2022 has been a super successful year for Mary J. Blige with the release of her ‘Good Morning Gorgeous‘ album and accompanying arena tour, the launch of her Sun Goddess wine line, co-headlining at the Superbowl, and a slew of acting roles including the new season of ‘Power Book II: Ghost’ which is set to return in early 2023.
Now, the Queen of Hip-Hop Soul will close out the year with a major production deal that will see her launch her very first-ever talk show, and will also include some other scripted and non-scripted projects in partnership with BET.
According to the press release, the first act of the new deal will come via a talk show titled ‘The Wine Down.‘
“THE WINE DOWN” is the first unscripted project being developed under the first-look deal. “THE WINE DOWN,” an innovative unscripted series hosted by Blige, will bring together the hottest, most outspoken, highly sought-after people in entertainment, sports, social media, and politics to uncork a bottle to take a sip and have raw, provocative, insightful and real conversations. Academy Award®-nominated and Golden Globe®-winning actor, writer, director, producer, and philanthropist Taraji P. Henson and chart-topping rapper Yung Miami will be among the first guests with more talent to be announced at a later date.
There is also a film titled ‘Real Love’ in the works as well as other projects according to the release.
Blue Butterfly Productions is a film, television and digital content company founded in 2019 by Blige. In addition to the partnership with BET, Blue Butterfly has a first look scripted television deal with Lionsgate Television. Through Blue Butterfly, Blige is expanding her already iconic career of telling stories through music, to creating diverse stories and narratives for all audiences on film. Blige, along with partners Ashaunna Ayars and Nicole Jackson, recently executive produced her deeply personal and celebrated documentary with Amazon Studios, Mary J. Blige’s My Life. They launched the inaugural sold out “Strength of a Woman Festival and Summit” this past May in Atlanta and are in development on various television and film projects including the film Real Love with Lifetime and Sony Pictures Television, andseries includingThe Wine Down with BET.
Mary spoke about her excitement about the new deal and upcoming projects.
“BET has been one of my biggest supporters throughout my career,” said Mary J. Blige. “Being able to now create together, for them to be so supportive of my vision for the type of content I will create, is something I am grateful and excited for. We already have multiple projects in the works and there is much more to come.”
Mary also recently wrote her first-ever children’s book that is set for release in March 2023.
We love to see it! Keep winning Mary!
