How 'Cheer' will tackle the child pornography charges against Jerry Harris
If you're wondering how Jerry Harris's teammates are handling the child pornography charges he's facing, you'll want to tune in for the second season of Cheer on Netflix.
The docuseries following the hardworking team at Texas's Navarro College, which we saw win yet another national championship in the first season, has dropped a trailer for the upcoming episodes, which confirms that the allegations against Harris will be addressed.
In one scene, FBI agents appear to be conducting a search of evidence in the case against Harris. He was arrested by officials in September 2020 — the same month that the show resumed filming, which had begun in January and been halted in March because of COVID-19 — on one count of producing child pornography. They later added additional charges, based on interactions with additional alleged victims. His arrest came two days after twin boys alleged that he had sexually exploited and abused them, beginning when they were 13, in a $1 million lawsuit against him. Harris denied it, and he plead not guilty to the charges in December 2020. However, he's remained behind bars while awaiting trial.
We see in the trailer that Coach Monica Aldama says, "I can't even, like, process it right now," speaking about Harris.
According to Variety, there will be an entire episode devoted to the subject, and the brothers who brought the lawsuit sat for an interview with producers. Lexi Brumback, Gabi Butler, La'Darius Marshall and Morgan Simianer will all return, too.
In the show's initial season, Harris was one of the athletes with whom viewers most connected, as he discussed his heartbreak over the recent death of his mother and frequently cheered on his teammates. After the show became a breakout hit, Harris was even one of the team members who served as a correspondent at the Oscars for The Ellen DeGeneres Show.
Elsewhere in Season 2, audiences can expect to see how team members cope with the rush of fame that came with the show's success and how they grapple with the pressure of yet another round of competition. One notable difference is that, this year, their biggest rivals, the cheerleaders at Trinity Valley Community College, will be featured, too.
The new season of Cheer premieres Wednesday, Jan. 12 on Netflix.
