Kenya Barris Sold Interracial Bewitched Reboot to ABC Before $100-Million Netflix Deal

Black-ish creator Kenya Barris may have left ABC for greener pastures at Netflix, but we now know that he has at least one more high-profile project in the works at the network before his move.

Barris sold a single-camera reboot of the hit 1960s sitcom Bewitched centered on an interracial couple to ABC Studios before his departure, as Deadline reports.

Barris wrote the rebooted Bewitched with fellow black-ish writer/co-producer Yamara Taylor. It will focus on Samantha, a hardworking Black single mother who is also a witch, and Darren, a white, mortal slacker. In the series, the couple will “struggle to navigate their differences as she discovers that even when a Black girl is literally magic, she’s still not as powerful as a decently tall white man with a full head of hair in America.”

Barris will executive produce via his production company, Khalabo Ink Society (which will also produce all projects in his Netflix deal), alongside Taylor and Davis Entertainment’s John Davis and John Fox.

Earlier this month, Barris left his overall deal at ABC Studios to sign a $100-million, three-year deal at Netflix. The relationship between Barris and ABC soured after the network refused to air an episode dealing with race relations and the NFL kneeling controversy.

While ABC has given a pilot production commitment to the project, it has not yet been ordered to series at the network. Whether Barris’ new Netflix deal will play a role in its fate is still unclear.