Nahnatchka Khan and Jeff Chiang are the executive producers for the show, alongside Johnson and the rest of his Seven Bucks Productions team, and co-wrote the pilot episode. Khan is best known for creating Fresh Off The Boat and Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23, which featured Chiang as a writer. The casting news hints the show is likely to jump from era to era rather than telling the story in order, like Everybody Hates Chris did, aging the character along with the star.

As seen from the photos accompanying the casting announcements, the actors cast to play Johnson certainly look the part. However, it's no surprise to find out the productioncast 37-year-old Latukefu (Marco Polo) to play Johnson as a late teenager, given that Johnson has looked like he's in his mid-30s since he was a teenager. The show's description of each character clarifies that Johnson's difference in size to others his age will be a central theme, pitting him against authority figures and contemporaries alike. Young Rock is set to debut on NBC in 2021.