What's news: The winners and highlights from the BET Awards, the film projects that will get this year's California tax credits, Pharrell, Kenya Barris and Ellen DeGeneres launch the Juneteenth Pledge, is Sacha Baron Cohen back in character? Critics Choice Real TV Award winners, Bombshell writer tackling Wuhan project, Kevin Connolly launching a podcast network. Plus: Greg Daniels, Amy Sherman-Palladino, Kenya Barris and the THR Comedy Showrunner Roundtable. --Alex Weprin

 THR Comedy Showrunner Roundtable

"People Are Going to be Desperate to Laugh": Kenya Barris, Greg Daniels, Amy Sherman-Palladino and the Comedy Showrunner Roundtable. Top TV bosses, including Rob McElhenney, Tony McNamara and Liz Feldman, go deep on misogyny, sex scenes and navigating the moment in conversation with Lacey Rose: "I don't want to f*** it up."

--Greg Daniels: "At least for me, everything that came out now was shot and written last year, before a lot of the things that have shaken our world here, so you hope the bones of the message were good enough to still apply. But these streaming programs are not very nimble — they're all shot and edited and then dumped a year or two later. It's hard to be like Saturday Night Live."

--Kenya Barris: "It's interesting, on Grown-ish, for instance, that's a show that's supposed to be prescient and say something about what college life is like, and there are amazing obstacles in telling a college story about relationships and hookups right now. The season that we're writing won't air until next year, and it's like, "How will college parties be? What will social distancing look like?" And with #BlackAF on Netflix, to Greg's point, I'm going to bank a stack of shows that are talking about what's going on today, but we don't know when they're going to air, and so are those shows going to seem tone-deaf? So I love that comedy gives you a bit of sugar to take down the medicine, but it's hard when you don't know exactly what illness you're treating."

--Amy Sherman-Palladino: "I started on Roseanne, I was in my 20s, and it was me [and] a [female writing] partner, and we were the only girls on staff, and you learn really quickly what the views on women were, what was likable and what was, "Oooh, don't yell too much because you're too strident." You learn very quickly that if you reminded one of the execs in the room at all of his wife, you're f*cked... The main negative thing that I've been getting about Midge [Maisel] is about [her being away from her] kids, and I have no patience for that sh*t whatsoever. I never saw one person say dick about Don Draper in Mad Men not hanging out with his kids. So f*ck that sh*t. These kids have two sets of grandparents who dote on them, and they have a father that's there all the time. If this woman has to go out on the road to make a living, f*ck you if you have an issue with that. And I mean that with all the love in my heart."

THR's Comedy Showrunner Roundtable...

 The BET Awards

►The 2020 BET Awards were handed out Sunday night, with Beyoncé, Lizzo, Megan Thee Stallion and Roddy Ricch among the big winners. Comedian and Insecure actress Amanda Seales hosted the annual show, which organizers this year said "expanded its footprint to go beyond the confines of a traditional stage show in response to safety precautions in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, marking a first for the network." In addition, the show also made its national broadcast premiere on CBS, along with airing on ViacomCBS' networks including BET and BET Her. 

The full list of winners.

►Beyonce dedicates Humanitarian Award win to Black Lives Matter protesters. "Your voices are being heard and you're proving to our ancestors that their struggles were not in vain," said the superstar, who was being honored for her philanthropic work and her recent COVID-19 relief efforts. "I'm encouraging you to take action." More.

+In fact, the Black Lives Matter movement took center stage at the award show. From impactful performances to moving acceptance speeches, here's how the 20th annual BET Awards showed solidarity with the anti-racism and anti-police brutality movement. More.

Memorable moments...

+The awards show opened with a fiery, all-star 2020 remix of Public Enemy's classic anthem of outrage and activism, "Fight the Power." Flavor Flav, Questlove, YG and Jahi also were part of the performance, which aired on Sunday night's show with updated lyrics, name-dropping Breonna Taylor and others. More.

