Roku today hosted its second in-person IAB NewFront at the Glasshouse in New York City where they revealed several new Roku Original titles to debut in the 2024-2025 broadcast year.
Newly announced series include Tightrope!, a new comedy series with executive producer Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad) and starring Ty Burrell (Modern Family), Tracee Travels (working title), a travel docuseries starring Tracee Ellis Ross (black-ish), The Arch Project (working title) docuseries with ARCH Motorcycle founders Gard Hollinger and Keanu Reeves, a second season of the business format Side Hustlers starring Emma Grede and Ashley Graham, Best Bite Wins, a cooking competition series hosted by Josh Peck (Drake & Josh), and What Drives You with John Cena, a celebrity-filled talk show hosted by Cena.
Roku also announced that is has also expanded key tentpole franchises such as The Great American Baking Show, hosted by Casey Wilson (Happy Endings) and Zach Cherry (Severance) and featuring iconic judges Paul Hollywood and Dame Prue Leith, and Honest Renovations, hosted by Jessica Alba (Sin City) and Lizzy Mathis (Unstoppable). The Great American Baking Show was renewed for a third season with seasonal specials launching throughout the year, and Honest Renovations will debut a holiday edition.
The new titles will join Roku’s growing slate of Roku Originals including The Spiderwick Chronicles, Morimoto’s Sushi Master, the Die Hart franchise, WWE: Next Gen, WEIRD: The Al Yankovic Story, and more.
Series Information
Best Bite Wins
Best Bite Wins is a Roku Original food competition series hosted by Josh Peck. In celebration of entertaining, passing apps, and eating together, Best Bite Wins gamifies cocktail party culture, with professional chefs competing to present the best party food to hungry judges and clientele at real events from birthday parties to retirement celebrations and everything in between. In addition to Peck, special events chef Monti Carlo will serve as the series’ culinary expert.
The six-episode series is produced by Velvet Hammer Media and Bongo Pictures. Jennifer O’Connell and Rebecca Quinn executive produce for Velvet Hammer Media. Michael Bloom, Josh Peck and Matthew Hobin also serve as executive producers.
Honest Renovations: A Holiday Makeover
Honest Renovations: A Holiday Makeover will follow Alba and Mathis as they meet the Pauls, a family of 10, and help transform their home just in time for their annual holiday party. Honest Renovations and the upcoming Holiday Makeover special are produced by 3 Arts Entertainment, MGM, Summit House Entertainment and Rahmath Productions, with Jessica Alba, Lizzy Mathis, Dunia McNeily, Oly Obst, Lucilla D’Agostino, Jordana Starr, Barry Poznick, Michael Matsumoto and Andrea Richter serving as executive producers.
Side Hustlers – Season 2
Starring Emma Grede and Ashley Graham, Side Hustlers follows ambitious female entrepreneurs vying for the chance to build multi-million dollar companies, while juggling the demands of their personal lives and day jobs. With life-changing investments on the line, who will rise to the challenge?
Side Hustlers is produced by Hello Sunshine, a part of Candle Media, and presented by Ally. Reese Witherspoon, Sara Rea, Sue Kinkead, and Elizabeth Sandorff executive produce for Hello Sunshine, with Zoe Fairbourn and Kathleen Griffith also serving as producers. Emma Grede and Ashley Graham also serve as executive producers, along with Kimberly Goodman.
The Arch Project (working title)
This new docuseries follows Hollinger and Reeves on a quest to find the answer to the question… “where does human creativity and ingenuity come from?” Fueled by their own curiosity and desire to learn, Hollinger and Reeves help find and explore the stories of those whose ideas and achievements they admire. We’ll join them to meet and learn how their unique views help fuel these mavericks to shape and change the world and hopefully find some answers to that never-ending question.
The docuseries is produced by Venture 10 Studio Group. Sharon Trojan Hollinger, Gard Hollinger, Keanu Reeves, John Stevens, and Brian Skope serve as executive producers, with Rick De Oliveira serving as a consulting executive producer.
The Great American Baking Show – Season 3 and Seasonal Specials
Shot in the iconic tent made famous in The Great British Bake-Off, The Great American Baking Show celebrates passionate, diverse, and talented amateur baking enthusiasts competing to be crowned the Best Amateur Baker in the U.S. Both season three and the new specials will be hosted by Casey Wilson and Zach Cherry and feature iconic judges Paul Hollywood and Dame Prue Leith.
The Great American Baking Show: Celebrity Holiday Special will return for its third iteration with the deliciously entertaining holiday treat of celebrities in competition for charity.
The Great American Baking Show: Big Game Special will invite viewers to join fan-favorite athletes and celebrity football fans in the iconic tent, as they prepare special bakes for America’s biggest sporting event of the year.
The Great American Baking Show: Sweet Summer Special will feature celebrities and comedians competing to make the best sweets and treats of summer. The franchise is created and produced by Love Productions with Richard McKerrow, Letty Kavanagh, Kieran Smith, Jeremy Finn, and Adam Cooper serving as executive producers.
This Old House – The Great Roku Home Giveaway
This 90-minute special event chronicles the creation of the dream home and the dramatic competition between three sweepstakes winners to find the key that wins them the grand prize. The twist – the key is hidden in TV’s biggest and most beloved digital downtown – Roku City! The real-world merges with the virtual in a series of challenges that will test the smarts, skills and luck of the finalists. It’s a first-of-its-kind home giveaway event and life changing experience for one lucky contestant.
Tightrope!
Tightrope! is a new comedy series starring Emmy and SAG Award-winning actor Ty Burrell. Through reimagined dialogue and a new lead actor in Ty Burrell, Tightrope! reshapes the drama of the vintage 1950s series into a slapstick comedy, where Burrell plays a lone wolf detective following cases city to city, while he searches for his long-lost love who got away.
Tightrope! will be produced by Moonshot Entertainment, Desert Whale Productions, and Village Roadshow Televison. Bryan Cranston and James Degus will serve as executive producers for Moonshot Entertainment. Ty Burrell will executive produce for Desert Whale Productions. Adam Small and Fax Bahr will also executive produce and direct the series.
Tracee Travels (working title)
A champion of solo travel, Tracee invites viewers on her journey, as she meticulously, laboriously, and sometimes ridiculously prepares for and travels solo to spectacular locations. Tracee charts her own path, as she explores the intersection of beauty, fashion, design, food, and culture at each stop of her trip. The docu-series will shoot later this year and debut exclusively on The Roku Channel in 2025. The first season’s locations will be announced at a later date. The doc-series is produced by Joy Mill Entertainment and Artists First. Tracee Ellis Ross and E. Brian Dobbins serve as executive producers. Adriana Ambriz and Caroline Soss serve as co-executive producers.
What Drives You with John Cena
John Cena is revving up the engine in What Drives You, a breakthrough talk show format, where he’ll hit the road with his celebrity friends in their favorite vehicles that hold a special meaning to them. In each episode, he’ll hitch a ride with a new guest for an in-depth interview and curiosity-fueled excursion, as they discuss a wide variety of both laugh-out-loud and deeply personal topics, all the while reminiscing about some of the guest’s favorite memories associated with their prized ride.
What Drives You is produced by ITV America’s Leftfield Pictures. David George, Shawn Witt, Sean Moran, Jay Bienstock, John Cena, and Dan Baime are the series’ executive producers.
You can watch Roku Originals on Roku devices or TVs, and access them online at TheRokuChannel.com, iOS and Android devices, Amazon Fire TVs, Samsung TVs and Google TVs and other Android TV OS devices.
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