On a wall in the top corner of Little CarollThere is a photo in his office THR'Women in Entertainment issue 2018. It contains the All American showrunner appears alongside 61 fellow Black female writers who are part of the Black Women Who Brunch group that she co-founded with Lena Waithe and Erika L. Johnson in 2014 to create a network among their growing community in Hollywood. Membership has now risen to 223 creatives at last count.
“That's why I don't feel lonely,” says Carroll, one of the few black women to have helmed TV shows that have aired 100 episodes: Shonda Rhimes (Private practice, Grey's anatomy, Scandal); Mara Brock Akil (Girlfriends); Yvette Lee Bowser (Single living); Debbie Allen (An other world). “Everyone is always so grateful to us for starting it, but it has really been a gift to me.”
All American, now in its sixth season, will reach that milestone on May 27 with the episode “100%,” directed by series lead Daniel Ezra, who plays football star Spencer James, a wide receiver picked out of South Crenshaw High School in Los Angeles. the Golden Angeles University Condors and began an emotionally rocky path to the NFL. “Superhuman” is the word Ezra uses to describe Carroll, who is also showrunner of the CW spin-off of the show All American: Homecoming and NBCs Found it.
“NK is my big sister, she is my mentor,” says Ezra. “I don't think we would have made it to 100 episodes without her. In fact, I know we wouldn't have done that.”
When Carroll signed a deal with Warner Bros. in 2018, she previewed the script All American just out of politeness, she says — and because Greg Berlanti was executive producer.
“Greg has been on my vision board since I was 21 years old and worked as an economist at the Federal Reserve. I was obsessed with it Dawson's Creek. I was obsessed with it Brothers Sisters. At the time, I didn't know what a showrunner was, so I Googled it and thought, 'That's the career I want,' and Greg was kind of a prototype,” says Carroll, who asked for a meeting with Berlanti in return. to view the script. When they met, he asked Carroll to watch the pilot of the sports drama, which she reluctantly agreed to; she had joined the studio with the intention of developing her own series.
“I looked at the pilot and I was so mad at him,” Carroll remembers, laughing. “I walked into the hallway and he said, 'Okay?' It was just so magical. Daniel Ezra was such a star. I was crying by the end of it. Literally fifteen seasons of the show flashed before my eyes, and Greg knew that would happen.
Not long after, Berlanti asked Carroll if she wanted to take over as showrunner, just as episodes were starting to come out. “I started thinking about what would happen if I didn't take over the show and thought, 'I can't do that with such a phenomenal cast, crew, staff and this really powerful project that I believed in.' So the next day at 9:30 am I took over as showrunner.
***
In six seasons All American has addressed several hot-button issues related to student athletics. These include the attempted bribes of high school students to obtain college commitments and the season five storyline known as Bountygate, in which Olivia Baker (Samantha Logan) exposes her brother Jordan (Michael Evans Behling) and a coach for leaving the team incited to injure opponents. .
“I'm actually shocked that we don't have more 'Shut your mouth!' Why are you talking about this? Why are you rocking the boat?' responses,” says Carroll. “We've had such an enthusiastic response, especially from parents of athletes who suddenly said, 'Oh, I get it. Now I understand better how I can support my child in this.' Or, “Oh, I didn't realize the shift in the name, image, and likeness rule was going to do X, Y, and Z until it was put on your show that way, and now we think about college differently . 'That's all I want. I want an authentic representation of what it looks like when our children pursue these incredible dreams and what it takes to get them there.”
That was the aspect of the show that most appealed to Carroll from the start. “I always say that I will never admit this publicly, but football is not my thing at all,” she admits. “What I do understand, however, is pursuing what feels like an unrealistic dream. I grew up as a young Nigerian girl in West Africa and now have three shows and my exclusive deal. I'm not supposed to be here. So I completely understand the chase when everyone tells you, “Find a backup plan” or “It's not realistic” or “Do you know how hard it is?” I lived that.”
The personal issues the characters struggle with off the field have deepened the audience's connection with the series. Emotional highlights include Olivia's ongoing sobriety journey and coping with grief, with Spencer grieving the death of his father in season two and the shocking death of coach Billy Baker (Taye Diggs) in season five – a decision that Carroll admits was a 'risk'.
“It's Taye Diggs; it is our guidance. Coach Billy is such a beloved character, but man, did the actors go the extra mile,” she says. “I lost my father in my early twenties, and I don't think I fully realized how many members of our crew had lost their fathers early in their lives, so it became such a personal journey for everyone during that last half of The season.
“We had people contact us and say, 'For the first time, my son and I are dealing with the death of his father from ten years ago, because we were watching the show together, and he suddenly realized that he had never his father had to deal with. mourning.' If that's the only email I ever get,” Carroll adds, “I've done my job.”
Watching the Vortex, as Spencer's group of friends call themselves, navigate these scenarios made repeated season renewals and the most recent decision to extend season six from 13 to 15 episodes quite easy for Warner Bros. chairman and CEO Channing Dungey. “They are these characters,” she says. “I'm so invested in their relationships and the journey they've been on, and that always makes it easy to say yes.”
***
Behind the scenes. Carroll grooms the show's young actors as subtly as he does their storylines, says co-star Logan. “She ended up protecting us from some really big things. Even when it comes to styling my hair. I've worked on a lot of shows where they wanted me to look a certain way and she said, 'No, do whatever you want,' and that was so liberating for me as a black actress to play with my hair and learn about myself and how I want to present as my natural self. I don't think I would have [onscreen] otherwise an opportunity.”
Such considerations are not something Carroll says she does on purpose, but rather an extension of her experience and understanding of the little things that give people the confidence to do their best work.
“What Daniel and I talk about most when this show is done is that the legacy will be the impact it had on the lives of the people who were on the show and who got to realize their dreams or firsts. ,” says Caroll. “Daniel went from actor to director. Gaffers have become DPs. We have had DPs become directors. We've had assistants who rose all the way to producers and directors. When we look back at what we have been able to achieve internally and the direct impact the show has had on people's lives, we couldn't ask for more.”
Still, it doesn't feel real to reach 100 episodes yet, Carroll admits. “It's one of the reasons I wrote the 100th episode. I decided I had to be there, especially with Daniel as director. There were so many moments where we were sitting together on the football field and on set, and we just looked at each other and said, 'Holy cow, we really made it here.' ”
This story first appeared in the May 22 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe.