‘Red Table Talk’ canceled as all original FB Watch shows get axed

Jada Pinkett Smith's online talk show is one of several original unscripted programs that have been canceled as Facebook's parent company, Meta, seeks to focus more on VR-related programming.

TheGrio Staff

Apr 27, 2023

Jada Pinkett Smith’s “Red Table Talk” has come to an end. The online talk series is one of several original Facebook (FB) Watch programs that has been canceled.

The cancellation comes after Mina Lefevre, head of Development and Programming at Facebook’s parent company Meta, departs from her post, according to Deadline. Her departure comes as part of the most current layoffs at Facebook, which over 20,000 employees have left.

Facebook is moving closer to developing its V.R. department, via Meta Horizon Worlds and evolving away from original programming. Other unscripted/talk original series that launched during LeFevre’s tenure include “Piece of Mind with Taraji with Taraji P. Henson” and “Steve on Watch with Steve Harvey.”

Apple Original Films' "Emancipation" Los Angeles Premiere - Arrivals — Adrienne Banfield-Norris and Jada Pinkett Smith attend Apple Original Films’ “Emancipation” Los Angeles premiere on Nov. 30, 2022, at the Regency Village Theatre in Los Angeles. (Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images)

“Red Table Talk” premiered in 2018 with Pinkett Smith, daughter Willow Smith and mother Adrienne Banfield-Norris as hosts. The three generations of women tackled serious subjects like sex, divorce, colorism and mental health.

The series also featured interviews with guests like Snoop Dogg, Janelle Monáe and music couple T.I. and Tiny Harris. A spinoff series, “Red Table Talk: The Estefans,” was launched because of the initial success of “Red Table Talk.”

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Will Smith, Pinkett Smith’s husband, appeared on the show numerous times. One such episode included a one-on-one conversation between Smith and Pinkett Smith, discussing her brief relationship with R&B singer August Alsina. Pinkett Smith, who infamously referred to her relationship with Alsina as an “entanglement” during the episode, used the platform to address the issue after the once-discreet relationship became public.

The show’s final episode on FB Watch premiered in December. It was a reunion with Pinkett Smith and some of her former “A Different World” castmates and the show’s director, Debbie Allen. Westbrook is currently shopping “Red Table Talk” to other companies.

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