Scrapped black-ish Season 4 Episode Criticizing President Donald Trump

The black-ish episode ABC originally didn’t want you to see is now available for viewing on Hulu.

The network shelved the Season 4 installment, titled “Please, Baby, Please,” in 2018. The ep features Anthony Anderson’s Dre improvising a bedtime story to his then-infant son Devante. During the tale, Dre expresses many of his concerns about the state of the union one year after Donald Trump — whom he calls “the Shady King” — was elected president. Another scene finds Dre and eldest son Junior arguing over the rights of athletes to take a knee during the national anthem at football games.

“One of the things that has always made black-ish so special is how it deftly examines delicate social issues in a way that simultaneously entertains and educates,” an ABC rep said in a statement at the time. “However, on this episode there were creative differences we were unable to resolve.”

On his Instagram feed Monday, series creator Kenya Barris announced the network’s about-face, calling “Please, Baby, Please” “22 minutes of television that I was, and still am, incredibly proud of.”

He goes on to say that he asked ABC to reconsider making the episode available to stream. “Recognizing the importance of this moment,” he wrote, “they listened and agreed.”

Read Barris’ statement in full below, then scroll down to watch a trailer for the episode:

In November 2017, we made an episode of “black-ish” entitled “Please, Baby, Please.” We were one year post-election and coming to the end of a year that left us, like many Americans, grappling with the state of our country and anxious about its future. Those feelings poured onto the page, becoming 22 minutes of television that I was, and still am, incredibly proud of. “Please, Baby, Please” didn’t make it to air that season and, while much has been speculated about its contents, the episode has never been seen publicly… until now.

I’m excited to share that “Please, Baby, Please” is now available on Hulu. Following the re-airing of “Juneteenth” and “Hope,” I asked Walt Disney Television to revisit making the episode available. Recognizing the importance of this moment, they listened and agreed.

I cannot wait for everyone to finally see the episode for themselves and, as was the case nearly three years ago, we hope it inspires some much-needed conversation — not only about what we were grappling with then or how it led to where we are now, but conversations about where we want our country to go moving forward and, most importantly, how we get there together.

Thank you to ABC Entertainment for allowing this moment to happen. And thank you to the entire ‘black-ish’ family for never shying away from tough conversations, making telling stories like this possible.

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In November 2017, we made an episode of “black-ish” entitled “Please, Baby, Please.” We were one year post-election and coming to the end of a year that left us, like many Americans, grappling with the state of our country and anxious about its future. Those feelings poured onto the page, becoming 22 minutes of television that I was, and still am, incredibly proud of. “Please, Baby, Please” didn’t make it to air that season and, while much has been speculated about its contents, the episode has never been seen publicly… until now. I’m excited to share that “Please, Baby, Please” is now available on Hulu. Following the re-airing of “Juneteenth” and “Hope,” I asked Walt Disney Television to revisit making the episode available. Recognizing the importance of this moment, they listened and agreed. I cannot wait for everyone to finally see the episode for themselves and, as was the case nearly three years ago, we hope it inspires some much-needed conversation — not only about what we were grappling with then or how it led to where we are now, but conversations about where we want our country to go moving forward and, most importantly, how we get there together. Thank you to ABC Entertainment for allowing this moment to happen. And thank you to the entire “black-ish” family for never shying away from tough conversations, making telling stories like this possible. Trailer prod: @thetribewithin

A post shared by Kenya Barris (@kenyabarris) on Aug 10, 2020 at 12:31pm PDT