‘The Equalizer’ Casts Queen Latifah in an Extremely Familiar CBS Drama Story: TV Review

Queen Latifah kicked down the door and showed us her vigilante side with the series premiere of The Equalizer on CBS. The crime drama debuted with a 0.9 rating in the adults 18-49 demographic and netted 7.98 million viewers.

Super Bowl LV, CBS, 91.6 million.2. Super Bowl LV Post-game, CBS, 51.5 million.3. “The Equalizer,” CBS, 20 million.4.

CBS’ new drama The Equalizer dedicated its premiere to the series’ executive producer Richard Lindheim, who died Jan. 18 of heart failure at the age of 85. The post-Super Bowl debut, which likely attracted tens of millions of viewers, ended with a card that read, “Dedicated to the memory of Richard Lindheim.” (You can see it below.)

post-Super Bowl 2021 premiere — TV’s most coveted time slot.That will earn the series, starring Queen Latifah, a huge onetime audience it will never approach again. CBS knows this, of course, but is confident “The Equalizer” will attract a loyal core audience sufficient in today’s saturated TV landscape.That remains to be seen, but Sunday night’s premiere gave us a snugly predictable drama in that formulaic network primetime kind of way.

Queen Latifah has been a huge star for decades, but many fans likely don’t know her birth name.

Queen Latifah is starring in CBS’ reboot of The Equalizer, which premieres tonight after the Super Bowl!

Queen Latifah is ready to kick some serious butt in the rebooted crime drama “The Equalizer”, relishing the opportunity to take on the title role.

Take the nomad out of “Nomadland,” and you’re left with “Land,” Robin Wright‘s feature-directing debut (she previously directed 10 episodes of “House of Cards“), in which she also stars, as a grieving woman who, somewhat ironically given the film bows in the era of mandatory isolation, moves way up into the mountains “to get away from people.” Problem is, take the nomadic element out of “Nomadland” (she moves only once and has done with it) and you’re also left with a less interesting, much more

Queen Latifah is putting a new spin on CBS reboots the 1980s TV series, which starred Edward Woodward and also inspired Denzel Washington's film franchise, with Latifah taking the helm as the eponymous heroine. As Robyn McCall, Latifah plays an enigmatic woman with a mysterious background who uses her skills to help those with nowhere else to turn.

Take the nomad out of “Nomadland,” and you’re left with “Land,” Robin Wright‘s feature-directing debut (she previously directed 10 episodes of “House of Cards“), in which she also stars, as a grieving woman who, somewhat ironically given the film bows in the era of mandatory isolation, moves way up into the mountains “to get away from people.” Problem is, take the nomadic element out of “Nomadland” (she moves only once and has done with it) and you’re also left with a less interesting, much more

football game offers the potential of a huge lead-in audience to introduce Latifah as Robyn McCall, an ex-CIA officer who uses her skills to defend those who can't help themselves while pursuing her own redemption.

So much of writer-director John Lee Hancock’s psychological cop thriller, “The Little Things,” seems recognizable and pre-ordained on the surface. The drama offers the trope of a grizzled veteran cop (Denzel Washington) conflicting with a talented younger detective who’s made the grade (Rami Malek), the way they clash, break balls, their various obsessions, a haunted past, and a quirky, alleged serial killer (Jared Leto), not afraid to tease and taunt the police.

Running time: 127 minutes. Rated R (violent/disturbing images, language and full nudity) In select theaters and on HBO Max.The No.

Queen Latifah seeks to stake her claim in The Equalizer franchise as she takes on part-time mom and part-time hero Robyn McCall in CBS’ reimagining of the classic 1985 series. While the Girls Trip actress may be the first Black woman portraying the Equalizer in the franchise’s span, powerful Black women seeking to do right by the little guys have made their marks throughout history, she said.

Even before the pandemic, “The Little Things” would have been a throwback.Star-laden thrillers, with studio scale and high-priced craft, are one of those genres that's been mostly squeezed out by the mega-sized movies that crowd Hollywood's assembly lines. A movie directed by John Lee Hancock ("The Blind Side") with Denzel Washington, Rami Malek and Jared Leto is by no means a modest production.

Jen Landon (Yellowstone, Animal Kingdom) is set for a recurring role opposite Yaya Gosselin on the second season of CBS’ drama series FBI: Most Wanted.

The psychological toll of investigative police work seeps into the bones of John Lee Hancock's gritty neo-noir The Little Things, which captures Los Angeles County's flat urban sprawl and snaking freeways to highly atmospheric effect.

Watch Video: Denzel Washington and Rami Malek Are Out to Catch Jared Leto in 'The Little Things' TrailerOne senses that Hancock (“Saving Mr. Banks,” “The Founder”) wants to bait and switch the audience with what at first seems like a straightforward policier but then pivots into a character study of Deke and Jim — respectively, an aging lawman who’s literally haunted by his mistakes and an ambitious young climber who may follow in Deke’s footsteps for better or for worse.