“Black-ish” creator Kenya Barris will develop a movie remake of the 1990s sports comedy “White Men Can’t Jump,” which will be produced by Los Angeles Clippers star Blake Griffin and Carolina Panthers All-Pro lineman Ryan Kalil.
Released in 1992, “White Men Can’t Jump” stars Woody Harrelson as Billy Hoyle, a former college basketball star who wins bets against streetballers who think they can beat him because he’s white. His hustling strategy changes when he runs into Sidney (Wesley Snipes), another baller who tricks Billy out of a huge chunk of cash. After some prodding from their significant others, Sidney and Billy form a partnership that slowly grows into a friendship as they enter 2-on-2 tournaments for big bucks.
Barris will write the screenplay for the remake and produce the film with Griffin, Kalil, and Noah Weinstein, all of whom are producing through their company, Mortal Media. Griffin and Kalil are also slated to produce Disney’s reboot of the 1991 cult film “The Rocketeer,” which will feature a black female lead and is currently in early development.
Along with his Emmy-winning work on “Black-ish,” Barris recently wrote and produced the sequel “Barbershop: The Next Cut,” and is attached to the female-driven comedy “Girl Trip,” which will be released by Universal on July 21.
Barris is repped by CAA, Principato Young, and Morris Yorn. Griffin and Kalil are repped by CAA and Ziffren Brittenham.