Update: 3:55 PM EST (August 16, 2018) –
According to Variety, Kenya Barris’ new three-year all-around deal with Netflix was inked at a value of roughly $100 million. The previously reported deal—which finds him producing series exclusively for the streaming service—puts Barris in the same ballpark as TV behemoths Shonda Rhimes and Ryan Murphy, who also made the creative move to Netflix.
—
The man responsible for some of our favorite family programming is moving on to greener pastures. Kenya Barris, the man behind diverse comedies like black-ish and grown-ish, is reportedly taking his talents from ABC Studios to Netflix in a new deal. According to Deadline, he is departing from the four-year term after a little over a year, but will remain executive producer of his hit shows as his co-showrunners take the reins. He officially leaves ABC in August.
“I’m very grateful to Patrick Moran and his team at ABC Studios, who have supported me every step of the way as I created the worlds of black-ish, grown-ish, and now Besties. It has been an incredible ride including a Peabody and Golden Globe win, Emmy nominations, and many other accolades. But most importantly, they’ve allowed me to realize my dream of creating my own shows and I’m so proud of the work we’ve done together,” Barris said in a statement. “No matter what, the studio has never wavered in their support of my creative vision. Leaving is bittersweet, but between my series on the air and projects currently in development, I know I’ll continue to work with ABC Studios for a long time.”
There was already existing controversy between Barris and his former studio, especially surrounding an episode about the current state of the country that the network pulled over “creative differences.”
Barris now follows behind Shonda Rhimes in making the big switch from ABC Studios to Netflix. The Scandal creator recently shared the new lineup of Shondaland x Netflix series currently being developed. We’ll be on the lookout for Barris’ as well.
READ MORE: Pharrell And Kenya Barris Are Teaming Up To Make A Juneteenth Musical Happen