Just days after inking a major deal with 20th Century Fox, “Black-ish” creator Kenya Barris was hit with a more than $1M lawsuit claiming he stole the idea behind the hit ABC comedy.
“Plaintiff is informed and believes that at some point between the end of 2006 and September 2014, Defendant Barris – using Plaintiff’s idea for the Original Untitled Script – wrote, developed and shopped the pilot episode for Black-ish without Plaintiff’s knowledge or authorization,” music video director and Idlewild director Bryan Barber claimed in a breach of contract and fraud suit filed in L.A. Superior Court on Friday, Sept. 10, reports Deadline. “Indeed, Defendant Barris intentionally concealed these facts from Plaintiff. The pilot episode for Black-ish was predicated in all material respects on Plaintiff’s idea and/or the Original Untitled Script.”
According to Barber, Barris lifted the Emmy-nominated show’s concept from an unproduced pilot they co-wrote for VH1, surrounding his life as well as his fellow Clark Atlanta University pals. “The Original Untitled Script was premised on Plaintiff’s idea for a television show about the black experience as seen through the lens of a successful, creative and affluent black man working in the predominantly white entertainment industry,” the 18-page complaint reads (read it here).
Naming Barris, “Black-ish” EP Larry Wilmore’s Wilmore Films, Principato-Young Entertainment and Cinema Gypsy Productions as defendants, the suit went on to detail a number of similarities between the projects including a wife character named “Rainbow” who is often referred to as “Bow.” In addition, “Both works conclude with the protagonist overcoming challenges with race relations, adapting to his professional environment, and coming to terms with his ‘blackish-ness,’” states the complaint.
Meanwhile, Barris has yet to respond to the action which could result in money in damages to the tune of $1 million, a full accounting, creator and writer credit and compensation on the Emmy nominated “Black-ish” as well as a portion of “all derivative, ancillary and merchandising rights and interests.”
