The classic MTV animated series Daria is returning to television, but this time around, the show will focus on a character aside from Ms. Morgendorffer. MTV Studios announced on Thursday that Tracee Ellis Ross has signed on to voice and executive produce a Daria spinoff titled Jodie, which would center on Jodie Landon from the original series (voiced by Jessica Cydnee Jackson in the original series). The show will follow Jodie “as she comes into her own and enters the workplace in her first post-college job in tech,†and according to MTV’s press release, you can count on some other appearances by Lawndale High alums, too. Insecure’s Grace Nkenge Edwards created the spinoff and will serve as head writer.
“I am thrilled to bring this project to life with MTV, both as executive producer and by voicing Jodie’s character. Being able to give voice to fresh, feminist and unexplored stories of young women excites me,†Ross said on he project. “Jodie will spin off from the cult classic Daria, and with the brilliant, sweet and sarcastic black girl magic that is Jodie Landon, we will feature a diverse cast, comprised mainly of unapologetically smart and ambitious young female characters who are vulnerable and flawed and interesting and funny. As a very cool bonus, Jodie will be the first adult animated show in almost 20 years that will star a black woman. It will be a smart, funny workplace comedy full of commentary about everything from gentrification to sex to tech to call-out culture.†The last adult animated series to center on a black woman, Hey Monie!, wrapped up its run on BET and Oxygen back in 2003.
MTV Studios says that Jodie is the first of multiple projects on the way from the “Daria universe,†so if you’re a longtime fan still holding out for a super-moody Trent movie, all is not lost just yet!
Update, June 18, 2020: The Jodie series has finally found a home on Comedy Central. Here’s the logline for the show from the network:
What Daria did for showing how inane high school was for Gen X, Jodie will do for exploring the trials and tribulations of a first job for a new generation. The series will satirize workplace culture, Gen Z struggles, the artifice of social media and more. With themes of empowerment along gender and racial lines, explorations of privilege, and a wicked sense of humor, Jodie will shine a light on the personal and professional issues young Black women face today.
Comedy Central has not yet revealed the premiere date for the animated series.
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