# Martin (TV series)

Martin is an American television sitcom that aired for five seasons on Fox from August 27, 1992, to May 1, 1997. The show stars comedian Martin Lawrence as the titular character. Lawrence also played several other characters. Martin was one of Fox's highest-rated shows during the sitcom's run. In 2024, the cast reunited at the 75th Primetime Emmy Awards.

## Broadcast history

| Season | Timeslot |
| 1992–93 (season 1) | Thursday at 8:30–9:00 pm |
| 1993–94 (season 2) | Sunday at 8:00–8:30 pm |
| 1994–95 (season 3) | Thursday at 8:00–8:30 pm |
| 1995–96 (season 4) | Saturday at 8:00–8:30 pm (September 9, 1995 – October 28, 1995) Sunday at 8:30–9:00 pm (November 5, 1995 – February 4, 1996; February 18 – 25, 1996) Thursday at 8:30–9:00 pm (February 8 – 15, 1996; February 29 – May 2, 1996) |
| 1996–97 (season 5) | Thursday at 8:00–8:30 pm |

## Episodes

| Season | Episodes | Episodes | Originally released | Originally released | Rank | Average viewers (in millions) |
| Season | Episodes | Episodes | First released | Last released | Rank | Average viewers (in millions) |
| 1 | 27 | 27 | August 27, 1992 (1992-08-27) | May 13, 1993 (1993-05-13) | #41 | 11.40 |
| 2 | 27 | 27 | August 22, 1993 (1993-08-22) | May 15, 1994 (1994-05-15) | #64 | 9.29 |
| 3 | 27 | 27 | September 1, 1994 (1994-09-01) | May 18, 1995 (1995-05-18) | #92 | 8.11 |
| 4 | 27 | 27 | September 9, 1995 (1995-09-09) | May 2, 1996 (1996-05-02) | #104 | 6.70 |
| 5 | 24 | 24 | September 5, 1996 (1996-09-05) | May 1, 1997 (1997-05-01) | #110 | 6.00 |

## Premise

Martin Lawrence played the role of Martin Payne, originally a disc jockey who lived with his girlfriend Gina Waters (Tisha Campbell) in the city of Detroit, Michigan. Martin worked for the fictional radio station WZUP; in later seasons, he became the host of the talk show Word on the Street.

## Characters
### Main characters

* Martin Lawrence as Martin Payne
* Tisha Campbell as Gina Waters-Payne
* Carl Anthony Payne II as Cole Brown
* Thomas Mikal Ford as Thomas "Tommy" Strawn
* Tichina Arnold as Pamela "Pam" James
* Jon Gries as Shawn McDermott (seasons 1–2)
* Garrett Morris as Stan Winters (seasons 1–2; guest season 3)

### Supporting characters

* Reginald Ballard as Bruh-Man (Brother Man) (seasons 2–4)
* Tracy Morgan as Hustle Man (seasons 3–5)
* Jeri Gray as Ms. Geri
* Maura McDade as Shanise McGillicuddy (season 5)
* Sean Lampkin as Nipsey (seasons 3–5)

### Recurring characters

* Judyann Elder as Nadine Waters
* J.A. Preston as Dr. Cliff Waters
* Adrian Tibbs as Lil' Dawg
* Ray Massara as Buckwhite
* Charlie Murphy as Bro Fo' Real (Brother For Real)
* David Jean Thomas as Angry Man
* Jeris Lee Poindexter as Mr. Booker
* Ellia English as Mrs. Booker
* Laura Hayes as Maddie Brown
* LaWanda Page as Evelyn Porter
* David Alan Grier as Reverend Leon Lonnie Love
* Roxanne Reese as Marian
* Kenneth Whack as Kenji
* Simbi Khali as Laquita
* Yo-Yo as Keylolo
* Kim Coles as Bonquisha
* Reno Wilson as Sonny
* Tommy Davidson as Varnell Hill
* Luis Antonio Ramos as Luis
* Bentley Kyle Evans as Titus
* BeBe Drake-Massey as Myra
* Angelina Estrada as Gloria Rodriguez

