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Netflix’s “Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker,” the story of America’s first self-made female millionaire, takes place between 1908 and 1918. But the music, instead of focusing on the early jazz that might be expected, runs the gamut from ragtime to hip-hop.

“Madam C.J. Walker is a central, seminal historical figure who I had heard about from my mother, who heard about it from her mother,” says music supervisor Morgan Rhodes. “Her story has been part of the fabric of black history down through the years — one that belongs to generations of women.”

Octavia Spencer plays Walker, the daughter of freed slaves who created a line of specialized hair products for African American women. Her entrepreneurial skills and intense drive made her one of the country’s wealthiest and most powerful women. When she died in 1919, she lived near the Astors and the Rockefellers on...

Netflix is leaning into its strengths in 2020. Not only is the streaming giant pumping out dozens, if not hundreds of new shows, but many of their original series meet the demand illustrated by past successes or fill holes left by departing favorites.

So is there a new “Stranger Things” on the horizon? Perhaps a worthy follow-up to “Orange Is the New Black?” What about a replacement for syndicated sitcoms like “The Office” and “Friends”? You better believe Netflix is working to give subscribers what they want, and the below 2020 preview should illustrate exactly that.

With more competition than ever from Disney and Apple, and even more services on the way (hello HBO Max and Peacock), 2020 will be a critical year for the current king of streaming. So here’s what they’re working with:

“Locke and Key”

Release Date: Friday, February 7

Cast: Darby Stanchfield, Jackson Robert Scott, Connor Jessup, Emilia Jones,...

Exclusive: Scandal alum Cornelius Smith Jr, Keeya King (Van Helsing) and J. Alphonse Nicholson (P-Valley) are set for recurring roles opposite Octavia Spencer and Tiffany Haddish in Madam C.J. Walker, an eight-episode limited series starring and executive produced by Oscar winner Spencer and executive produced by LeBron James.

Written by Nicole Asher based on the book On Her Own Ground by A’Lelia Bundles, Madam C.J. Walker tells the untold and highly irreverent story of black hair-care pioneer and mogul Madam C.J. Walker (Spencer) and how she overcame hostile turn-of-the-century America, epic rivalries, tumultuous marriages and some trifling family to become America’s first self-made black female millionaire.

Smith will play W.E.B. Dubois, America’s foremost black intellectual and civil rights activist who is publisher of The Crisis and a co-founder of the NAACP, who befriends Walker.

King will portray Peaches, a stunning, tomboyish jazz...

Netflix’s upcoming limited series Madam Cj Walker is adding more star power to the cast.

Tiffany Haddish, Carmen Ejogo, Blair Underwood, Garrett Morris and Kevin Carroll have signed on to the project about legendary African-American entrepreneur and philanthropist, Madam C.J. Walker, Netflix announced today. They join previously announced lead Octavia Spencer.

The Oscar-winning Spencer stars as Sarah Breedlove, known as Madam C.J. Walker, the black hair care pioneer and mogul who overcame hostile turn-of-the-century America, epic rivalries, tumultuous marriages and family challenges to become America’s first black, self-made female millionaire. Spencer also executive produces alongside Christine Holder, Mark Holder, with LeBron James, Maverick Carter, and Jamal Henderson for SpringHill Entertainment.

Janine Sherman Barrois and Elle Johnson are set as showrunners on the Zero Gravity-produced series about the legendary African American entrepreneur and philanthropist, with Kasi Lemmons on board to direct the first episode.

Netflix’s Octavia Spencer-led limited series “Madam C.J. Walker” has added a few more famous faces to its cast, including Tiffany Haddish, Blair Underwood, Garrett Morris, Carmen Ejogo and Kevin Carroll.

Created by Nicole Jefferson Asher, the four-part show “tells the untold, culturally important, and highly relevant story of black hair care pioneer and mogul Madam Cj Walker and how she overcame hostile turn-of-the-century America, epic rivalries, tumultuous marriages and family challenges to become America’s first black, self-made female millionaire,” according to the streaming service.

Spencer stars as Sarah Breedlove a.k.a. Madam Cj Walker, and will executive produce the show, which is set to launch in 2020.

Also Read: Octavia Spencer to Star in Netflix Limited Series About First Self-Made Black, Female Millionaire

Here are the character descriptions for the new cast members, each in Netflix’s own words:

Haddish (“The Kitchen”) will play Lelia, the smart...

Tiffany Haddish and Carmen Ejogo are among five actors who have been cast in the forthcoming Netflix limited series “Madam Cj Walker” about the black hair care pioneer and mogul.

The four-part series hails from executive producers LeBron James and Octavia Spencer, who will also star as the titular Madam. The series is inspired by the book “‘On Her Own Ground’ “by A’Lelia Bundles, Walker’s great-great-granddaughter.

Haddish will play Lelia, the smart and feisty daughter of Sarah Breedlove (Madam Walker) and her late first husband. Raised by her single, hard-working mother, she is eager to be independent. After falling in love and marrying the feckless John Robinson, she frequently finds herself coming to her husband’s defenses. Meanwhile Ejogo will play Addie, a hairstylist and former friend of Sarah Breedlove. Addie is described as a savvy business woman herself, who parlays her good looks and social standing into...

Here's your daily dose of an indie film in progress -- at the end of the week, you'll have the chance to vote for your favorite. In the meantime: Is this a movie you’d want to see? Tell us in the comments. Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch Logline: Charlie and Mimi, an unconventional mother-daughter pair, face a harsh new reality — Alzheimer's Disease. Elevator Pitch: The greatest person she knew suffered the worst fate she could ever imagine. "Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch" is the story of Charlie and Mimi, an unconventional mother-daughter pair facing a harsh new reality — Alzheimer’s Disease. After being away for quite a while, Charlie returns home to find that the one person she can't live without has quickly deteriorated into a woman she hardly knows. Through tears, laughter, stirring memories and a collection of vinyl records, Charlie struggles to hold on to the Mimi she once knew.

In its first development cycle under its deal at CBS TV Studios, Denis Leary and Jim Serpico’s Apostle has sold 3 projects: 2 at CBS and one at the CW. The sales come 3 months after Apostle sealed pacts with CBS Studios on the broadcast and Fox TV Studios on the cable side after 7 years at Sony TV. The CBS projects are Mind Games from writer Roger Wolfson and the previously announced medical drama Cross Roads from Elle Johnson, while the CW drama is Trigger, from playwright Kyle Jarrow. Mind Games is about an impassioned female psychologist specializing in memory who teams up with a tough-as-nails police detective to solve crimes. Trigger is a fast-paced cop show that follows four twenty-something cops/adrenaline junkies who get fast-tracked into the elite Street Crimes Unit when its previous members are all busted for corruption. Of Jarrow, Serpico says, “we’ve discovered a rock star.

Jonathan Prince has inked a two-year, first-look deal with CBS Paramount Network TV to develop and executive produce series projects for cable, network and new media.

Under the pact, Prince already has set up a medical drama at CBS that he co-created with Elle Johnson ("Ghost Whisperer") and Fred Einsman ("Private Practice").

Prince describes the project, which is being penned by Endeavor-repped Johnson, as " 'Top Gun' in medical school." It will center on bright and self-confident 22-year-old college grads who enroll in a medical school with an unusual program that forgoes years of book study to throw the youngsters into the trenches at a teaching hospital where they're faced with life-and-death situations.

"The students will learn from the doctors how to care for the patients, while the doctors will relearn from their students how to care about them," Prince said.

The project is inspired by the real-life experiences of Einsman,...