Jussie Smollett is making his directorial debut with B-Boy Blues and the film just found a home on BET’s streamer BETPlus. The LGBTQ film will premiere on BET+ on June 9th.
Smollett also penned B-Boy Blues alongside James Earl Hardy. The film is an adaptation of Hardy’s novel of the same name.
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The LGBTQ+ film follows the unlikely lovely story of Mitchell Crawford, a college-educated journalist from Brooklyn, and Raheim Rivers, a bike messenger from Harlem.
It stars Brandee Evans, Timothy Richardson, Ledisi, Heather B, Marquise Vilson, Jabari Redd, Broderick Hunter, and Thomas Mackie.
Smollett also financed the film with Cleveland-based radio broadcast investor Tom Wilson for A SuperMassive Movie. James Earl Hardy for It’s All Jood Productions, Madia Hill-Scott for Winnienoah Productions, and Frank Gatson are all executive producers. Sampson McCormick and Stephanie Frederic are co-EPs.
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Mona Scott-Young and her Monami Entertainment has also joined the film as producer and was instrumental in getting the deal done with BET+. Scott-Young is best known for executive producing VH1’s Love & Hip Hop franchise.
In a statement, Scott-Young said:
“B-Boy Blues is a beautifully bold, funny, heartwarming bromance and I was thrilled to partner with Jussie to help this wonderful film gain greater exposure. Falling head over heels and fighting for love are universal emotions and experiences and we are so grateful to BET+ for shining a powerful spotlight on the still seriously underrepresented black LGBTQ+ community and bringing this impactful love story to an even greater audience.”
The film debuted last year during the 2021 American Black Film Festival and was the recipient of the award for Narrative Feature Fan Favorite.