TBS Lands CHAD Pilot from Nasim Pedrad

TBS has picked up Chad to pilot, a single-camera comedy that follows a 14-year-old Persian boy (played by Nasim Pedrad) during high school as he desperately tries to fit in, cope with his mother's dating life, and reconcile his cultural identity.

The teenaged boy in the throes of puberty is played by Pedrad, who made her mark on Saturday Night Live. The Iranian-American actress is also creator, writer, executive producer and co-showrunner. Hayes Davenport is executive producer and co-showrunner. Oly Obst (3 Arts) and Rob Rosell serve as executive producers. Production on the pilot will begin this spring.

"I'm so grateful to TBS for believing in Chad and giving an adult Middle-Eastern woman the opportunity to play a teenage boy while also running the show behind the camera," says Pedrad, whose relationship with TBS goes back to People of Earth.

"Nasim embodies this role so perfectly, you forget you're watching a woman playing a young boy," says Thom Hinkle, TBS' Executive VP of Original Programming. "It's such a funny, endearing script that evokes a modern-day Wonder Years centered around a Middle Eastern family. We can't wait to shoot it."

TBS, which leads the TV industry with more top comedies than any other network, continues to attract fresh, award-winning talent. The #1 comedy network's series include Miracle Workers, a heaven-set comedy that premieres February 12, and The Last O.G., both of which star diverse, powerhouse casts.