NBC missed a golden opportunity when they passed on “The Wayans Bros.” TV show because of John Witherspoon. Marlon Wayans recently revealed on Shannon Sharpe’s ‘Club Shay Shay” podcast that the network rejected the now-iconic series due to concerns that Witherspoon was “too ghetto.”
Witherspoon Part of the Deal
During the interview, Wayans shared, “[NBC] didn’t want John Witherspoon… they thought that he was too ghetto, too country, too Detroit… they didn’t want him as our father.”
The interview posted on the “Club Shay Shay” YouTube channel on Aug. 5.
This decision didn’t sit well with Marlon and his brother Shawn, who were adamant about keeping Witherspoon in the role of their on-screen father, John “Pops” Williams. “Me and Shawn was like, ‘We don’t want no other father.’ NBC gave us an ultimatum — either replace Witherspoon or we don’t get on their air. We refused,” Marlon, who has a net worth of $40 million, revealed. As a result, NBC passed on the show.
Despite the setback, a new opportunity arose when The WB, a fledgling network at the time, stepped in. “The Wayans Bros.” became the first show to air on The WB in 1995. According to Marlon, “They [WB] said, ‘We’ll take it,’ and we told them they had to take John Witherspoon, and they were like, ‘bet.’”
The decision to stick with Witherspoon, who also became an iconic figure in film such as the dad in Ice Cube’s “Friday” movies, proved to be a smart one. The show aired for five successful seasons, from 1995 to 1999, and has since become a beloved classic, with Witherspoon’s portrayal of Pops as one of the most memorable — and funny — father figures in television history.
NBC’s loss became The WB’s gain, proving that sticking to their vision paid off for the Wayans family.
