Jada Pinkett-Smith's 'Red Table Talk' Gets The Axe After 5 Seasons

After airing on Facebook Watch for nearly half a decade since May 7, 2018, the talk show "Red Table Talk'" is set to be terminated alongside several other OG shows on the platform.

This comes after the production, starring Jada Pinkett Smith, her daughter Willow Smith and her mom, Adrienne Banfield-Norris, was renewed for a fifth season, which premiered on April 20, 2022. 

Facebook Watch is getting out of the talk show business but focusing on "creating VR experiences in Meta Horizon Worlds" while terminating its original series.

Many of the parent company's staff, approximately 20,000, have been laid off, including Mina Lefevre, who was Head of Development and Programming at Meta as well as the EVP and Head of Scripted at MTV.

According to Deadline, the recent exit "comes amid a pivot for Facebook, which already had scaled back its original programming efforts since the days of scripted series." Lefevre oversaw these series, and some included the Elizabeth Olsen-led "Sorry For Your Loss" and "Sacred Lies."

Additionally, it was reported that none of the remaining FB Watch Originals would return for new seasons, most importantly the "Red Table Talk."  Meanwhile, as the company shifts its focus, FB Watch remains a video player for the new VR content, with members of Lefevre's team, including Thomas Stockwell, staying on "to work on original programming with an emphasis on VR-first shows."

It is worth knowing that the "Red Table Talk" with its spinoff, "Red Table Talk: The Estefans," was the last remaining FB Watch original and has completed its original order. In addition to the "Red Table Talk," franchise, a few others launched under Lefevre, such as, "Steve on Watch," "Piece of Mind with Taraji," a reboot of MTV's "The Real World," and "Unfiltered: Paris Jackson."

Meta's focus away from its original shows comes on the heels of a similar move by Google last year, using its YouTube division to refocus on user-generated content. Some of the types of original productions Meta is leaning into amid the advancement are "The Notorious B.I.G. Sky's The Limit: A VR Concert Experience in Celebration of Biggie's 50th Birthday," "The Shaq'tacular Spectacular," and Meta's first VR comedy special with comedians like Pete Holmes and Nikki Glaser.

Fans of the "Red Table Talk" franchise would no doubt be disappointed to see the show go and miss its liveliness. They are also sure to recall a fun moment behind the scenes when the host's husband, Will Smith, poked fun at their kids' punctuality for filming.

As The Blast reported, the renowned actor went on Instagram to share a video showing him telling his children to arrive at 1 pm since filming started an hour later.  His daughter arrived first and was quite early at 12:31 pm, followed by Trey, his eldest, who got to the set at 12:46 pm and whom Will referred to as the "Most Dependable Son."

Last was an unbothered Jaden, who walked in at 1:54 pm, wearing a white shirt, black jacket, and blue jeans. At the end of the video, the "Emancipation" star filmed himself sharing a laugh with his offspring. And in the caption, he joked, "Jaden is never late, nor is he early; he arrives precisely when he means to." 

Since the 2022 Oscars scandal involving Will and comedian Chris Rock, the "Hancock" actor has not made a major public appearance until the 2023 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. He attended the event to support his daughter and her performance while ensuring he chronicled for the gram.

In the video narrating his Coachella experience, he was evidently on cloud nine and exclaimed in the caption, "WILLOWCHELLA!!"  The excited dad blended with the crowd in a casual outfit comprising a striped black and white shirt and a black face cap.

Amid filming, he captured his baby girl performing before turning the camera to show his elated expression, which his numerous followers noticed and were delighted to witness.

One such admirer remarked in the comments section: "The proud dad look," similar to another who mentioned that Will showed "genuine pride and selfless adoration right there."