"black-ish" Spin-off Starring Yara Shahidi in the Works at ABC
by Nellie Andreeva
January 19, 2017


ABC is looking to spin off its acclaimed family comedy "black-ish". I’ve learned that the network is working with series creator/executive producer Kenya Barris and ABC Studios on the project, which would be toplined by "black-ish" co-star Yara Shahidi and focus on her character Zoey Johnson in college.

I hear the idea is for the potential new comedy series to be introduced as a backdoor pilot episode on "black-ish" this spring. Sources stress that talks for the spinoff are still in very early stages, with no script and deals in place.

http://deadline.com/2017/01/black-ish-spinoff-yara-shahidi-star-abc-1201890211/

Ummmm.......why?!

Is she that popular on the show, they hardly ever focus on her that much.

Chris Parnell, Matt Walsh & Trevor Jackson Cast in "black-ish" Spin-off
by Nellie Andreeva
April 6, 2017


SNL alum Chris Parnell has booked a starring role opposite Yara Shahidi in ABC’s proposed "black-ish" spin-off. Also cast in the backdoor pilot episode are "Veep’s" Matt Walsh and young actor Trevor Jackson (American Crime).

Created by "black-ish" creator/executive producer Kenya Barris and former "black-ish" showrunner Larry Wilmore, the spin-off centers on Shahidi’s "black-ish" character Zoey Johnson — Dre (Anthony Anderson) and Rainbow’s (Tracee Ellis Ross) popular, entitled, stylish and socially active 17-year-old daughter — as she heads to college.





Parnell and Walsh are said to be playing college administrators, while Jackson is a freshman at the college Zoey will be attending. All three are guest stars in the planted spin-off episode, which has been filmed and airs this spring.

Parnell and Jackson have series regular options if the project goes to series. Walsh is a guest star/potential recurring.

http://deadline.com/2017/04/chris-parnell-star-black-ish-spinoff-matt-walsh-trevor-jackson-abc-1202063603/

No thanks, her character is boring and not interesting enough for a spin-off. And Yara Shahidi lacks the charisma to carry her own show.

http://www.newsbusters.org/blogs/culture/lindsay-kornick/2017/05/03/blackish-promotes-segregation-campus-episode

By Lindsay Kornick | May 3, 2017 | 11:37 PM EDT

Note to self: segregation is apparently a good thing now. I mean, we should totally be against segregation, unless a minority person says it’s okay, but even then segregation can still be wrong. Confused? ABC’s Blackish (http://www.lipstickalley.com/showthread.php/1084882-Black-ish-Season-3-thread-premieres-9-21/page7) does little to help.

On the May 3 episode “Liberal Arts,” (http://forums.previously.tv/topic/56730-s03e23-liberal-arts/?do=getLastComment) Zoey (Yara Shahidi) attends her college orientation and becomes involved in a brief school scandal when the university president plans to shut down the black dorm Hawkins Hall and she says she agrees and is “firmly against segregation.” That kind of talk doesn’t seem to go well on campus.

The Black-ish episode Liberal Arts was kind of dull since it was mainly about Zoey and her college experiences. They need to get some funnier people if this is how her new show is going to start out.

Yara Shahidi's "black-ish" Spin-off Eyes Series Order at Freeform
by Nellie Andreeva
May 10, 2017


The spin-off of ABC’s acclaimed family comedy "black-ish", toplined by young co-star Yara Shahidi, is eying a series green light with a twist — it would be moving to another network.

I’ve learned that Freeform is in talks for a series order to the project, which originated as a planted spin-off episode of the mothership ABC series that aired this spring.





Toplined by Shahidi, the spin-off focuses on her character Zoey Johnson — Dre (Anthony Anderson) and Rainbow’s (Tracee Ellis Ross) popular, entitled, stylish and socially active 17-year-old daughter — as she heads to college.

While the pilot was received well at ABC, it was deemed too young skewing for the broadcast network but would hit right into the millennial demo target of sibling Freeform. Speculation about the comedy migrating to Freeform surfaced a couple of weeks ago, and I hear the move is now close to reality.





The script for the backdoor pilot episode was written by Barris and former "black-ish" showrunner Larry Wilmore who is no longer involved in the project.

Chris Parnell, Matt Walsh and young actor Trevor Jackson co-starred (Walsh as a guest star because of his regular duties on Veep, so he may have to be recast).

http://deadline.com/2017/05/blackish-spinoff-series-order-freeform-yara-shahidi-1202089413/

No thanks, her character is boring and not interesting enough for a spin-off. And Yara Shahidi lacks the charisma to carry her own show.

