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Mo'nique netflix

Source: CBS Photo Archive / Getty

On October 1, Netflix released all five seasons of The Parkers on its streaming platform as part of its roll-out of Black classic sitcoms. People have been excited to enjoy the former UPN hit whenever and wherever they like, and star Dorien Wilson, who played Professor Oglevee, was thrilled to see the series available to stream for old and new fans.

But when it came to the actual “Parkers,” Countess Vaughn and Mo’Nique who played Kim and Nikki Parker, they didn’t have much to say about the company getting the license to have their show. That may have a lot to do with the fact that Mo’Nique is currently suing Netflix for racial and gender discrimination after she claimed they lowballed her for a comedy special.

However, the Oscar winner did break her silence late last week on The Parkers being available to everyone, but only to send a message to her long-time on-screen daughter. She tagged Vaughn in a promotional image from 1999 to say, “just so you know. YOU WILL ALWAYS BE MY BABY.”

The two played mother and daughter from 1999 to 2004, including in a few episodes of the show that their series was a spinoff of, Moesha. UPN’s former Entertainment President Tom Nunan once told the Los Angeles Times they knew the show would be a hit on the channel because the women were so charming together.

“If there was any show we felt confident about, it was ‘The Parkers,’” he said in 2000. “The chemistry between Mo’nique and Countess was apparent from the first rehearsal.

But as for Mo’Nique’s “chemistry” these days with Netflix, as previously mentioned, it’s not so good. She is currently in the midst of a lawsuit against the streaming giant after they only offered her $500,000 for a comedy special and wouldn’t negotiate further with her on the matter when she shared that she wasn’t happy with the offer. The deal happened around the time that Netflix offered $13 million to Amy Schumer for specials, as well as $20 million to both Chris Rock and Dave Chappelle for projects. Her lawsuit divided people, especially when she initially encouraged people to boycott the streaming platform. However, this year has brought so many conversations about racial discrimination, including in the workplace and in Hollywood, that more people are supporting her than they were in 2018 and 2019. And as of July, a judge denied Netflix’s request that her lawsuit be dismissed, allowing it to officially move forward. Her lawyer David deRubertis said the ruling “is an important victory for Hollywood talent who, just like all other workers, need protections against retaliation if they raise concerns about pay discrimination during the hiring process.”

“Employers in the entertainment industry need to take pay discrimination concerns seriously, fix them if the concerns have merit, and never retaliate against those who have the courage to speak up about equal pay,” he added.

Netflix currently has to be paying her something in residuals to have acquired The Parkers. We’ll have to wait and see how her suit pans out to find out if they’ll have to pay the star a lot more.

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