequent director for HBO’s award-winning hit comedy “Insecure.” Fresh off its award-winning fourth season, the Emmy-nominated and Peabody-winning series will return for a fifth and final season this coming fall. Through A Penny For Your Thoughts Entertainment, Penny’s most recent project is “Pause with Sam Jay,” the recently launched late-night series that he co-created and executive produces with “SNL” writer Sam Jay at HBO. Additionally, Penny marked his feature film directorial and screenwriting debut with the Netflix original film “Uncorked.” Starring Mamoudou Athie, Niecy Nash and Courtney B. Vance, the film earned rave reviews and quickly become Netflix’s No. 1 movie in the U.S. the week of its release. Cementing Penny as a talented filmmaker to watch, the film’s skillful storytelling offered an intimate glimpse into family dynamics with added depth, nuance and dimension, expanding and overturning the traditional stereotypes of Black father-son relationships.

 

A multimedia production company, A Penny For Your Thoughts Entertainment specializes in content that explores the nuances of human experience through diverse characters and storylines. The company has several projects in various stages of development. Along with its scripted projects, the company has also ventured into unscripted programming, which most recently includes the original lifestyle series “Upscale with Prentice Penny” for truTV. Additionally, among Penny’s past credits are several acclaimed comedy series, including the Golden Globe-winning “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” critically acclaimed cult favorite “Happy Endings,” the hit ensemble series “Scrubs,” and the seminal sitcom “Girlfriends.”

 

The recently announced Onyx Collective focuses on curating premium content by creators of color and underrepresented voices. Penny joins the brand’s already-announced roster of prolific creators, including writer and comedian Natasha Rothwell (“Insecure,” “SNL”) and all non-Marvel titles produced by Ryan Coogler’s Proximity (“Judas and the Black Messiah,” “Black Panther”).

 

Penny is repped by WME, Theresa Kang-Lowe’s Blue Marble Management and attorneys John Meigs and Adam Kaller.

 

About Onyx Collective
Onyx Collective is a new content brand formed under Disney General Entertainment Content (DGE) designed to curate premium entertainment programming by creators of color and underrepresented voices. Onyx Collective’s debut project, Questlove’s award-winning documentary “Summer of Soul (…or, When the Revolution Could Not be Televised),” is available now on Hulu. The brand’s roster of prolific creators also includes writer and comedian Natasha Rothwell (“Insecure,” “SNL”) and all non-Marvel titles produced by Ryan Coogler’s Proximity (“Judas and the Black Messiah,” “Black Panther”).

 

Media Contact
Kristen Andersen
kristen.andersen@disney.com

 

Nick Rodea
nick.rodea@disney.com