New sitcom 'The Carmichael Show' will talk about black lives in a real way

When co-star Loretta Devine said, “I think we’re going to get to discuss things that really need to be discussed like Obama and Ferguson,” comedian Jerrod Carmichael confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter that his new sitcom, The Carmichael, will focus on real life by talking about real topics.

“Our intention is to talk about things, like to actually reflect the conversations that are being had in living rooms amongst families, amongst couples.”

NBC gave the show a six-episode pick up after it was redeveloped. Devine and David Alan Grier will play Carmichael’s parents; the show also stars Lil Rel Howery as his “ever-hustling brother,” and Amber West as his therapist girlfriend.

I’m dismayed that light-skinned people are perpetually the butt of the joke, but this show looks like a pretty basic sitcom—it’s just that the origins of the jokes are not centered on whiteness. Will it be revolutionary? Maybe. But part of an increased focus on balancing the incredibly white scales is that TV shows don’t always have to be revolutionary to be part of the scene, and we need the black version of a regular sitcom — like Mike & Molly — just as much as we need record-setting shows like Scandal and How to Get Away With Murder.

Danielle Henderson is a lapsed academic, heavy metal karaoke machine, and culture editor at Fusion. She enjoys thinking about how race, gender, and sexuality shape our cultural narratives, but not in a boring way.