New Artwork: ‘Black-ish’ Gets Animated Oct. 4

The Johnsons and black-ish return to ABC with a special one-hour television special on Sunday, Oct. 4 at 10 p.m. EDT on ABC with a double episode event, including the show’s first-ever animated episode. The network has just debuted the official character designs for this tooned up installment of the hit series, announced earlier this month.

The two back-to-back episodes, which will air ahead of the official season seven premiere on Wednesday, Oct. 21 at 9:30 p.m. EDT, will follow the Johnsons as they navigate the upcoming election, with Junior (Marcus Scribner) embarking on his journey as a first-time voter and Dre (Anthony Anderson) launching an exploration into local politics. Oscar winner Matthew A. Cherry (Hair Love) is set to direct.

In “Election Special Pt. 1” (10 p.m. EDT), Junior is excited for his first time voting but discovers he has been purged from the voter polls so he does a deep dive into why – trying to understand the systems in place for voter registration. (Directed by Cherry, written by Eric Horsted.)

Then, in a special animated episode, “Election Special Pt. 2” (10:30 p.m. EDT), Dre’s colleague Stevens (Peter Mackenzie) makes an ill-advised decision to run for Congress, so Dre enlists his family’s help and campaigns against him but gets caught up with fundraising and private interest groups. (Directed by Cherry, written by Graham Towers & Ben Deeb.)

The animation is being produced by Jonas Diamond, Executive Producer and Co-Owner of Smiley Guy Studios and Rod Amador, Executive Producer and Co-Owner of Big Jump Entertainment.

In its upcoming seventh season, black-ish will continue to tell stories that shine a light on current events through the lens of the Johnson family, addressing the global pandemic, systemic racism and the movement for social justice and equality.

(Airdate & times may change due to NBA Finals.)