The Chi: Season Two Renewal, New Showrunner Set for Showtime Drama

Showtime’s putting down roots in Chi-Town. The Chi TV show has been renewed for a second season on Showtime. The season two pickup was confirmed on the show’s official Twitter account. Check it out, below. Ayanna Floyd Davis will serve as showrunner in season two.

A Showtime drama from Lena Waithe, The Chi stars Jason Mitchell, Tiffany Boone, Jacob Latimore, Yolonda Ross, Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine, Alex R. Hibbert, Armando Riesco, Sonja Sohn, Jahking Guillory, and Steven Williams. Filmed on location, the story explores life on the city’s South Side. It follows residents who at first are only connected by circumstance, but soon begin to develop a bond in their longing for a more meaningful life.  

The Chi Renewed for Season Two on Showtime

 

https://twitter.com/SHO_PR/status/958403084337676288

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We heard ya. We’re staying in the South Side for a second season! #TheChi #Showtime pic.twitter.com/GxYC67JpdF

— The Chi (@SHOTheChi) January 30, 2018

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This is not a drill. @SHOTheChi season 2 is a go! pic.twitter.com/HeyidcKSBs

— Tiffany Boone (@Tiffboone) January 30, 2018

 

The Chi: A Look at the Ratings

The first season of The Chi is averaging a 0.23 rating in the 18-49 demographic and 640,000 viewers. Of the 13 scripted Showtime TV shows we’re currently tracking, The Chi ranks sixth and fifth, respectively.

Learn more about The Chi season two renewal from this Showtime press release.

SHOWTIME(R) ORDERS SECOND SEASON OF “THE CHI”

Drama Series From Emmy(R) Winning Creator And Executive Producer Lena Waithe Has Grown Every Single Week Since Premiere

Ayanna Floyd Davis Named New Showrunner

LOS ANGELES – January 30, 2018 – SHOWTIME has renewed its hit drama series THE CHI for a second season, it was announced today by Gary Levine, President of Programming, Showtime Networks Inc. Created and executive produced by Emmy Award winner Lena Waithe (Master of None) and executive produced by Academy Award(R), Emmy and Golden Globe(R) winner Common (Selma), THE CHI explores the humanity behind the headlines sensationalizing the South Side of Chicago. Ayanna Floyd Davis (Empire, Hannibal) has signed on for season two as executive producer and showrunner. Produced by Fox 21 Television Studios, the series will go back into production in Chicago later this year.

“From viewers and critics alike, the response to THE CHI has been so enthusiastic from the very start that our decision to renew the series was an easy one,” Levine said. “We love the vibrant characters and the nuanced world that Lena has created. Her vision for THE CHI has clearly struck a chord, and we know she has many more moving, personal and resonant stories to tell about her beloved hometown.”

THE CHI ranks as the best SHOWTIME series premiere since BILLIONS in 2016, averaging four million weekly viewers across platforms. Since its January 7 debut, the series has consistently grown its audience week after week – with its most recent episode outperforming the premiere by 41 percent. THE CHI has also been embraced and amplified on social media consistently among the top trending topics on Sunday nights on Twitter.

Produced entirely in its namesake city, THE CHI is a timely coming-of-age story centering on a group of residents who become linked by coincidence but bonded by the need for connection and redemption. The ensemble cast for season one includes Jason Mitchell (Mudbound, Straight Outta Compton), Jacob Latimore (Sleight), Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine (Queen of Katwe), Alex Hibbert (Moonlight), Yolonda Ross (Treme, The Get Down), Armando Riesco (Bull) and Tiffany Boone (The Following).

Kevin (Hibbert) is the pre-teen who must step past shattered illusions and embrace the normal rites of childhood, while Brandon (Mitchell) the dreamer makes his own nearly impossible leap of faith to succeed in life and love with girlfriend Jerrika (Boone). Emmett (Latimore) is the carefree teen thrust into the complex responsibility of fatherhood with guidance from his mother Jada (Ross), and Ronnie (Mwine) is the drifter whose struggle to love and be loved calls into question his every pursuit. Sonja Sohn (The Wire), Jahking Guillory (Kicks), and Steven Williams (The Leftovers) recur in season one.

In addition to Waithe and Common, Elwood Reid (The Bridge, Hawaii Five-O) and Aaron Kaplan (Santa Clarita Diet, Divorce) serve as executive producers for season one, along with Rick Famuyiwa (Dope), who also directed the pilot episode, and Derek Dudley and Shelby Stone of Freedom Road Productions. THE CHI airs Sunday nights at 10 p.m. ET/PT on SHOWTIME. To learn more about THE CHI, visit SHO.com and follow on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Join the conversation using #TheChi.

[Press release via The Futon Critic]

What do you think? Have you been watching the first season of The Chi TV series? Did you think it would be cancelled or renewed for season two on Showtime?