ABC passes on Jo Koy's Filipino American sitcom 'Josep'

INTAGRAM / TESS PARAS

The cast of the 'Josep' pilot starred Filipino American comedian Jo Koy, far right.

The world will have to wait a little bit longer for a TV series about a Filipino American family. Josep, a sitcom starring wildly popular standup comedian Jo Koy is getting picked up by ABC.

ABC ordered the pilot for Josep last year and production began (and ended) in Vancouver with an almost all-Filipino American cast playing the friends and family of a recently divorced nurse played by Koy.

Koy starred alongside Mia Katigbak, Rory O’Malley, Kimee Balmilero, Tess Paras, Jason Rogel, Kaden Alejandro. Steve Joe (Young Sheldon) penned the pilot, which was exec produced by Koy, Kourtney Kang (Doogie Kamealoha) and Randall Park.

Paras expressed her disappointment on Instagram: "The thing that hurts is the all-too-familiar pang of narrative scarcity for the Filipino American experience. For me, rooting for this movement of AAPI-led shows feels good. Rooting for a funny, Filipino-led show felt even better. Having a chance to air would have been best ... It’s the first time I’ve ever felt like the right fish in the right pond."

ABC held out a thin thread of hope, with sources saying the series could be "redeveloped," according to Variety. The network reportedly remains  high on the series concept an Koy. The comedian said in an interview if the the show is redeveloped it would retain elements of the pilot.

In the meantime, Koy's feature movie, Easter Sunday, which also centers on a Filipino American family, is set to premiere on August 5.

Koy is best known for his stand-up comedy specials. His  most recent Netflix special “Jo Koy: In His Elements” was taped in the Philippines was first aired in 2020.

Currently on his "Funny is Funny" tour, sold-out performances  will be taped for his fourth Netflix special.

ABC's earlier forays into Asian American -driven shows include Fresh Off the Boat, which finished a seven-year run and boosted the profiles and careers of Randall Park and Constance Wu, and the short-lived Dr. Ken with comedian Ken Jeong.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow @DioknoeEd on Twitter.

ABC commissions a pilot sitcom starring Jo Koy

Comedian Jo Koy

When you're hot, you're hot! Filipino American comedian Jo Koy's career is on fire.

ABC announced Tuesday that it ordered a pilot for a sit-com titled Josep. The projected series follows a recently divorced Filipino American nurse (Koy), as he tries to navigate dating, fatherhood and a "helpful" Filipino mother who can't help herself because he just wants what's best for her son.

Anyone familiar with Koy's standup material is probably familiar with the hilarious routines on those subjects that he often describes in his comedy routine.

Behind the camera, the series is a bevy of AAPI talent. Steve Joe is the writer and executive producer on the pilot. Kourtney Kang, who executive produced ABC's Fresh Off the Boat, will do the same job for Josep, along with The Detective Agency’s Jake Kasdan and Melvin Mar, Joe Meloche, Imminent Collision’s Randall Park, Michael Golamco and Hieu Ho.

Koy is one of the busiest Asian American entertainers in Hollywood. He's currently on his world tour, "Just Kidding." He has his fourth Netflix special slated for March and a memoir "Mixed Plate" due out March 23.

Additionally, a motion picture, Easter Sunday, based on his comedy material is scheduled to be released April 1.

The movie, produced by Steven Spielberg's Amblin' Partners and Dan Lin's Rideback Productions, will star the comedian and is loosely based on his life. According to Ambling's website Koy plays a "man returning home for an Easter celebration with his riotous, bickering, eating, drinking, laughing, loving family, in this love letter to his Filipino American community."

Easter Sunday features a bevy of Asian American talent including Tia Carrere plays Tia Theresa, Brandon Wardell plays Junior, Eva Noblezada plays Ruth, and Asif Ali plays Tony Daytona. Eugene Cordero appears as himself, as does Lou Diamond Phillips. Lydia Gaston, Jimmy O. Yang, Rodney To, Jay Chandrasekhar, and Tiffany Haddish have also been cast.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AAPI perspective, follow me on Twitter @DioknoEd.

Jo Koy draws from his Filipino American life for material for a TV situation comedyJO

Jo Koy will play a nurse in a sitcom centering on a Filipino American family

Among Filipinos and Filipino Americans, family is everything: more than country, more than city, more than community, more than one's self. 

Filipino American comedian Jo Koy is producing and starring in a TV series centering around a Filipino American family. 

Asian American families are still a rare commodity on American television.

The sitcom All American Girl starring Margaret Chol featured a Korean American family and Fresh Off the Boat centered around a Taiwanese American family. It will be the first time a Filipino family will be fully portrayed on U.S. television.

There have been Filipino characters on U.S. TV for the last few years -- Jason Mendoza (Manny Jacinto) in The Good Place and Mateo Liwanag (Nico Santos) in Superstore -- but they were individual characters whose background we barely knew. Their families were practically nonexistent.

A peek at Filipino families was given in Crazy Ex-Girlfriend where we meet the family of Josh Chan (Vincent Rodriguez III); and in The Assassination of Gianni Versace we are introduced  to the drark portrayal of Andrew Cunanan's (Darren Criss) father (Jon Jon Briones).

Currently, the Mindy Kaling production, Never Have I Ever, features an Indian American family of teenager Devi Vishwakuma played by Maitreyi Ramakrishnan.

The ABC half-hour sitcom, Josep, which is currently in development, will follow the life of a hardworking Filipino American nurse played by Koy. Written and executive produced by showrunner Steve Joe, Josep will also see its lead character navigating dating, fatherhood and his outspoken mother moving in with him.

If you've seen Koy's standup routines, you know that a good portion of his material comes from being raised by his Filipino mother and her eccentric family. 

Koy is at the peak of his popularity and his schedule reflects that. He is currently on his Just Kidding tour. Koy can also be heard on his weekly podcast, ​The Koy Pond with Jo Koy ​by Starburns Audio. Listeners can dive in each week as Koy welcomes friends and fellow comedians.

The Filipino American comedian is also producing a movie featuring a FIlipino cast, Easter Sunday. The family comedy is based on his life experiences and features Lou Diamond Phillips, Eva Noblezada, Brandon Wardell, Tia Carrere, Lydia Gaston, Rodney To, Melody Butiu, Joey Guila and Elana Juatco.

In addition, his memoire “Mixed Plate: Chronicles of an All-American Combo,” was released last March. The book shows how Koy’s mixed-race background ultimately shaped his brand of comedy and his determination not to give up on his childhood dream to be a stand-up comedian. 

“I’m not trying to pat myself on the back. It was a long road,” Koy said. “And when I finally got to this point in my career, I just looked at my manager. I was like, ‘Man, I would really like to tell people, you know, this struggle, and how hard it was to really get here.’”