### Other roles played by Lawrence

* Sheneneh Jenkins
* Edna (Mama) Payne
* Ol' Otis (seasons 1-4)
* Jerome (seasons 1-4)
* Roscoe
* Dragonfly Jones (seasons 1-3)
* Bob (seasons 1-2)
* King Beef (seasons 1-2)
* Elroy Preston (seasons 2)

## Lawsuit

In November 1996, Campbell left the series during its final season, citing "intolerable" working conditions. She filed a lawsuit against Lawrence and the show's producers in January 1997 for sexual harassment and verbal and physical assaults. The series explanation was that Gina was "out on business", though in the two-part episode "Going Overboard" it was stated that Gina had arrived too late to board the boat for the trip alongside everyone else. By April 1997, Campbell had settled the lawsuit and returned for the last two episodes of the series under the condition that she would not share any scenes or interact with Lawrence. Campbell and Lawrence have since reconciled, and repaired their relationship.

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Result | Category | Recipient |
| 1993 | People's Choice Awards | Won | Favorite TV New Comedy Series | |
| 1994 | NAACP Image Awards | Won | Outstanding Comedy Series | |
| 1995 | NAACP Image Awards | Won | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series | Martin Lawrence |
| 1995 | NAACP Image Awards | Won | Outstanding Comedy Series | |
| 1996 | NAACP Image Awards | Nominated | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series | Marla Gibbs |
| 1996 | NAACP Image Awards | Nominated | Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series | Carl Anthony Payne II |
| 1996 | NAACP Image Awards | Nominated | Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series | Thomas Mikal Ford |
| 1996 | NAACP Image Awards | Nominated | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series | Tisha Campbell-Martin |
| 1996 | NAACP Image Awards | Nominated | Outstanding Comedy Series | |
| 1996 | NAACP Image Awards | Won | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series | Tichina Arnold |
| 1996 | NAACP Image Awards | Won | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series | Martin Lawrence |
| 1997 | NAACP Image Awards | Nominated | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series | Tisha Campbell-Martin |
| 1997 | NAACP Image Awards | Nominated | Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series | Martin Lawrence |
| 1997 | NAACP Image Awards | Nominated | Outstanding Comedy Series | |
| 1995 | Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards | Nominated | Favorite Television Show | |
| 1995 | Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards | Nominated | Favorite Television Actor | Martin Lawrence |
| 1996 | Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards | Nominated | Favorite Television Actor | Martin Lawrence |

## Syndication

Martin went into second run syndication on August 8, 1995, through Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution; it airs multiple times a week on the networks of Paramount Global, including MTV2, VH1 and BET, with Netflix also carrying the full run of the series.

## Home media

Besides being purchasable on most digital video retailers, HBO Home Video released all five seasons of Martin on DVD in Region 1.
| DVD Name | Ep # | Release Date |
| The Complete First Season | 27 | January 4, 2007 |
| The Complete Second Season | 27 | May 15, 2007 |
| The Complete Third Season | 27 | November 6, 2007 |
| The Complete Fourth Season | 27 | April 1, 2008 |
| The Complete Fifth and Final Season | 24 | October 7, 2008 |
| The Complete Series | 132 | February 4, 2020 |

## Young Martin

On July 11, 2024, an hourlong prequel series to Martin, titled Young Martin, was announced to be in development by Deadline Hollywood. The series is executive produced by Martin Lawrence, Rae Proctor, Robert Lawrence and Stacy Lyles from RunTelDat, with Bob Yari, David McPherson, Rosa Peart, Greg Martin for WonderHill Studios,
Young Martin follows a teenage Martin Payne residing in a modern-day Detroit finding his path to success as he transitions from childhood to adulthood and is described as both an origin story and a reimagining of the character.