Fans of Tyler Perry’s beloved drama Sistas can shout for joy once again as streamer BET is expanding its Tyler Perry originals slate with Zatima, a spinoff series of Sistas, on BET+, Deadline reports.
The 10-episode hour-long series via Tyler Perry Studios will follow the two Sistas characters, Devale Ellis and Crystal Renee Hayslett reprising their roles as Zac and Fatima, as they navigate the ups and downs of their relationship. The upcoming series marks the second spinoff from a Perry linear BET series to get a nod by BET+ following The Oval‘s offshoot Ruthless.
Perry will executive produce, direct, and write the series. Production had begun and is slated for a 2022 premiere on BET+.
This comes on the heels of the partnership Perry inked with BET parent ViacomCBS in July 2017 which runs through 2024. Via the partnership, Perry will produce 90 episodes annually of original drama and comedy series for BET and its streaming counterpart including The Tyler Perry Show: The Sistas After-Show Edition.
“We are continuing to strengthen our investment in quality programming, and our partnership with Tyler Perry has a proven track record of super-serving our audience,” said BET CEO Scott Mills. “We look forward to unlocking crossover viewership opportunities between our linear platform and our streaming service one of our strongest series, Sistas. With Zatima joining our expanding roster of BET+ originals, BET is committed to giving viewers more of the compelling content they love and expect across our platforms.”
BET network and Tyler Perry Studios announced the spinoff on Wednesday.
“‘Zatima’ represents the dream of finding love in the most awkward places,” Ellis tells TVLine. “Zac was in Chainbreakers at a time when he was just trying to build himself up, and he met a woman who was willing to accept him as he is and help him grow. Zac is trying his hardest to be all he can for this woman, and fans are responding to that. People who are out here looking for love can appreciate that, because they also want someone to build with and someone who will love and accept them as they really are.”
News of the spinoff Zatima comes just weeks before the Season 3 finale of Sistas, which will air on Dec. 22.
