‘Grown-ish’: Marcus Scribner Teases Growing Pains & Romance for Junior in Season 5

Marcus Scribner in Grown-ish - Season 5
Preview
Freeform/Mike Taing

Things are changing over on grown-ish as the spotlight shifts from the eldest Johnson sibling, Zoey (Yara Shahidi) to her younger brother Junior (Marcus Scribner) in the Season 5 premiere.

Set in the days following Zoey’s graduation, Junior enrolls at Cal U to embark on his own journey to becoming “grown” and viewers get to follow along as he meets some fresh faces. Fresh off of his run with black-ish, Scribner has already been a part of the grown-ish family for some time, appearing in episodes from time to time, but the actor is excited to take on a more central role.

“It deals with issues that I feel like we face on a daily basis as young people and the trials and tribulations of college life,” Scribner tells TV Insider. “But also the pressures of real life crashing down onto you. You have no money, you’re struggling to fit in socially and understand who you are, and our characters go through all of that.”

Grown-ish Season 5 Key Art Yara Shahidi and Marcus Scribner

(Credit: Freeform)

Continuing the legacy of Zoey and the Johnsons who said farewell on black-ish earlier this year means a lot to the actor. “Being able to have him learn some of those life lessons has been really fun,” Scribner notes. “I’ve also learned a lot as an actor being on the show, I feel like I’ve had experiences I’ve never had before.”

As for what viewers can expect from Junior’s onscreen crew in grown-ish, the actor says, “The new cast [they’re my] closest friends. I feel like I don’t have too many friends in the industry, but I can say that’s a core group that I really rock with.”

Commending the casting team, Scribner says, “They cast me some good friends in real life.” In terms of their onscreen shenanigans, Scribner remains mum but does mention, “Junior also has a lot more female friends than people would come to expect. I think it’s really cool because it’s a platonic relationship with a lot of them.”

But don’t let that platonic aspect fool you, “grown-ish is known for their romances, so there will be a lot of romancing,” he teases. Don’t miss what’s next for Junior and his coeds when grown-ish returns to Freeform this summer.

grown-ish, Season 5 Premiere, Wednesday, July 20, 10 p.m. ET/PT, Freeform