Family Reunion is an American sitcom created by Meg DeLoatch that was released via streaming on Netflix on July 10, 2019.[1] In September 2019, the series was renewed for a second season which premiered on April 5, 2021.[2] Part 4 was released on August 26, 2021.[3] In October 2021, the series was renewed for a third and final season, Part 5, which premiered on October 27, 2022.[4][5]
Family Reunion | |
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Genre | |
Created by | Meg DeLoatch |
Starring |
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Composer | Wendell Hanes |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 3 (5 parts) |
No. of episodes | 45 |
Production | |
Executive producers |
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Producers |
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Cinematography |
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Editor | Russell Griffin |
Camera setup | Multi-camera |
Running time | 24–34 minutes |
Production company | Mega Diva |
Original release | |
Network | Netflix |
Release | July 10, 2019 October 27, 2022 | –
Premise
editA family of six from Seattle, Washington, visit Columbus, Georgia, to attend a family reunion. They decide to relocate there to be closer to their family.[6]
Cast and characters
editMain
edit- Tia Mowry as Nicole "Cocoa" Joie McKellan, a mother of five (as of Season 3) who believes in new-age parenting and sometimes is very sassy but still loves her kids.
- Anthony Alabi as Moses "Moz" Deuteronomy McKellan, Cocoa's husband and a former Seahawks tight end. Although a strict person at times, he cares about his children.
- Talia Jackson as Jade McKellan, Cocoa and Moz's eldest daughter who is boy-crazy and a little rebellious.
- Isaiah Russell-Bailey as Shaka McKellan (seasons 1–2); Cocoa and Moz's older son. He is shown to be a very intelligent and academically inclined. In season 3 (also known as Part 5) he attends an elite boarding school and does not appear in the show.
- Cameron J. Wright as Mazzi McKellan, Cocoa and Moz's younger son who has a passion for singing and composing music.
- Jordyn Raya James as Amelia "Ami" Nicole McKellan, Cocoa and Moz's youngest daughter.
- Loretta Devine as Amelia Louise "M'Dear" McKellan, née Williams, Moz's Deep Southern old-fashioned churchgoing mother.
Recurring
edit- Richard Roundtree as Grandpa, M'Dear's husband for 43 years and Moz's father who is also a pastor. He is a survivor of prostate cancer.
- Warren Burke as Daniel, Moz's childish brother
- Lexi Underwood as Ava (season 1), Jade's friend from church
- Naomi Grace as Genevieve, Jade's friend from school who speaks with a British accent.
- Mark Curry as Principal Glass (seasons 1–2), the principal of Maya Angelou Magnet School
- Lindsey Da Sylveira as Mikayla, Jade's nemesis who is a black activist and mocks Jade for not being “black enough”.
- Telma Hopkins as Maybelle, M'Dear's sister who got married 4 times (5 times including her marriage to Tony in Season 3)
- Lance Alexander as Elvis, a family friend of the McKellan family who also has a crush on Jade
- Journey Carter as Renee, one of Jade's friends
- Jasun Jabbar Wardlaw, Jr. as Tyson (season 3), Moz and Cocoa's nephew and Maureen's son whose behavior is troublesome due to his father's passing but shapes up with the support of his family in Columbus.
