The Santos Of Chicago - What We Know So Far

Hollywood is full of musicians who have made the jump to movie and TV producing, with everyone from Dolly Parton to Selena Gomez to 50 Cent putting together projects for the screen. One of the most successful in recent years has been Pharrell Williams, the rapper and producer (and writer, designer, and social media influencer), who's best known for albums like "G I R L" and "In My Mind."

Williams' first foray into filmmaking came in 2010, when he wrote the score for the Universal Pictures animated film "Despicable Me." Five years later, he made the jump into producing with the 2015 crime comedy film "Dope," alongside Sean Combs. His first big producing hit was the 2016 space drama "Hidden Figures," for which he received his first Academy Award nomination for producing (he also received one for Best Song for "Despicable Me 2"). 

Williams didn't really try to get into producing. As he told Billboard, "I never said, 'This is what I'm going to do.' I'm more of a perfunctory person. Once you start doing something, if it's meant for you, the roads will lead you on that path." As a producer, he's inspired to tell stories that mainstream audiences haven't seen before. His next project is a TV series very much in that vein called "The Santos of Chicago." Here's everything we know about the upcoming TV series.

At this point, "The Santos of Chicago" doesn't yet have a release date, which may bode ill for its prospects. The show itself was first announced in November 2021, and it's been more than a year since then without any additional news about it–no casting announcements, no directing announcements, no "start of production" announcement. Typically, if a show goes more than a year without any major news since its first announcement, it's a sign that things may not be moving forward.

That being said, if it does still go forward, we can make an educated guess about its release date based on other shows made by the producers. "The Santos of Chicago" is being produced by Ben Silverman, among others, under his banner Propagate. He previously produced the first season of Fox's "Our Kind of People." As reported by TVLine, after several COVID-19-related delays, that show was given a series order in March 2021, and premiered the following September. That's a time period of about six months. Given that timeline, it's unlikely "The Santos of Chicago" would premiere until next summer at the very earliest–and likely even later than that.

Fortunately, we know a lot more about the plot of "The Santos of Chicago" than we do about the release date. As reported by Deadline, the series is created by Jorge A. Reyes and is loosely based on members of his own family. It's described as a family drama that's a cross between "This Is Us"/"Brothers and Sisters" and "The West Wing."

The story will follow the six Afro-Latinx siblings of the Chicago-based Santos family. It focuses on two sisters in particular, who become, as Deadline describes them, "the Latina Jack and Bobby Kennedy." Meanwhile, their other four siblings will be inspired to pursue their own endeavors in other fields, and altogether the family will transform into a modern-day American political dynasty.

Of course, that doesn't tell us as much about the show's tone. Will it be a soapy primetime drama with larger-than-life characters, or will it be a more grounded portrayal? The comparison with Jack and Bobby Kennedy is certainly ominous, given how both brothers were assassinated.

As mentioned above, "The Santos of Chicago" is created and executive produced by Jorge A. Reyes. Previously, he created the UPN series "Kevin Hill," which ran from 2004 to 2005, and he's been a writer on shows like "Queen of the South," "Resurrection Blvd.," and "New York Undercover."

According to Deadline, Pharrell Williams and Mimi Valdes are also executive producing under their banner, I Am Other Productions. They've previously produced the films "Hidden Figures," "Dope," and "Roxanne, Roxanne." Williams, of course, is best known for his musical career, for which he's won a total of 13 Grammys as both a performer and a producer (per The Grammys).

Additionally, Ben Silverman, Howard Owens and Rodney Ferrell are executive producing through their company, Propagate. Propagate has previously produced the "Charmed" reboot on the CW, "Our Kind of People," and the Netflix documentary "Untold." Silverman has been an executive producer on several other TV series, including "The Office," "Ugly Betty," "Jane the Virgin," and "The Biggest Loser."