Excited By Ratings, ABC Announces New ‘Abbott Elementary’ Spin-Off: ‘Jacob’

LOS ANGELES, CA—Following widespread critical praise and high ratings for the first two seasons of Quinta Brunson’s Abbott Elementary, parent network ABC has announced they will start production on a new spin-off, Jacob. The show, which will take inspiration from Dangerous Minds, Freedom Writers, and Rushmore, will focus on breakout character Jacob Hill as he explores life, love, and finding himself in his late twenties, all in the show’s Philadelphia setting. 

New characters to be introduced in the show include Melissa Joan Hart as Rachel, Jacob’s street-smart older sister, Adam Pally as Gavin, his party-boy cousin and diehard Eagles fan, and the mom from Everybody Loves Raymond as Jacob’s well-meaning landlord, who just wants to see him settle down with a nice guy. While other Abbott characters such as Janine and Miss Howard may make guest appearances, network executives indicated they were looking forward to seeing “a different side of Philly, one that we don’t often have the chance to see on-screen.”

ABC Vice President of Development Stan Hope added, “We’re very excited to see the Abbott universe move forward in new and cutting-edge directions. Every reaction, every impassioned tweet, every note of praise, made us more sure that people wanted to see a show about a white man struggling with his work-life balance. It’s more important than ever that people see themselves be represented on TV, and we hope this can be the case for Big Ten graduates who did Teach for America.”

While any spinoff represents a risk for a network, ABC has indicated it has alternate programming should the Jacob pilot be received poorly. Other options proposed by the network include Melissa, Captain Robinson, and June Diane Raphael’s Character.