How Does Tracee Ellis Ross Really Feel About Black-Ish Ending?
The upcoming season of "Black-ish" will be the very last one. In May, creator Kenya Barris announced that the ABC sitcom will be ending after eight seasons. "To ALL the people in the world I love, honor, respect and care for it is both exciting and bittersweet to share that black-ish has been RENEWED by ABC for it's EIGHTH... and FINAL SEASON," Barris wrote on Instagram.
"In this day and age it is rare to get to decide when your show should come to an end, and we are grateful along with ABC to be able to make this final season exactly what we'd hoped for," he continued. "And to do it with the entire and AMAZINGLY STELLAR cast coming back to close this chapter out with us the right way!" Barris ended the lengthy post by thanking the cast, writers, directors, and executives. "Tears fill my eyes and a smile brightens my face as I say thank you to ALL of my blackish family for all you have given of yourselves."
Anthony Anderson, who stars as Andre Johnson on the sitcom, admitted that filming the last season of "Black-ish" has been a little strange. "It's still in the bittersweet stage, we're halfway done with the season," Anderson told ET at the 2021 Emmys in September. "So, I think a few more episodes down the line it's gonna start getting sad for us but right now we're still [feeling] bittersweet." How does Anderson's co-star Tracee Ellis Ross feel, though?
Tracee Ellis Ross is 'ready' for Black-ish to end
Speaking with Harper's Bazaar, "Black-ish" star Tracee Ellis Ross discussed her feelings about the show ending. "I'm ready for it to be the end, and also it's going to be really hard," Ross admitted. "I mean, eight years we've watched the TV kids grow up. We've watched Anthony's beard do tons of different things," she quipped.
Looking back at the show, Ross reflected that it helped her grow in many ways. "I found my voice," she said. "It came before, but I really started using it during 'Black-ish'." As she explained, the show gave her a "different and larger platform," which she used to amplify her voice. "I've always been a person who speaks up," she continued. "I can't help it. Sometimes the practice for me is—perhaps the exercise today is to not speak up."
Elsewhere in the same interview, Ross explained why she is happy being childfree and single. For her, it was important to be an example for other women who can find happiness and power without having a man. "People are like, 'You're the poster child for being single.' And I was like, 'Great,'" she said. "But what I would prefer is that I'm the poster child for living my life on my terms." She continued, "I don't live my life for other people. I just totally live it for me." Per Romper, the final season of "Black-ish" is expected to arrive in January 2022.