Black-ish

Black-ish (stylized as black•"ish" and black-"ish" shown on television) is an American sitcom television series created by Kenya Barris. It premiered on September 24, 2014, and has run for seven seasons on ABC. "Black-ish" follows an upper middle class African-American family led by Andre 'Dre' Johnson (Anthony Anderson) and Rainbow Johnson (Tracee Ellis Ross). The show revolves around the family's lives, as they juggle several personal and sociopolitical issues. The show also features the characters Zoey Johnson (Yara Shahidi), Andre Johnson, Jr. (Marcus Scribner), Jack Johnson (Miles Brown), and Diane Johnson (Marsai Martin).
In later seasons, the characters of Josh Oppenhol (Jeff Meacham), Ruby Johnson (Jenifer Lewis), Charlie Telphy (Deon Cole), and Leslie Stevens (Peter Mackenzie) were promoted to series regulars, while the character of Earl Johnson (Laurence Fishburne) makes recurring appearances.
Throughout its run, "Black-ish" has received critical acclaim. The show has received Emmy and Golden Globe nominations for Outstanding Comedy Series, and a TCA Award for Outstanding Achievement in Comedy. Meanwhile, Tracee Ellis Ross has received individual praise, winning the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress. The show also ranks relatively highly among shows broadcast by ABC in terms of television season ratings, and ranks among the top ten in the United States for estimated total audience size.
In May 2020, ABC renewed the series for a seventh season, which premiered on October 21, 2020. Ahead of its seventh season premiere, an hour-long Election-themed special was aired on October 4, 2020. In May 2021, ABC renewed the series for an eighth and final season.
The show's success has also prompted a spin-off titled "Grown-ish", which stars Shahidi as her character travels to college. In May 2019, ABC ordered a prequel spin-off, "Mixed-ish", centered on young Bow and her biracial family in the 1980s.
Production.
Development and casting.
"Black-ish" first appeared on the development slate at ABC in October 2013, when it was reported that the project, which would star Anthony Anderson, had received a script commitment. On January 16, 2014, ABC greenlit the pilot episode. Two weeks later, Larry Wilmore joined the show as showrunner. In mid-February, Laurence Fishburne was cast as the father of Anderson's character, and Tracee Ellis Ross signed on as the female lead.
Filming.
On May 8, 2014, ABC picked up the pilot to the series for the 2014–15 television season. A few days later, Anderson announced that Larry Wilmore would be stepping down as showrunner early in the show's run due to his forthcoming late night show, "The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore".
On May 7, 2015, ABC renewed the series for a second season. On March 3, 2016, ABC renewed the series for a third season. On May 10, 2017, ABC renewed the series for a fourth season. On May 11, 2018, ABC renewed the series for a fifth season. On December 14, 2018, ABC picked up 2 additional episodes for the fifth season bringing the season total to 24 episodes. On May 2, 2019, ABC renewed the series for a sixth season. On May 21, 2020, ABC renewed the series for a seventh season. On October 23, 2020, ABC picked up 6 additional episodes for the seventh season bringing the season total to 21 episodes. On May 14, 2021, ABC renewed the series for an eighth and final season.
Reception.
Critical response.
"Black-ish" has been met with generally positive reviews from critics. Rotten Tomatoes gives season 1 an approval rating of 86% based on 56 reviews, with an average rating of 7.3/10. The site's consensus states, "Although it seems uncertain of its target audience, "Black-ish" ingratiates with a diverse cast and engaging cultural issues." Metacritic gave season 1 a weighted average score of 77 out of 100, based on 31 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". "Rolling Stone"′s December 4, 2014, issue called it "one of the only new network comedies worth watching," praising in particular Laurence Fishburne's performance.
On Rotten Tomatoes, season 4 holds an approval rating of 100% based on 11 reviews, with an average rating of 8.67/10. The site's consensus states, ""black-ish" continues to push boundaries, but with a much more celebratory tone that seeks to educate as readily as it entertains."
Anthony Anderson's performance was met with critical acclaim, earning him multiple nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series.
Spin-offs.
"Grown-ish".
The 23rd episode of the third season, "Liberal Arts", functioned as a backdoor pilot for a proposed spin-off of the same title, starring Yara Shahidi as her character, Zoey Johnson, goes to college away from the family. Other cast members in the pilot and proposed series were Chris Parnell, Mallory Sparks, Matt Walsh, and Trevor Jackson.
In early May 2017, ABC passed on the pilot, but its cable sister channel Freeform was in negotiations to move the project there. On May 19, 2017, Freeform officially ordered 13 episodes of the spin-off, now under the tentative title "College-ish". In August 2017, the series changed its title to "Grown-ish", and added Francia Raisa, Jordan Buhat and Chloe x Halle as cast members. The series's pilot premiered on January 3, 2018. Parnell and Jackson reprised their roles from the backdoor pilot, while Emily Arlook was also added as Nomi, replacing the character Miriam played by Mallory Sparks. The series has been renewed for a second season. Also it was renewed for a third season on January 30, 2019. On January 17, 2020, the series was renewed for a fourth season.
"Mixed-ish".
On May 2, 2019, it was announced that a second spin-off, now titled "Mixed-ish" had been ordered to series by ABC. In lieu of this, the May 7 episode of season five would be shelved until next season. The episode, titled "Becoming Bow", would follow a young Bow and her family. The series was renewed for a second season on May 21, 2020. On May 2021, the series was canceled after two seasons.
"Old-ish".
It was announced that a new spin-off starring Laurence Fishburne and Jenifer Lewis is in the works.