- Legend and Legacy Jordan as Skye McKellan, Cocoa and Moz's lastborn son, Jade, Shaka, Mazzi and Ami's youngest sibling, Daniel and Grace's nephew and M'Dear and Grandpa's fifth grandchild
Guest stars
edit- Erica Ash as Grace, Moz and Daniel's younger sister
- Charlie Wilson as Himself
- Tyler Cole as Royale (season 1), Jade's ex-boyfriend
- Amanda Detmer as Haven Sheeks
- Jaleel White as Eric
- Tempestt Bledsoe as Katrina
- Noah Alexander Gerry as Drew (season 1), Jade's crush
- DeLon Shaw as Missy, Jade's friend at school
- Jackée Harry as Aunt Dot (seasons 1, 3), M'Dear and Maybelle's sister
- Rome Flynn as Tony Olsen (seasons 1, 3)
- Peri Gilpin as Daphne (season 2), Cocoa's mother
- Kenya Moore as Herself (season 2)
- Candiace Dillard Bassett as Sunita Chanel (season 2)
- Brandi Glanville as Heidi (season 2)
- Akira Akbar as Brooke (season 2), Shaka's friend at school
- Bruce Bruce as Brother Davis (season 2)
- Nicco Annan as Barron (season 2), Moz's cousin and Shaka's godfather who is gay
- Willie Gault as Himself (season 2)
- Anika Noni Rose as Miss Karen (season 2), Mazzi's piano teacher
- Tahj Mowry as Mr. Dean (season 2)
- Bella Podaras as Kelly-Ann (season 2)
- Monique Coleman as Ebony (season 2)
- Jadah Marie as Morgan (season 2), Shaka's girlfriend
- Ariel Martin as Jinji Starr (season 2)
- Essence Atkins as Aunt Maureen (season 3), Cocoa's paternal half-sister
- Lela Rochon as Dr. Turner (season 3)
- Rachel True as Cheryl (season 3), Cocoa's cousin
- Wendy Raquel Robinson as Joyce (season 3), Tony's mother and Maybelle's mother-in-law
- Robert Ri'chard as Vic (season 3)
Episodes
editSeries overview
editSeason | Episodes | Originally released | ||
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1 | 20 | 10 | July 10, 2019 | |
1 | December 9, 2019 | |||
9 | January 20, 2020 | |||
2 | 15 | 8 | April 5, 2021 | |
7 | August 26, 2021 | |||
3 | 10 | October 27, 2022 |
Season 1 (2019–20)
editNo. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | |||||||
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Part 1 | ||||||||||||
1 | 1 | "Remember How This All Started?" | Eric Dean Seaton | Meg DeLoatch | July 10, 2019 | |||||||
The McKellans head to a family reunion at M'Dear and Grandpa's house, where Moz, Cocoa and the kids consider a simpler life away from city comforts. | ||||||||||||
2 | 2 | "Remember Charlie Wilson?" | Eric Dean Seaton | Beverly DeLoatch & Charity L. Miller | July 10, 2019 | |||||||
The family begins to unpack and settle in but not everyone is accepting the change as quickly. Jade has to share a room with Ami which she is not used to. Ami does crazy things in her sleep keeping Jade up all night. Refusing to live like this, she begins to move upstairs to the attic. Meanwhile, while the parents are together talking, Mazzi and Shaka discover an autograph signed by Charlie Wilson and M'Dear reveals that she was once involved with Wilson back in the day. She claims that she had helped him with a few things but never actually dated him. Grandpa gets furious and refuses to believe this and ignores M'Dear despite her attempts to explain. Seeing as how they started this by snooping around M’Dear’s stuff in the first place, Moz grounds Shaka and Mazzi until they figure out how to fix M’Dear and Grandpa’s fight. When all else fails, the boys turn to Jade for help, which she initially refuses, but agrees after M'Dear moves up to the attic with her and prevents Jade from sleeping, such as loudly praying to God for a long time and snoring in her sleep. They invite Wilson over to clear things up and confirms he didn't date M'Dear, causing M'Dear and Grandpa to reconcile. The Mckellans hang out with Wilson and sing his songs. | ||||||||||||
3 | 3 | "Remember Vacation Bible School?" | Jody Margolin Hahn | Adrienne Carter | July 10, 2019 | |||||||
