Champaign ILL is an American comedy series, created by Jordan Cahan, David Caspe, Daniel Libman, and Matthew Libman, that premiered on December 12, 2018, on YouTube Premium. The series stars Adam Pally and Sam Richardson and is executive produced by Cahan, Caspe, the Libmans, and Jamie Tarses.
Champaign ILL is described as examining how "every rapper has a crew he can't live without...and vice versa" and exploring "how long the crew can survive without being in the limelight."[2]
On April 30, 2018, it was announced that YouTube had given the production a series order for a first season consisting of ten episodes. Executive producers include David Caspe, Daniel Libman, Matthew Libman, Jordan Cahan, and Jamie Tarses. Caspe, the Libmans, and Cahan are also expected to write for the series. Maurice “Mo” Marable will direct the pilot and serve as co-executive producer. Ian Durney will serve as an associate producer. Production companies involved with the series include Sony Pictures Television.[2][3][4][5] On November 8, 2018, it was announced that the series had been titled Champaign ILL and that it would premiere on December 12, 2018.[6]
Principal photography for the series took place in July 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia, with locations including Glenwood Park and the Second Mount Vernon Baptist Church. Additional filming occurred in cities near Atlanta, including Peachtree City and Kennesaw, where shooting transpired at the local Electric Cowboy nightclub. Production reportedly wrapped on July 24, 2018, in Peachtree City.[8][9]
Release
On November 8, 2018, the first trailer for the series was released.[6]
Reception
In a positive review, Los Angeles Times' Robert Lloyd praised the show's main performances and overall tone saying "Pally and Richardson team well and keep Ronnie and Alf sufficiently sympathetic even as they are continually trying — which is, after all, the response they have been formed to elicit (as the Three Stooges before them). It puts the show on that famous fine line between stupid and clever, a line it does manage to walk with fair coordination, working both sides to good effect."[10] In a similarly approving critique, Indiewire's gave the series a "B" grade and praised the show's visual style and chemistry of the leads saying, "Best of all, the two have immediate chemistry. Champaign ILL is well edited with clever visual additions (like texting bubbles and expository inserts) that keep the momentum up, but much can be said for the two men's learned timing with each other."[11]
In a more negative evaluation, Decider's Joel Keller recommended that viewers skip the series saying, "Despite having some of our favorite funny people in it and writing it, Champaign ILL just feels like it's going to be one clunky joke after another about how these two douche nozzles can't manage in the real world."[12]
