Cedric the Entertainer is well aware of what he and the rest of the cast of “The Neighborhood” have accomplished. In this era when TV shows are canceled after only a few episodes or have seasons that only consist of 10 to 12 episodes, the longevity of any series reaching 100 episodes has become a rarity.
That milestone has been hit by “The Neighborhood” with the episode being broadcast at 8 p.m. April 10 on CBS. It will be available on the streaming service of Paramount+ the following day.
“We don’t take it for granted. We feel very blessed to be able to be doing a show on a big, major network at this time,” Cedric says. “I was a part of a show (“The Steve Harvey Show”) that did a hundred episodes. That was rare. I’ve been a part of shows that did nine, you know, ten episodes.
“I think there’s a real opportunity of having a show where you love coming to work.”
The episode that made the cast and crew so happy for the 100th taping, “Welcome to the Milestone,” has Calvin (Cedric the Entertainer) struggling to find the perfect birthday gift for his wife, Tina (Tichina Arnold). At the same time, Gemma (Beth Behrs) works a connection to actor Jerry O’Connell, whose children attend Walcott Academy, to secure VIP tickets to “The Talk” for her school’s fundraiser.
O’Connell is joined by the rest of the cast of “The View’ – Akbar Gbajabiamila, Amanda Kloots, Natalie Morales and Sheryl Underwood – as guest stars.
“The Neighborhood” is more than just another acting job for Cedric. Not only is he one of the stars but Cedric is the executive producer of this show and he directed the 100th episode.
Wearing all these different hats gives Cedric the opportunity to make sure every element of the show comes across as being as relatable as possible with the audience.
“We do try to be very real to the characters and what the characters are saying and what we want to convey,” Cedric says. “As we are developing the show, we get the words from the writer. We get the scripts.
“But almost every actor on this show, if they have something that they want to say with a scene, if they have something that they feel like they want to get off, I’m a big supporter of that.”
The honesty that is brought to the series comes across to Cedric as feeling like the stand-up comedy world. Just like he speaks his mind when he is on a stage alone, Cedric has made sure that “The Neighborhood” has not shied away from important topics.
Cedric knows there is no better opportunity than with stand-up comedy to voice the truth. He has found a similar outlet through the CBS comedy. It is an opportunity he doesn’t take lightly.
Cedric says, “Of course, in the day of the cancel culture, even that is something that you have to approach with great care and trepidation. You can’t be careless and reckless knowing that I have all of these other people that are counting on me to be able to come to work and do a job.
“If I go out there and get us canceled by saying some joke that was reckless and careless and ruthless and mean‑spirited, then I can damage it for other people. So, these are things that you have to be a lot more aware of nowadays than you used to be as a comedian.”
One of those people who has a job is Behrs who had similar success with her television series “2 Broke Girls” that lasted 138 episodes. She describes working on “The Neighborhood” as being different from any job she has ever had because of the camaraderie she feels with the entire cast.
“There’s never a day where I wake up and I’m bummed to go to work. No matter what’s happening in my personal life, I come here, and I laugh all day long with these people,” Behrs says. “And our crew is the same way. I’ve never been around a tighter crew of 300 people the way everyone stands up for each other.
“When someone gets cancer or someone needs fertility treatments, this is a cast and crew that literally comes together and pools all of our money and fights for our own. I’ve never been a part of something like that. So that’s why we want to do 200 more. We just want to hang out all day.”
Behrs points out that “2 Broke Girls” took up the majority of her 20s and now “The Neighborhood” has been part of most of her 30s. She feels like she has grown up along with her character and is very willing to stay with the series at least into her 40s.
