E4 have acquired the UK broadcast rights to the critically acclaimed US comedy Black-ish is has been announced today.
The show, which has been a huge hit for it’s US network ABC, follows the story of the Johnsons, an upper-middle-class African-American family. Andre ‘Dre’ (Anthony Anderson) and Rainbow (Tracee Ellis Ross) Johnson, like any parent, want to give their children the best. But their offspring’s childhood is turning out to be much different than theirs. They now realise at least two things: there is a price to pay for giving their children more than what they ever had, and these loving parents are totally unprepared for the fallout.
They are living the American dream: great careers, four beautiful kids, and a home in an upper middle-class neighbourhood. But when he’s promoted to ‘Urban’ VP at his marketing firm and his son wants to have a Bar Mitzvah, Dre wonders: Is his family out of touch with their own identity? In order to prove his point, he presents an extreme version of an ‘Urban’ campaign at work and throws an African Rites of Passage ceremony for his mortified son. Ultimately, Dre’s family helps him find a way to hold onto his cultural identity while embracing a new future.
Black-ish has taken a while to find a UK home, and is now in it’s 3rd season in the US. It appears to be one of those shows that the UK channels took a ‘wait and see’ attitude towards, rather than diving in early and risking buying something that doesn’t go anywhere. Since it first aired in 2014, it’s garnered numerous awards, including multiple Emmy nominations. It’s also won critical acclaim for it’s tackling of tough issues, leading Yahoo TV to describe it as “the most socially-conscious network sitcom on the air, as well as one of the funniest”.
Black-ish will air on E4 in October (exact date to be determined).
