ABC’s comedy series Abbott Elementary was the big winner at  the 2023 NAACP Image Awards ceremony Saturday night as the civil rights organization honored excellence in television, music, film and sports.

In the television category, Abbott Elementary won an industry-high six awards, including outstanding comedy series, as well as best actress in a comedy series for series star/creator Quinta Brunson. Abbott Elementary stars Tyler James Williams and Janelle James also swept the best supporting comedy actor and actress categories, respectively.

Starz’s P-Valley won the statuette for outstanding drama series as well an outstanding actor in a drama series award for series star Nicco Annan. 

Other shows winning multiple NAACP Image Awards include Peacock’s The Best Man: Final Chapters, which took home the outstanding television movie, limited–series or dramatic special award, as well as Comedy Central’s The Daily Show and Disney Channel’s Proud Family: Louder and Prouder.

Other NAACP Image Award winners include Angela Bassett, who won the Entertainer of the Year Award, as well as awards for outstanding actress in a drama series for her starring role in 9-1-1 and outstanding supporting actress in a motion picture for her appearance in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. 

Will Smith won Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture for his role as a runaway slave in Apple TV's Emancipation. It was Smith’s first award since he infamously slapped Chris Rock on stage during last year’s Academy Awards ceremony. 

Queen Latifah hosted Saturday’s live awards ceremony, which was simulcast on CBS, BET, BET Her, VH1 and Paramount Network. The live event – the first in-person NAACP Image Awards show in three years – was preceded by four days of virtual awards presentations. 

The full list of NAACP Image Awards winners in the television category appears below: 

 Outstanding Comedy Series

Abbott Elementary (ABC) 

Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series

Cedric The Entertainer – The Neighborhood (CBS) 

Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series

Quinta Brunson – Abbott Elementary (ABC)

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series

Tyler James Williams – Abbott Elementary (ABC)

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series

Janelle James – Abbott Elementary (ABC)

Outstanding Drama Series

P-Valley (Starz)

Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series

Nicco Annan – P-Valley (Starz)

Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series

Angela Bassett – 9-1-1 (FOX) 

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series

Cliff "Method Man" Smith – Power Book II: Ghost (Starz) 

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series

Loretta Devine – P-Valley (Starz)

Outstanding Television Movie, Limited–Series or Dramatic Special

The Best Man: The Final Chapters (Peacock) 

Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Limited–Series or Dramatic Special

Morris Chestnut – The Best Man: The Final Chapters (Peacock) 

Outstanding Actress in a Television Movie, Limited–Series or Dramatic Special

Niecy Nash-Betts – Dahmer - Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story (Netflix) 

Outstanding News/Information (Series or Special)

ABC News 20/20 Michelle Obama: The Light We Carry, A Conversation with Robin Roberts (ABC)

Outstanding Talk Series

Sherri (Syndicated)

Outstanding Reality Program, Reality Competition or Game Show (Series)

Lizzo's Watch Out for the Big Grrrls (Amazon Studios) 

Outstanding Variety Show (Series or Special)

The Daily Show with Trevor Noah (Comedy Central)

Outstanding Children’s Program

Tab Time (YouTube Originals)

Outstanding Performance by a Youth (Series, Special, Television Movie or Limited–Series)

Ja'Siah Young – Raising Dion (Netflix)

Outstanding Host in a Talk or News/Information (Series or Special) – Individual or Ensemble

Jennifer Hudson – The Jennifer Hudson Show (Syndicated)

Outstanding Host in a Reality/Reality Competition, Game Show or Variety (Series or Special) – Individual or Ensemble

Tabitha Brown – Tab Time (YouTube Originals) 

Outstanding Guest Performance

Glynn Turman – Queen Sugar (OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network)

Outstanding Animated Series

The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder (Disney Plus)

Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance (Television)

Kyla Pratt – The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder (Disney Plus)

Outstanding Short Form Series - Comedy or Drama

Between The Scenes - The Daily Show (Comedy Central)

Outstanding Short Form Series - Reality/Nonfiction

Daring Simone Biles (Snap) 

Outstanding Breakthrough Creative (Television)