+And: Lil Wayne hit the virtual stage at the 2020 BET Awards on Sunday to pay tribute to late L.A. Lakers star Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna Bryant... The show remembered late music legend Little Richard with a performance by comedian, actor and musician Wayne Brady on Sunday...

+Record breakers: Blue Ivy Carter took home her first BET prize at the show, and became the youngest winner in the show's history. The 8-year-old won the BET HER award on Sunday night for her song "Brown Skin Girl," a collaboration with mother Beyoncé, WizKid & Saint Jhn... All the record-breaking winners...

+An "In Memoriam" mistake: The show mistakenly included politician Willie Lewis Brown Jr. in its "In Memoriam" segment on Sunday night. Brown, the former mayor of San Francisco, is alive. The show's producers likely meant to spotlight former NFL star Willie Brown, who died in October at age 78. More.

+Critic's notebook: The BET Awards powerfully captures the pulse of the nation. Sure, Amanda Seales' audio sounded like it was coming from a shower stall — but thanks to emotional performances from the likes of Alicia Keys and Jennifer Hudson, the 2020 BET Awards packed a punch, writes Daniel Fienberg. The notebook.



^Pharrell Williams, Kenya Barris, Ellen DeGeneres launch Juneteenth Pledge, rally corporate America. Along with CNN's Van Jones, the group met virtually with CEOs from dozens of Fortune 500 companies as it pushes to make Juneteenth a paid holiday in the U.S. The story.

►Beyoncé to release Black is King visual album on Disney+. The film, written, directed and executive produced by the singer, is based on the music of The Lion King: The Gift. It will premiere globally on the streamer July 31. More.

►California unveils 12 upcoming films planning to shoot in the state. The California Film Commission announced today that 12 feature films have been selected to receive tax credits to film in the state under the incentives program, which kicks off its third iteration on July 1.

--The four independent and eight non-independent films include Universal Pictures' Live Feed and Half Baked 2, Fox's Lady of the House and Amazon’s Untitled Lucy and Desi Project (the latter film, directed by Aaron Sorkin, had been previously accepted for tax credits and reapplied for the current allocation round.) Together, the dozen movies are set to generate nearly $225 million in qualified spending in the state. The story.

►2020 Critics Choice Real TV Awards. Netflix's Cheer and Queer Eye topped the winners of the 2020 Critics Choice Real TV Awards, it was announced Monday. Each show won two awards — Cheer for unstructured series and male star of the year Jerry Harris and Queer Eye for lifestyle: fashion/beauty show and ensemble cast in an unscripted series. Meanwhile Netflix, which scored the most nominations this year, won the most awards with eight prizes. The winners.

►Facebook ad boycott Is "a big nothing" in terms of financials, analysts say. The Evercore ISI team highlights a "mismatch between perception and reality with respect to the importance of big brands' spend," but a BMO analyst says it is becoming "more expensive to operate 'open' social media." More.

►Bombshell writer Charles Randolph to pen untitled Wuhan project. The film for SK Global, which will be Randolph's directorial debut, will examine "the dramatic weeks in China as the heroic medical community confronts a mysterious virus, soon to be come a global pandemic." The story.

 Is Sacha Baron Cohen Back In Character?

►What's Sacha Baron Cohen up to now? Cohen appeared to make a secret appearance at a Conservative rally in Washington on Saturday where he encouraged attendees into singing along to racially insensitive lyrics. A rally, billed as "March for Our Rights 3," took place at Olympia’s Heritage Park Saturday. Washington State Patrol troopers told The Olympian that the event had over 500 attendees. It's unclear whether the bit was for an upcoming project, or a second season of his Showtime series Who Is America? The story.

►Kevin Connolly launches podcast network ActionPark Media. The actor-director known for playing the character E on Entourage has partnered with audio advertising firm Dax to launch the firm. The company, which will focus on podcast production, distribution and monetization, plans to work with a range of talent, including actors, directors, entrepreneurs and experts in their fields. More.

