Mary J. Blige To Produce “Good People” Drama

Mary J. Blige joined “Good People,” a Universal Television drama in development from Natalie Baszile’s novel Friends and Family.

According to Deadline, Blige will executive produce through Blue Butterfly Productions. Marissa Jo Cerar will write, with Gina Prince-Bythewood attached to direct a potential pilot.

Baszile, Debra Martin Chase and Reggie Rock Bythewood will also executive produce alongside Cerar and Prince-Bythewood. The project is expected to be pitched to buyers soon. Universal secured the rights before publication.

An affair upends the families of interior designer Babs and her wealthy best friend Nora.

The book, released October 6, puts two mothers’ friendship under pressure. Pamela Dorman Books published the 384-page novel. In the publisher’s synopsis, Babs and Nora have spent years sharing advice and the details of their lives during morning walks. Their children brought them together. A police encounter threatens to pull them apart.

Nora is white and her adopted son Nathan is Black. After police are called while the children are home without adults, Nathan turns to Babs’ family. There, he can talk about race and his identity in ways he cannot at home. Babs must weigh her friend’s wishes against what she believes her own family should do.

Baszile’s debut novel, Queen Sugar, became the OWN drama produced by Ava DuVernay and Oprah Winfrey.

Blige has already worked on screen stories about women facing hard choices in love and family. In 2023, she executive produced Lifetime’s “Real Love” and “Strength of a Woman” through Blue Butterfly.

Those films followed Kendra, played by Ajiona Alexus, from her first college romance into adulthood. The second picked up more than 15 years later, with Kendra working as a photographer and facing a troubled marriage. Da’Vinchi played Ben, whose return forced Kendra to rethink her life.

In an Entertainment Tonight interview, Blige said watching Alexus and Da’Vinchi on “BMF” made her want them for the films. She also tied the projects’ inspiration to learning to love herself.

Her commitment to film work has drawn praise from collaborators, too. As AllHipHop previously reported, Chiwetel Ejiofor credited her with helping “Rob Peace” survive its pandemic delays. Blige stayed with the film for two years before production resumed and played Jackie, the mother of its central character.