Moz gets the kids go-karts but Cocoa is totally against having them. She claims that they will get hurt and bans them from being ridden. Moz ends up riding them with the kids but Ami gets a hurt knee and Mazzi hurts his hand but the three of them agree to not tell Cocoa. However, at dinner that night, Ami beings to limp and Mazzi eats with one hand which leads to Cocoa discovering the truth about the accidents. Meanwhile, M'Dear takes Jade and Shaka to Vacation Bible School where she challenges everyone to recite as many bible verses as possible with a certain word. She beats and humiliates everybody including Jade, Shaka and Elvis. Determined to beat M'Dear, Jade takes Shaka's suggestion and uses a bible verse app to cheat and ends up beating her. However, M'Dear decides to do this at church and before they begin she takes out Jade's earpiece causing her to lose the competition. Jade ends up confessing to everyone and apologizes to M'Dear, while the family hang out on the porch when the service is over. Cocoa is revealed to be injured from driving in the go-kart. | ||||||||||||
4 | 4 | "Remember When I Lost My Sister?" | Leonard R. Garner, Jr. | Ralph Greene | July 10, 2019 | |||||||
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5 | 5 | "Remember Grace Under Fire?" | Leonard R. Garner, Jr. | Chris Moore | July 10, 2019 | |||||||
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6 | 6 | "Remember That Crazy Road Trip?" | Eric Dean Seaton | Anthony C. Hill | July 10, 2019 | |||||||
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7 | 7 | "Remember the First Day of School?" | Eric Dean Seaton | Taylor Vaughn Lasley | July 10, 2019 | |||||||
It's the first day of school for all of the children and all of them end up in tough situations. After a mishap with registration, Mazzi poses as a fourth grader because he's not ready to go to fifth grade and the teacher gives out candy for students who answer questions correctly. Shaka gets a crush on a girl after finding her backpack. Jade as well as some of her friends get detention and suspended for three days after the principal who had served in the military declares their regular school outfits unacceptable. In detention, they discover that it is only the girls who face dress code violations while the boys are excused. This leads to Jade starting a protest in the hallway which involves Moz and Cocoa. Eventually, M'Dear joins as well and the protest leads to the principal revoking the suspensions he gave Jade and her friends and changing the dress code to allow their clothes in school. Moz finds Mazzi and after talking Mazzi is ready to start the fifth grade the proper way. Shaka also gives his crush's backpack to her and gets her phone number. | ||||||||||||
8 | 8 | "Remember Macho Mazzi?" | Kelly Park | Henry "Hank" Jones | July 10, 2019 | |||||||
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9 | 9 | "Remember Black Elvis?" | Eric Dean Seaton | Howard Jordan, Jr. | July 10, 2019 | |||||||
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10 | 10 | "Remember When Our Boys Became Men?" | Robbie Countryman | Lia Prewitt-Martin | July 10, 2019 | |||||||
M'Dear introduces Jade to a new boy named Kurt and asks her to show him around town since he just moved. At first, Jade is totally against this but after meeting him she starts to like him as a friend. They hang out on the porch and talk, tell jokes to one another and even go to Prettyboy's where they play chess. While they are there, Jade encounters Drew, who becomes suspicious of her and Kurt's friendship and bails on the bowling date he had asked her to earlier in the episode. Jade, deciding not to cry on this rejection, decides to ask Kurt out, but it is revealed that he has started dating Ava, leading to a rivalry between the two. Meanwhile, Mazzi and Shaka start mowing lawns with Elvis to earn money for a PlayStation but when they try to get inside the house after finishing a cop finds them and handcuffs them at the house. Cocoa and Moz return to the house and are forced to explain that the situation was based on their skin color. The next day, the boys refuse to go outside out of fear of encountering the cop again, but Grandpa surprises them with a PlayStation, lifting their spirits. A few days later, while coming home from a trivia game night, the same cop pulls Moz over despite him doing nothing wrong, angrily explaining how Moz's file of complaint against him almost cost him his job. Cocoa then decides that this town is no longer safe and that they will be moving back to Seattle. | ||||||||||||
