The 55th NAACP Image Awards return on February 28, airing live on BET and CBS, celebrating the year’s outstanding achievements in television, film, music, and literature. CBS’s “Beyond The Gates” marks a major milestone as it celebrates its one‑year anniversary and earns a prestigious nomination for Outstanding Drama Series.
The show’s creator Michele Val Jean attended the NAACP Image Awards 2026 Luncheon where she joined fellow honorees at the NAACP Image Awards 2026 Luncheon as the hit series celebrates its first anniversary.
Val Jean spoke with TVMusic Network about the show’s impact, the cast’s dedication, and what the nomination means to her. Check it out below.
For a complete list of NAACP Nominees, click NAACP Nominees
Catch up on all news on Beyond The Gates in our Beyond The Gates category page, including soap opera spoilers, actor spotlights, celebrity interviews, and event highlights.
What Michele Val Jean Told TVMusic Network
Val Jean spoke about the upcoming crossover with “The Young and the Restless” saying that fans were going to love it.
On receiving the NAACP Image Award nomination, she said “I know — it’s incredible. I was in Atlanta when I found out, and I just got so emotional. The cast and the team have been amazing. They showed up, they supported, they lifted this project.”
On her history with the show, which she has been working on for years, Val Jean said “people don’t realize how long this has been in the making. When I wrote the bible for “Beyond The Gates,” I was terrified and excited at the same time. And now here we are.”
When asked how far ahead are you in writing, she said “We’re mapping out the week, breaking down what’s on the air, what’s coming next. It’s a beautiful process — sometimes chaotic, but beautiful.
About Beyond The Gates
BEYOND THE GATES is set in a leafy Maryland suburb just outside of Washington, D.C., and in one the most affluent African American counties in the United States. Here you’ll find a posh gated community with winding tree-lined streets and luxurious mansions to call home. At the center of this community are the Duprees, a powerful and prestigious multi-generational family that is the very definition of Black royalty. But behind these pristine walls and lush, manicured gardens are juicy secrets and scandals waiting to be uncovered. And those who live outside these gates are watching closely. These are the places where our characters live, love, work and play. Those who have “made it” and those who haven’t are all trying to navigate life … and some with more grace than others.
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Catch up on all news on Beyond The Gates in our Beyond The Gates category page, including soap opera spoilers, actor spotlights, celebrity interviews, and event highlights.
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