Quinta Brunson – Abbott Elementary (ABC)

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Television Movie, Limited–Series or Dramatic Special

Keith David – From Scratch (Netflix)

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Television Movie, Limited–Series or Dramatic Special

Nia Long – The Best Man: The Final Chapters (Peacock)

Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series

Brittani Nichols – Abbott Elementary – "Student Transfer" (ABC) 

Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series

Marissa Jo Cerar – Women of the Movement – "Episode 101" (ABC)

Outstanding Writing in a Television Movie or Special

Scott Mescudi (Story By), Ian Edelman, Maurice Williams – Entergalactic (Netflix)

Outstanding Directing in a Comedy Series

Angela Barnes – Atlanta – "The Homeliest Little Horse" (FX) 

Outstanding Directing in a Drama Series

Giancarlo Esposito – Better Call Saul – "Axe and Grind" (AMC)

Outstanding Directing in a Television Movie or Special

Anton Cropper – Fantasy Football (Paramount  Plus) 

MTV Entertainment Studios will partner with Angela Bassett and Courtney B. Vance to develop a docuseries on the history of slavery.

The four-part series, One Thousand Years of Slavery, will air on the Smithsonian Channel and will examine how slavery stained the past, shaped the present, and continues to rewrite our future through powerful stories of notable individuals courageously sharing their deeply personal Black experiences, the network said.

The Bassett Vance Productions-produced series, which will air in 2022, will feature interviews and comments from such distinguished leaders as Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III, U.S. Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and actor David Harewood, according to MTV.

“We are honored to partner with Bassett Vance Productions on this long overdue landmark documentary series that reveals the untold story of human bondage on a global scale,” said Nina L. Diaz, president of content and chief creative officer at MTV Entertainment Group and for unscripted and adult animation at Paramount Plus.

In May MTV, Bassett and Vance announced the development of a limited series based on the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre.

 MTV Entertainment Studios has teamed with Angela Bassett and Courtney B. Vance to create a limited series based on the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, the company said Monday.

MTV and Bassett Vance Productions have tapped playwright Nathan Alan Davis to write the series, which will follow the events that led to the burning by whites of the Greenwood district in Tulsa, which at time was considered the wealthiest Black community in the United States. The agreement marks the first project from Bassett Vance Productions as part of a deal made with MTV Entertainment Studios in 2020.

"As storytellers -- together with Courtney, Angela and Nathan -- we have the privilege of shining a light on the devastating event in our history that is important, necessary and still resonates 100 years later," said MTV Entertainment Group president of content and chief creative officer Nina Diaz in a statement. "This partnership underscores our shared commitment to raise diverse voice and create content our global audience is yearning for that is both timely and telling." 

The MTV/Bassett Vance Productions limited series is one of several projects being developed depicting the Tulsa Massacre, which marks its 100th anniversary in June. 

Read Also: Programming Review: History's 'Tulsa Massacre' Spotlights a Forgotten Tragedy' 

Lifetime viewers couldn’t get enough of iconic performer Whitney Houston Saturday night. 

The female-targeted network’s original movie Whitney drew 4.5 million viewers, part of a prime-time block of Whitney Houston-themed programming that garnered a combined 11.8 million viewers.

The original movie, directed by Angela Bassett and starring Yaya DaCosta, was the network’s most-watched telecast across all key demographics since Flowers In The Attic last January, said the network. The movie, which chronicled the relationship betewen the late Houston and singer/writer Bobby Brown, also averaged 2.2 million Adults 25-54, 2.1 million Adults 18-49, 1.6 million Women 18-49 and 1.6 million Women 25-54.

Following the movie, the network’s Bobby Brown: Remembering Whitney special delivered 4.1 million viewers, as well as 1.9 million Adults 25-54, 1.8 million Adults 18-49, 1.4 million Women 18-49 and 1.4 million Women 25-54, according to the network.

At 11:00pm, the special Whitney Houston Live: Her Greatest Performances brought in an additional 3.2 million total viewers, said Lifetime.

Tonight Lifetime will encore the entire Whitney Houston-themed block beginning at 8 p.m. with the movie Whitney.