Special | ||||||||||||
11 | 11 | "A Family Reunion Christmas" | Robbie Countryman | Sa'Rah L. Jones | December 9, 2019 | |||||||
Part 2 | ||||||||||||
12 | 12 | "Remember the Dance Battle?" | Morenike Joela | Anthony C. Hill | January 20, 2020 | |||||||
The episode starts off with a party celebrating the firing of the cop that pulled Moz over. The next day at school, Shaka and his friend learns that the step team is holding tryouts, which fires up Cocoa's competitive streak as she pressures Shaka. Meanwhile, Jade learns that her Math teacher is dating Daniel, which she's forced to ace math to go on a school trip. | ||||||||||||
13 | 13 | "Remember When Daddy Came Home?" | Eric Dean Seaton | Ralph Greene | January 20, 2020 | |||||||
14 | 14 | "Remember Our Parents' Wedding?" | Richard Lyons | Adrienne Carter | January 20, 2020 | |||||||
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15 | 15 | "Remember When Jade Was Down with the Swirl?" | Angela Gomes | Taylor Vaughn Lasley | January 20, 2020 | |||||||
16 | 16 | "Remember When Shaka Got Beat Up?" | Juanesta Carlota Holmes | Henry "Hank" Jones & Chris Moore | January 20, 2020 | |||||||
17 | 17 | "Remember the G Club?" | Jody Margolin Hahn | Howard Jordan, Jr. | January 20, 2020 | |||||||
18 | 18 | "Remember Cousin Kenya?" | Kelly Park | Sa'Rah L. Jones & Lia Prewitt-Martin | January 20, 2020 | |||||||
19 | 19 | "Remember M'dear's Fifteen Minutes?" | Eric Dean Seaton | Judy Dent | January 20, 2020 | |||||||
20 | 20 | "Remember When the Party Was Over?" | Eric Dean Seaton | Meg DeLoatch | January 20, 2020 | |||||||
Meanwhile, Shaka, who is still angry and feeling betrayed by Elvis for his actions in the last episode, tries to force Mazzi to stop hanging out with Elvis. When Mazzi refuses, Shaka forms a "friendship" with Mazzi's rival, Braylan, as payback, severing their relationship. At Jade's party, Moz and Cocoa fly in her friends from Seattle to surprise her, but what ultimately lifts Jade's spirits is Royale, who crashes the party in disguise. Royale reveals he is leaving Georgia, so the two confess their love for each other and share a kiss, but they are caught by Moz, who forces Royale out. Elsewhere, Braylan crosses a line by bullying Mazzi and Elvis, so Shaka sides with Mazzi and Elvis and tells off Braylan, reconciling with his brother and friend. Meanwhile, M'Dear overhears a conversation with Moz and Cocoa's financial advisor, who reveals that the McKellans are now officially broke. M'Dear offers them to stay with her for as long as they need, but after she says this, Cocoa receives a note, revealing that Jade has run away with Royale. |
Season 2 (2021)
editNo. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | |||||||
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Part 3 | ||||||||||||
21 | 1 | "Remember Mazzi's First Love?" | Juanesta Carlota Holmes | Anthony C. Hill | April 5, 2021 | |||||||
22 | 2 | "Remember When Jade Broke a Nail??!" | Robbie Countryman | Ralph Greene | April 5, 2021 | |||||||
23 | 3 | "Remember When Cocoa Was a Housewife?" | Robbie Countryman | Arthur Harris | April 5, 2021 | |||||||
24 | 4 | "Remember When M'Dear Changed History?" | Eric Dean Seaton | Meg DeLoatch | April 5, 2021 | |||||||
25 | 5 | "Remember the False Idol?" | Morenike Joela | Deja Harrell | April 5, 2021 | |||||||
26 | 6 | "Remember When Shaka Did the Robot?" | Kelly Park | Anthony C. Hill | April 5, 2021 | |||||||
