Source: Michael Becker / Michael Becker
Red Table Talk is looking for a new home after the announcement that Meta is canceling its remaining Facebook Watch Originals.
Hosted by Jada Pinkett Smith, her mother Adrienne “Gammy” Banfield-Norris, and the actress’s daughter Willow Smith, the chat show web series has “finished” its contract with Facebook Watch, according to Variety.
Meta’s move to officially phase out its original series has been in the making. The company ended its scripted shows, such as actress Elizabeth Olsen’s Sorry For Your Loss, and many of its unscripted ones, including Taraji P. Henson’s Peace of Mind with Taraji and Steve Harvey’s STEVE on Watch.
Meta laid off 11,000 employees – 13 percent of its workforce – last November.
In March, the Mark Zucherberg-led tech giant shared its plans to slash 10,000 more roles. The lay-offs are despite Meta’s profitable first-quarter earnings, which reported that the company’s revenue rose by 3 percent.
Instead of focusing efforts on its original series, the online social hub plans to go full steam ahead with crafting virtual reality (VR) experiences and shows, Deadline reported.
The company’s VR offerings are expected to live on Meta Horizon Worlds, which can be “deployed across Facebook, Instagram and Messenger.” Facebook Watch will remain relevant to Meta’s platforms as its branded video player.
Red Table Talk earned a beloved reputation online and in pop culture with its timely, poignant episodes.
The series fostered roundtable discussions that featured perspectives from three generations of Black women — thanks to Jada, Gammy and Willow. The ladies’ web series tackled almost everything in a “nothing is off limits” way. Episode topics ranged from the Smith family’s messiest moments to pop culture scandals and news stories about police brutality.
Produced by Jada and Will Smith’s production company, Westbrook Studios, Red Table Talk ran for five seasons and was a Facebook Watch staple since the video player’s early days. The series scored a Daytime Emmy in June 2021 in the Outstanding Informative Talk Show category for its thought-provoking episodes.
The show even spawned a spinoff, Red Table Talk: The Estefans, which featured singer Gloria Estefan and two other generations of her family.
Red Table Talk currently boasts 11 million followers and 3.1 million likes on Facebook.
Scroll through tidbits of some of the series’ most intriguing, tea-spilling, uplifting and noteworthy episodes below.
Source: Jordan Fisher / Jordan Fisher
When Jada Addressed Will’s Oscars Slap
The actress hosted an episode on alopecia – an autoimmune condition she has – after Will infamously slapped comedian Chris Rock because the latter cracked a joke at Jada’s expense about her bald head at the 2022 Oscars.
