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Ice Cube sat down with AOL BV and gave a lot more detail into how the TBS show “Are We There Yet?” (see trailer) produced by Cube and his Cube Vision production company came about. Cube continues to be one of the most successful rapper-turned-actors of all time not just with his film career but with his production company that keeps the money rolling. Check the rest of the interview after the jump…
How long did it take to get this series off the ground?
Ice Cube: It took about a good eight to nine months to put it all together. Joe Roth is really the ring leader. The movies were put out through his studios, Revolution. He had Ali LeRoi and Terry on deck, and I was the missing link. When I came on board, it was a no-brainer to me to be able to do good television, and do it for a long time. When you put something together on TV, you want to have a good team, and we have a good show. It’s good family fare. It’s a good sitcom. We’re not going for the cheap seats. We’re going for real-life situations and not over-top-situations that people don’t deal with every day. It’s funny when you have a single mother and two kids and a bachelor trying to make it work, and that’s what we got with ‘Are We There Yet?’
Ice Cube: It took about a good eight to nine months to put it all together. Joe Roth is really the ring leader. The movies were put out through his studios, Revolution. He had Ali LeRoi and Terry on deck, and I was the missing link. When I came on board, it was a no-brainer to me to be able to do good television, and do it for a long time. When you put something together on TV, you want to have a good team, and we have a good show. It’s good family fare. It’s a good sitcom. We’re not going for the cheap seats. We’re going for real-life situations and not over-top-situations that people don’t deal with every day. It’s funny when you have a single mother and two kids and a bachelor trying to make it work, and that’s what we got with ‘Are We There Yet?’
What made Terry Crews and Essence Atkins the right actors to play the lead roles?
IC: Not only their sitcom experience, but their comedic timing. Essence is actually more of a comedian than Nia Long was. Nia Long is a pretty actress, but as far as comedic timing, I think Essence really knows how to deliver. Terry is just a gem. He’s continuously underused. We have a chance to overuse him. To me, those are the perfect people to play the characters.
How involved will you be with the writing?
IC: For the first 10, we let Ali LeRoi, who’s the expert at sitcoms, do most of the heavy lifting as far as the show and how it was going to flow. When we get to do 90 shows, everybody will have to get in. I may have to write and direct. We’re going to do what we have to do to be funny every week.
This is your second stint executive producing a TV show, having worked on Showtime’s ‘Barbershop’ a few years back. What experience did you take from there to help you be a better producer on this show?
IC: To take more control and not sit back. That was a situation, because I was a producer of the movie, I had the right to be the producer of the TV show. But we took a back seat and let other people lead that venture because our heads were at a different place. MGM and a few other producers wanted to take that to TV. With this series, we know we have to spearhead it. I’m definitely putting the Cube Vision stamp on it.
What character do you play on the show?
IC: I play Terrence, who is Suzanne’s overprotective brother. This dude is a semi-military one-man army. Nick doesn’t know if he’s going to be sniped out one day. The character is fun and good at scaring Terry Crews every now and then.
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