Amer’s previous Netflix stand-up special, 'Mo Amer: The Vagabond,' was released in 2018.
Netflix and Mohammed Mo Amer have expanded their partnership through a new stand-up special titled Mo Amer: Mohammed in Texas and an untitled scripted comedy series.
As a Palestinian refugee growing up in Houston, the hour-long Mo Amer: Mohammed in Texas set explores everything from pandemic politics to the stock market, the spread of Arab culture in the West (hookah, hummus, and the proliferation of bidets), and the subtle art of cursing in Arabic. A surprise encore explores what it means to have two homes with no land, while calling for greater civility and neighbourliness in a divided world.
The comedy special, directed by Jay Chapman will premiere on November 30, 2021.
Amer’s upcoming scripted comedy series has yet to be titled and does not yet have a premiere date. In it, he will play a character named Mo Najjar who straddles the line between two cultures, three languages and a ton of bullshit as a Palestinian refugee constantly living one step away from the asylum on the path to US citizenship. Laughing the pain away, Mo learns to adapt to his new world though getting ahead in life comes with several setbacks, according to Netflix.
His character is described by the streamer as “a refugee at the mercy of a decades-long, convoluted immigration process. He works hard for his family, wanting to provide for the people he loves — even if they might not approve of the means.”
Amer is joined in the show by Farah Bsieso as his on-screen mother, Yusra; Omar Elba as his older brother, Sameer; Teresa Ruiz as his girlfriend Maria; and Tobe Nwigwe as his most loyal and most cunning friend, Nick.
It is created and executive produced by comedians Mo Amer and Ramy Youssef (Ramy). The series is executive produced by Ravi Nandan and Hallie Sekoff for A24, Harris Danow (Little Fires Everywhere), Luvh Rakhe (Dave), and series director Solvan ‘Slick’ Naim (It’s Bruno!).
The first season is slated to be eight half-hour episodes. Amer and Ramy Youssef (Ramy) executive produce alongside Ravi Nandan and Hallie Sekoff for A24, Harris Danow; Luvh Rakhe, and Solvan “Slick” Naim, who also directs.
Mo Amer is a stand-up comedian and writer of Palestinian descent, known for performing with the comedy troupe Allah Made Me Funny, which is the longest-running artistic collective of Muslim comic performers in the world. Amer’s first Netflix special, The Vagabond premiered in 2018. He can also be seen in the critically acclaimed series Ramy and the upcoming superhero film, Black Adam starring Dwayne The Rock Johnson, Black Adam. Born in Kuwait, Amer fled to the United States as a refugee in 1990 and finally obtained his U.S. citizenship in 2009.
