Kenya Barris – Lawsuit Claiming He Stole ‘Black-Ish’ Idea Heading To Court

Kenya Barris, Black-Ish cast

Kenya Barris – Lawsuit Claiming He Stole ‘Black-Ish’ Idea Heading To Court

It’s time for Kenya Barris to officially lawyer up! According to reports, he’s now headed to trial after a lawsuit claims that he stole the idea for his hit show ‘Black-ish’ from a former writing partner.

As previously reported, man named Bryan Barber (who is a music director) claims that he and Barris had an agreement in 2006 to develop a show for VH1 about a successful black TV writer working in a largely white environment. Barber alleges that several years later, Barris developed the idea into “Black-ish,” violating their agreement to produce the show together. Barber filed suit in 2016, seeking writing credit and compensation.

Kenya Barris

Barris’ attorneys sought to have the suit thrown out, but a judge denied their motion. In her ruling, the judge noted several similarities between the scripts for the two shows. For instance, in both shows, the main character works in a media company’s “urban department,” and both shows feature jokes about grape soda.

In a hearing on the motion on Thursday, Barris’ attorney argued that the two shows have certain similarities because both are based on Barris’ life. The main character’s significant other is a doctor in both shows because Barris’ wife is a doctor, he argued.

A trial is set for May 7.

Follow us: @theJasmineBRAND on Twitter | theJasmineBRAND on Facebook| theJasmineBRAND_ on Instagram