ABC’s Wonder Years reboot is the latest recipient of a 2022 Peabody Award, The Hollywood Reporter can reveal.
Presenter Sheryl Lee Ralph points out how the 1960s-set sitcom — now set in Montgomery, Alabama, where audiences follow the Black, middle-class Williams family — highlights some of the “awful truths” she experienced growing up as a child of the ’60s.
Accepting the honor, showrunner Saladin K. Patterson says he’s proud to continue the prestigious lineage of being part of a Peabody-winning show.
“The Peabody means something special to me because myself, some of our other writers, department heads, we all come from other shows that have been honored by the Peabody before, shows such as the original Wonder Years, Frasier, the Bernie Mac Show, Black-ish, The West Wing, Insecure,” he explained. “For us to be able to say we are part of that lineage now is such a great honor.”
He then added, joking, “But now, more importantly, we can finally say to them, ‘Stop bragging about having a Peabody because you know what? We got one too y’all!’”
Watch Patterson’s full acceptance speech in the video below.
