TBS orders James Corden, Ben Winston 'Late Late Show' bit 'Drop the Mic' to series
Watch out, Lip Sync Battle — The Late Late Show producers are coming for you.
TBS on Thursday announced a straight-to-series pickup for comedic music competition series Drop the Mic, inspired by James Corden and Ben Winston's popular sketch on their CBS late-night show. The Turner-owned network has picked up 16 episodes of the series, with a host to be announced later.
Drop the Mic will pit four celebrities against each other in a rap battle. Each week's winner will be chosen by the studio audience. TBS describes the show as a mixture of comedy and music. The series will be executive produced by Corden, Winston, Jensen Karp and former battle rapper Hot Karl. The project hails from CBS Television Studios, where Winston's Fulwell 73 recently inked an overall deal.
Anne Hathaway Obliterates James Corden in 'Late Late Show' Rap Battle: Watch
"Drop the Mic is such an exciting show, and we can't wait to begin making it," Winston said in a statement. "Every time we have done this segment on TheLate Late Show, it has become a massive viral moment. Now with TBS as our perfect partner, we hope to create some really memorable television."
The Late Late Show segment has been one of the highlights of Corden's late-night series following "Carpool Karaoke," which has already spawned a TV series and a similarly themed entry at Spike TV — Caraoke Showdown, hosted by Craig Robinson.
Spike TV has found ratings and viral video success with Lip Sync Battle, which started as a regular bit on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. NBC famously passed on the reality competition series that has since seen Spike develop the format for global markets as well as a kid's take. To play off that, Spike looked at Corden's popular "Carpool Karaoke" bit and developed Caraoke Showdown.
In return, CBS Television Studios announced it was developing Carpool Karaoke as a stand-alone TV series. That show recently sold to Apple TV as the latter begins to push into original music-themed programming. Meanwhile, ABC is readying a series based on Jimmy Kimmel's late-night bit Who Knows.
For TBS, the series marks the cabler's first new unscripted show since adding Michael Bloom as senior vp, unscripted and special event programming.
"James Corden and Ben Winston have struck a nerve with their celebrity-driven, music-infused, incredibly fun content," said Bloom. "This series embodies the kind of unique and surprising programming we are looking for as we reinvent our approach to this genre within the new TBS brand."
The article originally appeared on The Hollywood Reporter.
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