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Welcome to Global Breakouts, Deadline’s fortnightly strand in which we shine a spotlight on the TV shows and films killing it in their local territories. The industry is as globalized as it’s ever been, but breakout hits are appearing in pockets of the world all the time and it can be hard to keep track. So we’re going to do the hard work for you.

This week, we’re heading back to Canada for the first time in over a year to check out Late Bloomer, Jasmeet Raina’s culture-clash comedy series about a Sikh family living in Toronto. The former YouTuber’s show recently launched its second season on Crave, providing more insight into the life of a Millennial with all the trappings of the Western world balanced against the traditional values of an Asian immigrant family.

Name: Late Bloomer

Country: Canada

Network: Crave

Producer: Pier...

Dave Chappelle is set to take center stage at Toronto’s Departure Festival + Conference, with an exclusive stand-up performance at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre.

The six-time Grammy winner, five-time Emmy winner and recent recipient of the NAACP President’s Award, anchors the comedy-focused expansion of the festival, organized by Loft Entertainment and Oak View Group.

The comedy programming also features rising Canadian talent, with homegrown comedians Jasmeet Raina, Ivan Decker, Sophie Buddle, Hassan Phills, and Ali Hassan joining the lineup, alongside the founder of viral comedy platform Don’t Tell Comedy, Kyle Kazanjian-Amory.

Chappelle, whose recent “Saturday Night Live” monologue stands as the longest in the program’s 50-year history, tops a bill that includes previously announced comedy podcast “How Did This Get Made? Live,” comedian Trevor Wallace, Pete Holmes, Harland Williams, Caroline Rhea, and Elvira Kurt.

The festival’s film and television component will include an advanced screening of Harland Williams’ new comedy “Wingman,...

Exclusive: The Office Movers are back in business.

Canadian streamer Crave has ordered a second season of the comedy series from Jae and Trey Richards, with Justin Stockman, Vice President, Content Development and Programming at Crave parent Bell Media calling it a “hit.” Note: Minor spoilers ahead.

The new season is set to go into production in 2025, and will pick up on the conclusion of season one, which saw the Saunders brothers, played by the Richards brothers, making a big decision regarding an offer from moving company giant Zenithon.

Counterfeit Pictures, known for shows such as CBC’s One More Time and CTV’s Shelved, produces in association with Crave.

Created by the Richards brothers, the show follows siblings who navigate the chaotic world of Toronto’s commercial office moving industry. Season 1 starred the Richards alongside an ensemble cast also including Jack Innanen, Lucas Lopez, Noel Miller, Hassan Phills, Jesse Sebastian and content creator WatswithAndy.

Exclusive: Jasmeet Raina, the creator and star of Late Bloomer, will make his directing debut in the Crave comedy’s second season.

Production on Season 2 recently got underway in the greater Toronto region, starring Raina as Jasmeet Dutta, a Punjabi Sikh millennial and burgeoning online content creator trying to balance his ambitions for success with his commitment to his family, community and culture. It is inspired by Raina’s life.

Co-executive producer Peter Huang is back to direct six of the season’s eight episode, with Raina directing the other two and also executive-producing. Pier 21 is producing in association with Crave.

Starring alongside Raina are Baljinder Singh Atwal (Des Pardes) and Sandeep Bali as Jasmeet’s parents, Ashley Ganger (Grand Army) as his sister, Sugenja Sri (The Handmaid’s Tale) and Sachin Mahashi as his friends and Ahamed Weinberg (Insecure) as a cousin. Seher Khot (Sex/Life) also returns in an expanded role.

HBO’s The Last of Us was named best English-language drama in the international program at the 2024 Rockie Awards on Tuesday night.

The hit series based on the video game franchise also earned the Grand Jury Prize at the marquee awards show for the Banff World Media Festival. The festival’s jury also named Fox’s The Masked Singer the best competition series and game show, and Peacock’s Poker Face series, created by Rian Johnson, was named the best English language comedy series.

Elsewhere, BBC’s The Graham Norton Show from the U.K. won for best comedy and variety show, and the U.K. pubcaster’s Best Interests picked up the best limited series crown. The 2024 Rockie Awards like previous years turned into a shoot-out between American and British TV producers, with BBC’s Men Up winning for best feature film and Fox’s Family Guy comedy coming...

