Former basketball star Shaquille O’Neal and comedian Ken Jeong recently appeared together at TBS’ rap-battle show Drop the Mic and showed a surprising chemistry. After the episode became one of the most watched in the show’s history, the cable network now decided to give the duo an opportunity to star in their own show.
TBS announced that it would produce a pilot for Unqualified, which will see Shaquille O’Neal and Ken Jeong trying to perform in various jobs they are not very skilled at. According to the show’s description, the duo will find temporary jobs through digital platforms for employment while their employers will not know who exactly are they hiring. The jobs will range from kindergarten substitute teacher to party clown and mall security guard.
“These guys made magic on Drop The Mic together. Their chemistry is undeniable,” said Michael Bloom, senior VP unscripted and specials for TBS and TNT. “And no doubt that magic will extend to the unwitting people who expect anything to get done when they show up.”
Shaquille O’Neal and Ken Jeong will also serve as executive producers of Unqualified.
“We are built to hustle,” said O’Neal and Jeong in a joint statement. “We’re thankful to TBS for giving us the opportunity to embrace any challenge that comes our way, and we hope to surprise everyone with our ability to learn the ropes on the fly.”
After retiring from basketball, Shaquille O’Neal became a prominent television personality working as a basketball analyst for TNT’s Inside the NBA and starring in several TV Shows.
Ken Jeong, on the other hand, is known for his role of Ben Chang in NBC’s comedy Community and for playing Leslie Chow in The Hangover film series.
