Lamar Richardson and Zaire Julion-Richardson’s Ivy Lion Productions Unveils TV Development Slate
EXCLUSIVE: Ahead of the July 26 release of The Fabulous Four, the first feature co-produced through new multimedia production company Ivy Lion Productions, 3x Tony-nominated producer Lamar Richardson has offered a window into his development slate moving forward on the television front.
First on the slate is Freeman Ranch, a project created by Queen Sugar scribe Yves Beneche, who also penned the pilot. Set in the present day, the show chronicles the riveting saga of the Reeves family, who run the first Black-owned ranch in Texas, as they navigate family feuds, personal struggles, and fight to preserve their legacy against outside forces trying to strip it away.
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The second project, TV drama pilot The Queen of Magic from Roxanne Beck Raye, is based on the true story of the most successful woman magician of the 20th century, Dell O’Dell.
Third up is Dead Hero, a black epic fantasy penned by Charles II that has Wendell Pierce attached to star. This show is about a misguided young man’s quest to escape the Underworld on a mission to reclaim his life’s purpose in the land of the living.
Finally, there’s Spotless, from award-winning playwright Vincent Terrell Durham (Polar Bears, Black Boys & Prairie). Set in 1960s Harlem, the show follows an unemployed household domestic who unwittingly takes a job cleaning up a murder scene for a bloodthirsty killer and ends up becoming his full time cleaner.
Founded in 2022 by Richardson and Zaire Julion-Richardson, with a focus on championing underrepresented voices and empowering narratives, Ivy Lion Productions got its start on Broadway with productions like Merrily We Roll Along, Appropriate, The Wiz, New York, New York and Death of a Salesman. Subsequently, Richardson made his first move into film as a co-producer on The Fabulous Four, a comedy starring Susan Sarandon, Megan Mullally, Sheryl Lee Ralph and Bette Midler that Bleecker Street is distributing.
In addition to producing, Richardson is an actor whose journey in the entertainment industry began under the mentorship of actress Phylicia Rashad. As an actor, he’s perhaps best known for turns in Rashad’s production of the August Wilson play Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, as well as such series as Blue Bloods, FBI and New Amsterdam.
Julion-Richardson’s resume has included stops at NBCUniversal, ICM Partners, and Courtney Kemp’s production company End of Episode. She graduated with an MBA from Columbia University.
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