In 2017, spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to help a TV show win an award evidently seemed a bit inappropriate to the creators behind “Mom.”
So instead, series co-creator Chuck Lorre and others on the CBS show, starring Allison Janney and Anna Faris, will make a $250,000 donation to Planned Parenthood and its Los Angeles affiliate, using money that would’ve otherwise gone to promote the show ahead of the Emmys voting period, Deadline reported early Thursday.
While the Emmys won’t be doled out until September, the first half of the year typically sees plenty of networks lobbying for their TV shows to be considered for nominations. Networks spend tens of millions on these efforts.
But in the current atmosphere of political turmoil, perhaps those funds could really be put to work. Earlier this month, the House of Representatives passed a bill that would defund Planned Parenthood, blocking access to birth control and preventative care for nearly 400,000 low-income women. While the Senate is working on its own health care package, the women’s health organization has also taken hits elsewhere. President Donald Trump allowed individual states to defund Planned Parenthood in April, and in May appointed an anti-abortion advocate to oversee low-income family planning programs.
“Mom” follows Janney and Faris as mother-and-daughter duo Bonnie and Christy after the latter, a newly sober single mother, moves home. Although a comedy, it nonetheless deals with a variety of heavy subjects including addiction and suicide.
In a statement provided to Variety, Planned Parenthood Los Angeles CEO Sue Dunlap expressed thanks for the donation.
“In Los Angeles County alone, we answer approximately 2,000 calls each day from people asking us for help,” she said. “Across the country, millions of women and men are relying on Planned Parenthood health centers for their basic care — like birth control, life-saving cancer screenings and STD testing and treatment. We are committed to being here for them, no matter what. Generous support from our community fuels this work, and we are honored that the team behind ‘Mom’ is launching this campaign at this critical time.”
With host Stephen Colbert, the Emmys are set to air Sept. 17 on CBS.