►Hulu removes Golden Girls episode with blackface scene. Hulu has removed an episode of the sitcom that contains a scene in which Betty White and Rue McClanahan are mistaken for wearing blackface. "Mixed Feelings", episode 23 in season 3 of the sitcom, aired in 1988 and shows Michael (Scott Jacoby), the son of Dorothy (Beatrice Author), planning to wed a much older Black woman, Lorraine (Rosalind Cash). The story.

+Jada Pinkett Smith, Jaden Smith "disgusted" over YouTuber Shane Dawson's resurfaced video. The Smith family blasted the YouTuber for a video clip showing Dawson "sexualizing" Willow Smith when she was 11-years-old. More.

►Ken Jeong speaks to impact of COVID-19: "This is a disease of humanity." The actor, comedian and licensed physician was one of many who appeared at the Global Goal virtual event, and called on people worldwide to use their voices to tackle issues and drive change. Here's what you may have missed from the concert and event.

 From face masks to disinfectant spray: Universal offers employees back-to-work swag bag. Earlier this month, the studio began welcoming back staffers to its 400-acre lot after three months of safer-at-home directives. Here's what they received when they got back to work.

►Film review: David Rooney reviews the action thriller Force of Nature, starring Mel Gibson. "Not one of the action sequences packs any punch, partly because there's been virtually no character development; most of the casualties barely merit names," Rooney writes. The review.

+Beandrea July reviews John Lewis: Good Trouble, writing that it's "the film equivalent of a textbook, telling us everything we want to hear about Lewis — even though most of it we already know — and arriving at a moment when reflecting upon America’s long history of racism is more relevant than ever." The review.

+TV review: Daniel Fienberg reviews the PBS miniseries And She Could Be Next, writing that it "offers plenty to be exhilarated by and entirely too much to be concerned and vigilant about." The review.

►Black homeownership gets a boost in Los Angeles: We'll "rebuild Black Wall Street." Music manager Daniel Carter started Buy Back the Block to fight gentrification and help South L.A. residents move from renting to buying as novel coronavirus and recession disproportionately affect Black neighborhoods. More.

►Video: Jon Stewart takes both sides of the political spectrum to task in his second feature film Irresistible starring Steve Carell, Rose Byrne, Mackenzie Davis and Chris Cooper. Filmmaker Stewart and several of the movie's stars sat down with THR to discuss their satirical film and the state of politics in the U.S., as well as how the country can move forward in the fight against racial injustice. Watch.

In other news...

--MGM on Sunday released the teaser trailer for its upcoming Aretha Franklin biopic Respect, starring Jennifer Hudson.

--As global cinemas look to reopen amid the novel coronavirus pandemic, Imax has signed a 17-theater deal with Korea's CGV, the biggest this year for the giant screen exhibitor.

--Disneyland Resort employees on Saturday protested at the shuttered theme park over their disagreement of proposed conditions when the Anaheim destination once again reopens.

--The Rolling Stones are threatening President Donald Trump with legal action for using their songs at his rallies despite cease-and-desist directives.

--Cheer creator on tackling the danger of the sport onscreen and a possible season 2.

--We're Here hosts explain why reality show isn't just another makeover series.

What else we're reading...

--"Cable news networks to team up on convention coverage, limiting staff exposure" [WSJ]

--"Inside the NBA’s plan to make money and engage fans in the Disney ‘bubble’" [CNBC]

--"Fox Sports ending $1.2 billion US Open golf deal" [NY Post]

--"Hollywood put up plenty of obstacles. Soul Food still became a Black TV pioneer" [LA Times]

--"When an Oscar-nominated director meets a rock band" [Vanity Fair]

Today's birthdays: Gary Busey, 76, Charlamagne tha God, 42, Nicole Scherzinger, 42, Camila Mendes, 26, Kawhi Leonard, 29.