I think it has more to do with the Zoey character being too low-affect to truly work as a lead. I do somewhat feel and worry that this is like a 21st century, west coast version of the first season of A Different World. With that, you had Lisa Bonet/Denise Huxtable, who was already somewhat of a less than memorable character on The Cosby Show. And on the spin-off, where she's the lead, Whitley and Dwayne even when Denise was still there, were clearly the breakout characters. So it was a no-brainer that Whitney and Dwayne got promoted to the leads for the second season.

"black-ish" Spin-off Gets 13-Episode Order at Freeform — and a New Title
by Dave Nemetz
May 19, 2017


Time to start shopping for textbooks, Zoey: Your "black-ish" spin-off is officially coming to Freeform.

TVLine has confirmed that the spin-off has landed a 13-episode order at the youth-skewing cable network, with a planned early 2018 debut. And it’s landed a new name, too: "college-ish".

Which makes sense, since it follows Dre and Bow’s teen daughter Zoey (Yara Shahidi) as she heads off to college “and quickly discovers that not everything goes her way once she leaves the nest.”





Zoey will have at least one familiar face on campus: Deon Cole will be bringing his "black-ish" character Charlie to the spin-off, serving as an adjunct marketing professor at Zoey’s new school.

When "college-ish" made its informal debut as a backdoor-pilot episode of black-ish earlier this month, the supporting cast also included SNL vet Chris Parnell as the school’s dean and "American Crime‘s" Trevor Jackson; no word yet, though, on whether they’ll be a part of the Freeform series.

"black-ish" executive producer Kenya Barrish will serve as an EP here as well.

http://tvline.com/2017/05/19/blackish-spinoff-series-order-freeform-collegeish/

"black-ish" Spin-off Gets (Another) New Title, Adds 3 More Series Regulars
by Andy Swift
August 2, 2017


Freeform announced on Wednesday that Yara Shahidi's "black-ish" spin-off, formerly known as "college-ish", is now being called "grown-ish".

The network also announced three new series regulars.



Emily Arlook (Hand of God) will play Miriam, a know-it-all freshman; Trevor Jackson (American Crime) will play Aaron, a socially-conscious sophomore; and Chris Parnell (Rick and Morty) will play the dean of California Southern University.

Jackson and Parnell appeared in the spin-off’s backdoor pilot, which aired in May, while Arlook’s character was originally played by a different actress.

http://tvline.com/2017/08/02/black-ish-spinoff-new-title-grown-ish-freeform/

"black-ish" Spin-off Adds Francia Raisa & Jordan Buhat as Regulars, Chloe x Halle to Recur
by Denise Petski
August 30, 2017


The cast of Freeform’s "grown-ish" is growing.

ABC’s "black-ish" spin-off has added Francia Raisa (The Secret Life of the American Teenager) and Jordan Buhat (Summer of ’84) as series regulars and singing duo Chloe x Halle (Chloe Bailey and Halle Bailey) as recurring.

They join previously announced cast Yara Shahidi, Deon Cole, Chris Parnell, Emily Arlook and Trevor Jackson.




Raisa will portray Ana, an outspoken conservative freshman at Southern California University.

Buhat will play Vivek, a first generation Indian-American freshman at Southern California University with an endearing lack of self-awareness.

Singing sisters Chloe x Halle portray twin sisters Sky and Jazz, who are on the track team at the college.

http://deadline.com/2017/08/grown-ish-black-ish-spinoff-cast-francia-raisa-jordan-buhat-chloe-x-halle-1202158353/

Luka Sabbat Set To Recur on "grown-ish"
by Denise Petski
September 11, 2017


Luka Sabbat is the latest to join Freeform’s "grown-ish" in a recurring role.

He will play Luca Hall, a free-spirited, wannabe existentialist and fellow student at California University.

http://deadline.com/2017/09/grown-ish-luka-sabbat-set-to-recur-on-black-ish-spinoff-1202166663/

"grown-ish" Premiere Date
by Vlada Gelman
October 18, 2017


"black-ish" spin-off "grown-ish" will air its one-hour series premiere on Wednesday, Jan. 3 at 8/7c on Freeform.

http://tvline.com/2017/10/18/justin-baldoni-man-enough-talk-show-guests-derek-hough-matt-mcgorry/

See a preview of Black-ish spinoff Grown-ish (http://people.com/tv/grownish-first-look-video/)
“You don’t understand, Zozo, the world is a dangerous place now. College is totally different than when I was coming up,” Anthony Anderson’s Andre tells his daughter Zoey (played by Yara Shahidi) in a clip from the ABC spinoff.