Good Morning America host Robin Roberts is set to receive the Inclusion Award at the 2024 edition of the Banff World Media Festival.

Also set for tributes at next month’s Canadian Rockies event is comic and actor Tom Green, who will receive the Sir Peter Ustinov Comedy Award, and Kevin Beggs, chairman and chief creative officer at the Lionsgate Television Group, receiving the Award of Excellence.

Elsewhere, Girls5eva actor Renée Elise Goldsberry, who was also in the original Hamilton cast, will pick up the Creative Voice Award, Kim’s Convenience star Paul Sun-Hyung Lee will receive the Canadian award of distinction, and indie banner Attraction will be honored with the Innovative Producer Award.

Banff organizers also said Tuesday that Emmy-winning director and writer Allana Harkin (Full Frontal with Samantha Bee) will host the flagship Banff Rockie Awards on June 10. Late Bloomer star Jasmeet Raina will host the festival’s...

During a panel discussion on faith and comedy at the Just For Laughs festival on Saturday, Ramy Youssef talked about his father foretelling the Hollywood actors strike when offering early career advice.

Youssef, who portrays his Muslim faith with both devotion and defiance in his Hulu series Ramy, told the comedy festival audience about his Egyptian-born father discouraging him early on from becoming an artist and entertainer because he’d have to provide for his family one day. “He was always like, ‘This is a beautiful hobby for you to have. Grow the hobby.’ But I remember him clearly saying, ‘One day, real life is going to start,’” he recounted.

The current industry shutdown as Hollywood actors on picket lines seek fair pay, including residuals from streamers, has that warning from his traditional accountant father ringing in his head. “Now we’re in the strike, and, well, here it is!

Exclusive: Pier 21 Films, the Canadian production company behind series including Run The Burbs, which is airing on The CW in the U.S., has new bosses.

Nicole Butler (L) & Vanessa Steinmetz (George Pimentel)

Vanessa Steinmetz and Nicole Butler have been named co-CEOs of the company as founder Laszlo Barna transitions to chair of the company.

The news was announced while the Canadian TV industry was gathered at the Banff Media Festival.

The company is also behind Late Bloomer, starring Jasmeet Raina and Indigenous comedy Don’t Even from showrunner Amber-Sekowan Daniels both for Canada’s Crave.

The duo now leads all creative and business activities for the company. Steinmetz, a former SVP of Production Finance at eOne, where she worked on series including The Rookie and Sharp Objects, oversees financing and business operations and Butler, former COO with Pier 21, leads development and production activities.

“Vanessa and Nicole are visionary executives,...

Canadian streaming service Crave has partnered with Pier 21 Films on eight-part series “Late Bloomer,” created by and starring Jasmeet Singh Raina, also known as Jus Reign.

The series is inspired by Raina’s life as a Punjabi Sikh millennial and online celebrity. The show follows burgeoning content creator Jasmeet Dutta as he tries to balance his ambitions for success with his commitment to his family, community and culture. Production is underway in Toronto and Hamilton.

As Jus Reign, Raina is a global social media star and was one of Much Digital Studios’ first content creators in 2015. Raina became known for his deadpan comedic style and commentary on race and pop culture and is part of a group of storytellers who charted the way for increased South Asian representation in mainstream media.

The series features an ensemble cast including Baljinder Singh Atwal, Sandeep Bali, Ashley Ganger, Sugenja Sri, Sachin Mahashi and Ahamed Weinberg.

Canadian comedian Russell Peters (“The Indian Detective”) will executive produce half-hour series “Late Bloomer,” featuring fellow Canadian comic Jasmeet Singh Raina (Aka Jus Reign), with independent production company Pier 21 Films.

The show is currently in development at Canadian public broadcaster CBC.

As Jus Reign, Raina has more than 167 million YouTube views with 974,000 subscribers and more than a million Facebook fans.

Inspired by his own real-life experiences, “Late Bloomer” will focus on Raina’s journey navigating his new-found internet fame, dating, spirituality, culture and his dysfunctional, yet loving, family. As a first-generation Indo-Canadian, his identity is constantly questioned as he struggles to find the balance between Eastern customs centered around community and the Western ideal of individualism.

Pier 21’s credits include news satire show “The Beaverton” and history series “Secrets.”

“Jasmeet is a one-of-a-kind talent and the latest in the long line of incredible Canadian comedians to find stardom on the global stage.