Mara Brock Akil will obtain the Norman Lear Achievement Award on the thirty seventh annual Producers Guild Awards, set to happen on Feb. 28 on the Fairmont Century Metropolis Plaza in Los Angeles, California. The award is sponsored by Delta Air Strains.
Brock Akil started her profession as a screenwriter on Fox’s “South Central” at 23, later changing into the youngest African American showrunner on broadcast community tv when she created and wrote UPN’s “Girlfriends,” starring Tracee Ellis Ross, Golden Brooks, and Persia White at 30 years outdated. Brock Akil is the one African American showrunner to have a collection on tv throughout yearly of the 2000s.
Brock Akil created BET’s first drama collection “Being Mary Jane,” alongside “The Sport” and its spinoff collection on Paramount+ in 2021. Brock Akil beforehand co-created “Love Is” on OWN. She additionally collaborated as an government producer on The CW’s “Black Lighting” together with her husband Salim Akil with their manufacturing firm Akil Productions from 2018 to 2021.
Most lately, Brock Akil produced Netflix’s “Ceaselessly,” an adaptation of the 1975 Judy Blume novel of the identical identify. The teenager drama, which stars Lovie Simone and Michael Cooper Jr., was renewed for a second season in Could.
“The hallmark of a fantastic producer is the power to convey tales to life with each goal and creativeness. Mara Brock Akil has finished this all through her profession, leaving an indelible affect on tv and the business as an entire,” mentioned PGA Presidents Donald De Line and Stephanie Allain in a press release. “With exhibits like “Girlfriends,” “The Sport,” and “Being Mary Jane,” she has set an ordinary for excellence that continues together with her most up-to-date collection, “Ceaselessly.” Her physique of labor stands as a testomony to the profound affect producers can have on the medium.”
“I’m deeply honored to obtain an award that bears the identify of Norman Lear, a visionary who expanded the boundaries of what tv might be. His work taught us that storytelling can transfer tradition, problem assumptions, and create neighborhood – values which have guided my profession,” mentioned Brock Akil. “Storytelling is a privilege, and I’m grateful to the Producers Guild for recognizing the work and the unimaginable groups who’ve helped convey these tales to life. This acknowledgment conjures up me to proceed championing characters and worlds that replicate the complexity, magnificence, and braveness of our lives.”
The 2026 Producers Guild Awards are produced by Anchor Avenue Collective. Sponsors embody McLaren, Delta Air Strains, Glenfiddich Scotch Whisky and GreenSlate.
