Tracee Ellis Ross to Star in MTV’s Daria Spin-Off

MTV Studios is moving forward with the Daria spin-off Jodie, which Tracee Ellis Ross (black-ish) will both star in and executive produce.

Jodie is the first in a series of planned spin-offs of MTV’s Daria franchise that ran for five seasons on the network, from 1997 to 2002. It will be centered around Daria’s good friend Jodie Landon, an African American character from the original series, as she takes on her first post-college job and comes into her own. Other former classmates of Daria’s from Lawndale High will also appear. Grace Nkenge Edwards (Insecure, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt) is the creator and head writer on Jodie.

Ross said: “I am thrilled to bring this project to life with MTV, both as executive producer and by voicing Jodie’s character. Being able to give voice to fresh, feminist and unexplored stories of young women excites me. Jodie will spin off from the cult classic Daria, and with the brilliant, sweet and sarcastic black girl magic that is Jodie Landon, we will feature a diverse cast, comprised mainly of unapologetically smart and ambitious young female characters who are vulnerable and flawed and interesting and funny. As a very cool bonus, Jodie will be the first adult animated show in almost 20 years that will star a black woman. It will be a smart, funny workplace comedy full of commentary about everything from gentrification to sex to tech to call-out culture.”

Chris McCarthy, president of MTV, added: “Given the passion for these characters, there was only one person who could build upon the legacy to reimagine Jodie for a whole new generation, and that person is Tracee Ellis Ross. This marks another exciting step forward for MTV Studios as we build out a wide new slate based on the rich characters from the history in MTV Animation.”