Kenya
Barris

Now in its fourth season and coming off a Peabody Award and multiple Emmy nominations, Kenya Barris’ ABC comedy “black-ish” tells universal family stories. Married with six children, Barris strives to create episodes of his TV show that reflect his own life experience. Although “black-ish” has been lauded for telling the story of an African-American family, Barris says bolstering prime-time diversity was not a primary goal.

“For me, personally, we did not go into this show saying we want to tackle diversity,” Barris told Variety in 2016. “I wanted to tell a personal story. I really wanted to tell a story that was personal to me the same way [Jerry] Seinfeld told a story that was personal to him. … When you can tell your story you can start telling other people’s stories.”

Barris inked a three-year deal with ABC studios to write and develop future projects. Among them, he created “grown-ish,” a spinoff of “black-ish” focusing on the Johnson family’s eldest daughter, played by Yara Shahidi. He also co-wrote a pilot for ABC titled “Libby & Malcolm,” about husband (Courtney B. Vance) and wife (Felicity Huffman) as polar opposite political pundits.

A writer on the 2002-03 drama “Soul Food” and the 2008-14 comedy “The Game,” Barris co-developed the reality competition mainstay “America’s Next Top Model” and was a writer on the most recent “Barbershop” movie as well as “Girls Trip.”