'Hair Love' Director Matthew A. Cherry Signs Deal With Warner Bros. TV

Matthew A. Cherry, the writer and director of the Oscar-winning animated short Hair Love, just signed a first-look deal with Warner Bros. TV. Under the deal, Cherry will create, develop, and produce new material for multiple platforms. In the past, Cherry has directed episodes of CBS' The Red Line and ABC's Whiskey Cavalier (remember that show?).THR reports that Matthew A. Cherry just signed a big first-look deal with Warner Bros. TV to develop new material across multiple platforms. Cherry's Hair Love originated as a Kickstarter campaign and ended up going all the way to Oscar glory. The film was based on Cherry's book of the same name. Regarding the new WB TV deal, Cherry said:

"I am beyond excited to be joining the Warner Bros. Television family in this exciting new capacity. It's an important time to be a Black creative working in this industry, and I look forward to creating impactful projects and partnering with other talented marginalized voices in our community."

Cherry was an executive producer on BlacKkKlansman, and he has credits on TV shows like Heroes, The Last O.G., Black-Ish, Mixed-Ish, and more. Before he got into TV and film, Cherry was an NFL wide receiver, playing for teams such as the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Cincinnati Bengals, the Carolina Panthers, and the Baltimore Ravens.

Regarding his jump from sports to filmmaking, Cherry said: "I think it's just a testament to anybody who has more than one dream, or working in a day job and they have a dream that they want to pursue. It's never too late to pursue your passion, and the more life throws at you, the more careful you have to be about your planning. But, it can happen. And there's no rule that says it has to happen before you turn 30. There's no rule that says you only can live out one of your passions. It can happen. We're a living testament."