Kenya Barris Is a Family Man on Edge in ‘#blackAF’s Star-Studded Trailer (VIDEO)

Meaghan Darwish March 26, 2020, 11:15 am

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#blackAF - Rashida Jones and Kenya Barris — Netflix

The first trailer for Kenya Barris‘ new Netflix series #blackAF (formerly Black Excellence) has arrived and announced the show’s April 17 premiere date.

The mockumentary-style series, which is loosely inspired by the black-ish creator’s “highly flawed, unbelievably honest approach to parenting, relationships, race and culture” will flip the script on what viewers can expect from his usual family comedies. Exploring what it means to be a “new money” black family, Barris serves as patriarch alongside onscreen wife Rashida Jones who are doing their best to raise their large brood.

'#BlackExcellence': Netflix Rounds Out Cast of Kenya Barris & Rashida Jones Series

Setting the tone for the series, Barris, who plays a fictionalized version of himself, has a group video chat with today’s movie and TV titans Issa Rae, Will Packer, Ava DuVernay, Lena Waithe and Tim Story. Showing some judgment towards their projects, they group gives it right back to Barris, essentially saying he hasn’t cornered the market on black comedy.

We learn this entire series revolves around the concept that Barris’ daughter, played by Iman Benson, is making a documentary about her family. “They kind of stick out,” she says, as we see the entire group cluster for photos in front of a jet. “I want you to catch everything,” she tells the cameraperson.

(Credit: Netflix)

What they catch are some classic family dysfunction between parents and siblings with a comedic twist to it all. From explanations for Barris’ car collection to his wife Joya’s need to embrace her blackness as a mixed-race mother.

See as hilarity unfolds in the trailer below, which also features fellow stars Genneya Walton, Scarlet Spencer, Justin Clairborne, Ravi Cabot-Conyers and Richard Gardenhire Jr., and special appearances by Tyler Perry and Nia Long, to name a few.

Executive produced by Barris, Jones and Hale Rothstein, #blackAF arrives this April on Netflix.