Nellie Andreeva

EXCLUSIVE: TV Land has closed the deal for a second season pickup of The Soul Man starring Cedric “The Entertainer” and Niecy Nash and has ordered a third season of The Exes. As part of The Soul Man renewal, the Hot In Cleveland spinoff is changing showrunners, with Yvette Lee Bowser (Living Single) replacing Phoef Sutton. The deal had been in the works for awhile, with Cedric pulling the trigger on the renewal news prematurely a month ago.

The Soul Man premiered in June as TV Land’s second highest rated series debut behind Hot In Cleveland among Adults 25-54 (1.0 rating) and Women 25-54. In total viewers, the series debuted to 1.9 million, behind Cleveland (4.8 million) and Happily Divorced (2.4 million). By the end of its 12-episode freshman run, The Soul Man lost its ratings momentum from the premiere but has done well among African Americans, posting a 3.6 rating in Adults 25-54 and averaging 1.4 million total viewers per week (in Live+7). The Exes, which averaged 1.2 million total viewers per week in Season 2, stars Donald Faison, Wayne Knight, David Alan Basche, Kelly Stables and Kristen Johnston. Both shows will return in June 2013 with 10 new episodes each. “We are so proud of these series and passionate about the characters,” said Larry W. Jones, president of TV Land.

Bowser will executive produce Soul Man alongside Cedric, creator Suzanne Martin, Eric C. Rhone, Sean Hayes, Todd Milliner and Lynda Obst. Bowser most recently served as a consulting producer on two other TV Land series, Happily Divorced and The Exes.  The Exes is executive produced by creator Mark Reisman, along with Michael Hanel and Mindy Schultheis.

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