27 | 7 | "Remember When the Glass Passed?" | Juanesta Carlota Holmes | Ralph Greene | April 5, 2021 | |||||||
The McKellan children are shocked when they learn that Principal Glass has died. Jade finds herself conflicted in having grief, due to her past clashes with Glass and feeling herself to be the only McKellan in not having a positive relationship with him. Jade also refused to take part in singing at a ceremony in honor of Principal Glass until she gets a visit from Glass's spirit, who tells her that in spite of their differences, he always viewed her as a great leader. This moves Jade, inspiring her to attend the ceremony. Meanwhile, Mazzi starts dealing with death anxiety until M'Dear takes him and Ami to a funeral home and gave them a light humor discussion about mortality. | ||||||||||||
28 | 8 | "Remember When Cocoa Found Her Calling?" | Richard Lyons | Sa'Rah L. Jones & Lia Prewitt-Martin | April 5, 2021 | |||||||
Part 4 | ||||||||||||
29 | 9 | "Remember When the Trick Wasn't a Treat?" | Russell Griffin | Chris Moore | August 26, 2021 | |||||||
30 | 10 | "Remember When M'Dear Stole the Show?" | Leonard R. Garner Jr. | Meg DeLoatch & George Blake | August 26, 2021 | |||||||
31 | 11 | "Remember When Jade Thought She Was Grown?" | Morenike Joela | Lia Prewitt-Martin | August 26, 2021 | |||||||
32 | 12 | "Remember the Story M'Dear Hates to Tell?" | Sheldon Epps | Arthur Harris | August 26, 2021 | |||||||
33 | 13 | "Remember My Funny Valentine?" | Michael A. Joseph | Meg DeLoatch | August 26, 2021 | |||||||
34 | 14 | "Remember When Cocoa Did It All?" | John Simmons | Chris Moore & Deja Harrell | August 26, 2021 | |||||||
35 | 15 | "Remember M'Dear's Roast?" | Jody Margolin Hahn | Bill Boulware | August 26, 2021 |
Season 3 (2022)
editNo. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Part 5 | ||||||||||||
36 | 1 | "Remember When the Skye Fell?" | Russell Griffin | Adrienne Carter | October 27, 2022 | |||||||
37 | 2 | "Remember the New Addition to the Family?" | Morenike Joela Evans | Arthur Harris | October 27, 2022 | |||||||
After singing at church, Jade and M'Dear are approached by the pastor's nephew, a famous rapper (Coy Stewart) to sing on his new song. When they listen to it, it turns out that it has sexual references that M'Dear frowns upon. When Jade confronts him about this, he disrespects his uncle, the church, and his own grandma. It turns out that Jade was recording the whole thing and threatens to put it on TikTok. At the church, he visits to apologize for the song and starts to perform a new version of the song, about Jesus. Meanwhile, Cocoa's sister (Essence Atkins) visits with her son Tyson after he gets in trouble back home in Detroit. He then takes Moz's car for a joyride with Mazzi and Ami. It turns out that this behavior is a result of his father passing away. | ||||||||||||
38 | 3 | "Remember Stompin' the Yard?" | Robbie Countryman | Deja Harrell | October 27, 2022 | |||||||
39 | 4 | "Remember the Homecoming Queen?" | Juanesta Carlota Holmes | Lia Prewitt-Martin | October 27, 2022 | |||||||
40 | 5 | "Remember When Elvis Broke Jesus?" | Ron Moseley | Amber McCain | October 27, 2022 | |||||||
41 | 6 | "Remember When the Raccoon Crashed the Wedding?" | Sheldon Epps | Sa'Rah L. Jones | October 27, 2022 | |||||||
42 | 7 | "Remember When Mazzi Almost Lost It?" | Rob Deane | Warren Hutcherson | October 27, 2022 | |||||||
43 | 8 | "Remember When Jade Walked in M'Dear's Shoes?" | Leonard R. Garner, Jr. | Bill Boulware | October 27, 2022 | |||||||
44 | 9 | "Remember Our 20 Acres and a Deed?" | Eric Dean Seaton | Shawnté McCall | October 27, 2022 | |||||||
45 | 10 | "Remember the New Beginning?" | John Simmons | Beverly DeLoatch | October 27, 2022 |
Production
editDevelopment
