There’s just one week left until the premiere of the series finale of the hit sitcom “Black-ish,” and its star Tracee Ellis Ross is opening up about the “very emotional” feelings she’s had during the last week of filming the Kenya Barris-created comedy.
During an appearance on the Monday, April 11, episode of “The Ellen DeGeneres Show,” Ross said, “ The whole season, I knew was the end, so I was very present and sort of aware of endings, even the things that bothered me.”
The 49-year-old actress acknowledged how sentimental she had gotten while on set, adding, “But the last week I really said to myself, ‘Just let yourself feel whatever comes up,’ and I had a lot of tears. And it was also really wonderful to be able to take a moment.”
She continued, “I was just talking to everybody and hearing their experience in the eight years and what about it was so special for them because we’ve been the same family for eight years, most of our crew is the same and everything’s so very emotional.”
The “Girlfriends” star said there was no right way to mourn this moment. “There’s no ritual around ending a TV show, you know, and it’s a hard thing to end when it becomes your world and and your family and your life,” she added. “I spent more time with everyone on that [than] I did with my family.” Ross offered a few final words on the series after DeGeneres noted the show’s importance, stating, “I leave with a lot of joy and pride.”
During a discussion with People, Ross, who portrays Bow on the show, further elaborated on how proud she was of what the cast and crew had accomplished since the show’s premiere in September 2014.
“I do think we opened a pathway for television that is more reflective of who we are as human beings,” she told the publication. “And so it was a real honor and life-changing to be able to work on another show that I feel so incredibly proud of.”
The show accumulated several awards during its eight-year run, including an NAACP Image Award for Best Comedy Series. It birthed three spinoffs, including “Mixed-ish,” “Grown-ish,” and “Old-ish,” reportedly still in the works. The show also stars Anthony Anderson, Yara Shahidi, Marsai Martin, Lawrence Fishburne, and more.
