'Black-Ish’ Creator Kenya Barris Previews ‘BlackAF’

Black-Ish creator Kenya Barris announced late last year that he was creating a new show loosely based on his life. Originally called Black Excellence, the show promised to bring a humorous take on what it meant to be a Black family with “new money.” The concept felt like a mash-up of the upper middle-class family on Black-Ish (also inspired by his life) and the more opulent Run’s House.

Now a trailer has been released for the series, which has been renamed blackAF, the first project in Barris’ three-year, eight-figure deal with Netflix. Co-produced by Barris and Rashida Jones (who also plays his wife) blackAF also stars Iman Benson, Genneya  Walton, Scarlet Spencer, Justin Claiborne, Ravi Cabot-Conyers and Richard Gardenhire Jr.

From Netflix:

#blackAF. Loosely inspired by Barris’ irreverent, highly flawed, unbelievably honest approach to parenting, relationships, race, and culture, #blackAFflips the script on what we’ve come to expect a family comedy series to be.  

The trailer opens with a very timely Facetime/Zoom conversation with some of Barris’ peers in Hollywood,Tim Story, Issa Rae, Will Packer, Ava DuVernay and Lena Waithe.

Setting up the trailer, Barris opens the call looking for input. “We have to be able talk honestly if we want our art to progress. What do you think of my show Blackish?”

While Issa Rae offers a very polite, “It’s fine,” Tim Story is hilariously honest by saying that Black-Ish is “the Blackest thing to tap into the hearts and minds of 55-year-old white women.” Visibly stung, Barris counters, “I guess it was no Ride Along 2.”

OUCH!

BlackAF premieres April 17 on Netflix. Watch the trailer, which includes the rest of that surprisingly honest exchange, below.