Disclosure- I have been provided an all expense paid trip to Los Angeles for the Big Hero 6 movie premiere and ABC TV Event in exchange for coverage of these events. All opinions are 100% my own. Thank you so much Disney and ABC TV!
A few weeks ago I had the unique opportunity to interview some of the actors from the ABC comedy `black-ish. While on the ABC lot we also got to tour the set that the show is filmed on.
ABC’s “black-ish” stars Anthony Anderson as Andre “Dre” Johnson, Tracee Ellis Ross as Rainbow Johnson, Yara Shahidi as Zoey Johnson, Miles Brown as Jack Johnson, special guest star, Laurence Fishburne as Pops Johnson, Marcus Scribner as Andre Johnson, Jr., and Marsai Martin as Diane Johnson. (ABC/Bob D’Amico)
Our tour started in front of the Johnson’s house where as you can see there were lights and other filming equipment along the outside of the house. You can see it in this picture but there is a backdrop on the wall with a backdrop of “the outside” directly to the right of this picture so if an actor opens the front door it looks like they are really looking outside. If the scene is a longer scene with the door open then they digitally add the outside for the scene so there will be movement, people passing by, etc., like you would have in a normal neighborhood.
Right away when you walk onto the set you notice it looks just like a normal home with a few major differences. First, if you look up you’ll notice that there isn’t a normal ceiling. This is to accommodate all the lights, cameras, and other equipment. You’ll also notice that the hallways are wider than normal. This is also to accommodate the equipment.
You will also notice LOTS of familiar household items that make this house seem so real and “lived in”. There were magazines and games in the living room, TONS of photos on the walls, and even juice boxes placed around the house just like you’d find in most houses with children. For the frames with all of the family pictures the actors spent a day shooting these pictures together just to make them more real. There is so much attention to detail in the house that is truly a home.
Here I am posing in some of the rooms of the house. The kitchen is totally my dream kitchen. It’s so BIG!
I LOVE the master bedroom. In the picture above you can see the master bathroom (I LOVE the colors!), Rainbow’s vanity that actually had nail polish remover and other items on it, and Dre and Bo’s bed. Yes, that’s me sitting on the bed that Anthony Anderson and Tracee Ellis Ross sit on!
One of my favorite parts of the house was the master closet. I could LIVE in this closet. It was HUGE! Check out all of Dre’s shoes! The closed closet on the left of this picture is Rainbow’s closet. I love how big and organized it was with so much space for all of her clothes. I dream of having such an amazing closet one day!
The kids’ rooms each matched their personalities. The 2 pictures on the top left are Andre Jr.’s room, the top right are Zoey’s room, and the bottom 4 are from the room that twins Jack and Diane share. I love how they have the room divided in half by wallpaper for the twins. Such a cute idea!
So do you recognize any of the rooms from the show? Which is your favorite?
If you haven’t watched `black-ish yet, what are you waiting for?!?! This show is seriously hilarious!!!
`black-ish airs at 9:30 p.m. EST on ABC
Here’s a bit of info on tonight’s episode:
BLACK-ISH – “Oedipal Triangle”- Dre’s mother, Ruby (guest star Jenifer Lewis), comes for a visit, and she smothers her pork chops with gravy, Dre with love, and would like to flat out smother Bow, who feels the same way about her. Dre tries to find a way to get the two most important women in his life to get along, on “black-ish,” WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19 (9:31-10:00 p.m., ET) on the ABC Television Network.
(ABC/Kelsey McNeal) MARSAI MARTIN, JENIFER LEWIS
(ABC/Kelsey McNeal) JENIFER LEWIS, MARSAI MARTIN, ANTHONY ANDERSON, TRACEE ELLIS ROSS
When I went to Los Angeles last week I had the opportunity to meet the children and creator of ABC’s new hit comedy black-ish. Don’t let the name fool you. This isn’t just a show for African Americans. This show really resonates with and is relate-able to many families of all different races in America today.
The Kids:
Photo credit: (ABC/Rick Rowell) KENYA BARRIS, creator/executive producer of “black-ish”
It was clear right away from talking to the parents of the child actors of black-ish just how humble and proud of their children they are. Legally (and emotionally) each child has to have a parent or guardian on set with them at all times. Both parents of all of the children are very involved in their careers. All 4 sets of parents have all become one big family. They look out for each other’s children and there are usually 4-6 parents on the set at all times. The parents mentioned how they have a say in their child’s wardrobe, story line, etc. and the writers have an open door policy. They receive the scripts beforehand to go over topics with their children that they might need to explain, like masturbation for one episode. Most of the jokes go over the heads of the younger two but sometimes the parents do have to explain some of the more adult content in an age appropriate way. I’ve never interviewed “stage parents” before so it was refreshing that these parents weren’t the stereotypical stage parents. They are all keeping their children grounded and humble by having them keep up with chores at home, going to school when they can (they are tutored on set when they can’t attend their regular schools), and living as normal of a life as possible. Great advice for anyone who has a child who wants to get in the business.
I’m also excited to see the movie short that is being shown before Big Hero 6 called FEAST. It looks adorable! We’ll be interviewing FEAST Director Patrick Osborne & Producer Kristina Reed (who I met when we interviewed her for her work on 