editOn October 17, 2018, it was announced that Netflix had given the production a straight-to-series order for a first season consisting of twenty episodes. The series was created by Meg DeLoatch who was also expected to executive produce. Production began in Los Angeles.[6][7] The first part was released on July 10, 2019.[1] On September 17, 2019, Netflix renewed the series for a second season consisting of sixteen episodes. It was also announced that there will be a holiday special that was released on December 9, 2019, and the nine extra season 1 episodes were released on January 20, 2020.[8][9] The second season premiered on April 5, 2021.[2] Part 4 was released on August 26, 2021.[3] On October 18, 2021, Netflix renewed the series for a 10-episode third and final season.[4] The third season premiered on October 27, 2022.[5]
Casting
editAlongside the initial series announcement, it was reported that Tia Mowry, Loretta Devine, Anthony Alabi, Talia Jackson, Isaiah Russell-Bailey, Cameron J. Wright, and Jordyn James had been cast in series regular roles.[6][7]
Reception
editCritical response
editThe review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 67% approval rating for the series, based on 6 reviews, with an average rating of 5/10.[10]
Awards and Nominations
editThe series received numerous awards and nominations, it won NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Children's Program in 2020, 2021 and 2022.[11] As well as an Art Directors Guild Award for Excellence in Production Design for a Multi-Camera Series in 2022 and a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Cinematography for a Multi-Camera Series in 2020.
References
edit- ^ a b Ramos, Dino-Ray (June 14, 2019). "Meg DeLoatch Assembles All-Black Writers Room For Netflix's 'Family Reunion' Starring Tia Mowry And Loretta Devine". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on June 12, 2019. Retrieved June 12, 2019.
- ^ a b Mauch, Ally (March 8, 2021). "Family Reunion Will Feature 3 Real Housewives Guest Stars in the New Season — Watch the Trailer!". People. Archived from the original on March 8, 2021. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
- ^ a b Bosselman, Haley; Shanfeld, Ethan (July 19, 2021). "Starz Releases Trailer for Wrestling Drama 'Heels' (TV News Roundup)". Variety. Archived from the original on July 19, 2021. Retrieved July 19, 2021.
- ^ a b Andreeva, Nellie (October 18, 2021). "'Family Reunion" Renewed For Third & Final Season By Netflix With New Showrunners". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on October 18, 2021. Retrieved October 18, 2021.
- ^ a b Bjornson, Greta (September 21, 2022). "New on Netflix October 2022". Decider. Archived from the original on September 21, 2022. Retrieved September 21, 2022.
- ^ a b c Andreeva, Nellie (October 17, 2018). "Tia Mowry & Loretta Devine Star In 'Family Reunion' Comedy Series Ordered By Netflix". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on October 17, 2018. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
- ^ a b Goldberg, Lesley (October 17, 2018). "Tia Mowry, Loretta Devine to Star in Netflix Comedy 'Family Reunion'". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on October 17, 2018. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
- ^ Bennett, Anita (September 17, 2019). "Netflix Renews 'Family Reunion' For Second Season". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on October 6, 2019. Retrieved October 3, 2019.
- ^ Mallenbaum, Carly (December 11, 2019). "Netflix's January 2020 list: New seasons of 'Grace and Frankie,' 'Sabrina'". USA Today. Archived from the original on January 18, 2020. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
- ^ "Family Reunion: Part 1 (2019)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Archived from the original on June 21, 2021. Retrieved September 12, 2019.
- ^ Hipes, Patrick; Ramos, Dino-Ray (March 27, 2021). "NAACP Image Awards Winners: 'Bad Boys For Life' Best Picture, D-Nice Entertainer Of The Year; Viola Davis, Chadwick Boseman Top Movie Acting Honors – Full List Of Winners". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on March 27, 2021. Retrieved August 26, 2021.