{"id":874731,"date":"2026-10-08T04:20:13","date_gmt":"2026-10-08T04:20:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/874731\/"},"modified":"2026-10-08T04:20:13","modified_gmt":"2026-10-08T04:20:13","slug":"dewayne-perkins-to-launch-youtube-series-i-swear-were-friends","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/874731\/","title":{"rendered":"Dewayne Perkins to Launch YouTube Series ‘I Swear We’re Friends’"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\t\u201cThe Blackening\u201d and \u201cThe Studio\u201d star Dewayne Perkins<\/a> is launching a new digital series, \u201cI Swear We\u2019re Friends,\u201d exclusively on YouTube<\/a> this fall.<\/p>\n

\n\tPerkins is independently releasing the six-episode \u201cskitcom,\u201d which is described as a \u201clove letter to television,\u201d with each episode inspired by a beloved show: \u201cGirlfriends,\u201d \u201cSuccession,\u201d \u201c24,\u201d \u201cMy Wife & Kids,\u201d \u201cCharmed\u201d and \u201cTouched By An Angel.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tWith the series, Perkins \u2014 who got his start performing in his Chicago improv group 3Peat before the success of \u201cThe Blackening\u201d<\/a> put him on Hollywood\u2019s radar \u2014 mixes the nostalgia of the past with the novelty of the present to create a \u201cuniquely absurd comedic experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cTwenty years after \u2018Noah\u2019s Arc,\u2019 why are Black gay male friendships still so rarely at the center of comedy?\u201d a release describing the series explains. \u201cWith \u2018I Swear We\u2019re Friends,\u2019 Dewayne is helping fill a void that remains on-screen two decades later. The series isn\u2019t about explaining Black queerness to an outside audience; it gives Black queer men the space to simply be funny, messy, complicated friends.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tPerkins leads the main cast alongside Devere Rogers (\u201cAbbott Elementary,\u201d \u201cHonk for Jesus. Save Your Soul\u201d), Brian Jordan Jr. (\u201cSistas\u201d), Philemon Chambers (\u201cBeauty in Black\u201d) and Cameron J. Ross (\u201cThe Summer I Turned Pretty,\u201d \u201cBoomerang\u201d).<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\n\tGuest stars include Daryl Stephens (\u201cNoah\u2019s Arc\u201d), Steven G. Norfleet (\u201cBeauty in Black,\u201d \u201cInterview with the Vampire\u201d), Courtney Taylor (\u201cAbbott Elementary,\u201d \u201cShrinking,\u201d \u201cInsecure\u201d), Tracie Thoms (\u201cRent,\u201d \u201cThe Devil Wears Prada\u201d), Justen Ross (\u201cIs God Is,\u201d \u201cFight Night: The Million Dollar Heist\u201d) and Jermelle Simon (\u201cThe Upshaws\u201d). Grammy winner Durand Bernarr performs the show\u2019s theme song.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe first two episodes debut on Oct. 14, with episodes three and four following on Oct. 21, and Season 1 concluding with episodes five and six on Oct. 28.<\/p>\n

\n\tPerkins directed all six episodes with Sade Ndya (ASC Rising Star, Nike x Megan Thee Stallion) as the director of photography. He also wrote the series with James Rogers III (\u201cThe Chi\u201d), Rogers and Higher Ground\u2019s Mark Wright.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI Swear We\u2019re Friends\u201d is produced by Nance Messineo & Cole Santiago of Ex-Girlfriend Co. Production Company (Doechii, Selena Gomez, Renee Rapp) and Natasha Forouzannia (Marvel\u2019s \u201cIronheart\u201d). Post-production on the series is by Skapa Films (Beyonc\u00e9\u2019s \u201cRenaissance\u201d film, Victoria Mon\u00e9t, Megan Thee Stallion).<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\n\tNews of the digital series comes as Perkins is set to return in the ensemble cast of Apple TV\u2019s Emmy-winning series \u201cThe Studio.\u201d He\u2019s also currently working on \u201cThe Blackening 2\u201d<\/a> for Lionsgate. (The 2023 horror-comedy, co-written by Perkins and Tracy Oliver, grossed more than $18 million on a $5 million budget.)<\/p>\n

\n\tUp next, Perkins recently joined the cast of Scott \u201cKid Cudi\u201d Mescudi\u2019s latest directorial feature, the horror-thriller \u201cWrong Number.\u201d Variety also exclusively revealed that he is developing a new comedy series at Hulu<\/a>, which he is attached to write, executive produce and star in should it receive a green light. Stephen Curry, Erick Peyton and Sharla Sumpter Bridgett are also executive producing via Unanimous Media.<\/p>\n

\n\tFinally, on Nov. 9, Perkins brings his one-man show, \u201cHow Being Black & Gay Made Me Better Than You!,\u201d to Brooklyn\u2019s Bell House as part of the New York Comedy Festival, following a sold-out show at the Netflix Is a Joke Fest earlier this year.<\/p>\n

\n\tPerkins is represented by CAA, Artists First and attorneys Amber Payne and Isaac Dunham.<\/p>\n

\n\tWatch the trailer for the series below: <\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u201cThe Blackening\u201d and \u201cThe Studio\u201d star Dewayne Perkins is launching a new digital series, \u201cI Swear We\u2019re Friends,\u201d…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":874732,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[57],"tags":[236,296396,88,9280],"class_list":["post-874731","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-celebrities","tag-celebrities","tag-dewayne-perkins","tag-entertainment","tag-youtube"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/874731","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=874731"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/874731\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/874732"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=874731"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=874731"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=874731"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}