In the words of Florida Evans, “Damn! Damn! Damn!”
Netflix has unveiled a wildly irreverent new trailer for its upcoming animated revival of the classic 1970s sitcom “Good Times.” The two-minute teaser showcases the series’ all-star voice cast breathing new life into the Evans family in hyper-chaotic, no-holds-barred fashion.
But the re-imagined Good Times trailer isn’t sitting well with everyone and that was obvious on Black Twitter.
Many viewers took issue with the family’s portrayal, with one person writing on X, “This is disrespectful & distasteful. They took a show that was based on a solid hardworking family into a cartoon caricature of Black America. Tried to guise it under the show ‘Good Times’ smmfh.”
The trailer features voiced by J.B. Smoove as Reggie Evans, Yvette Nicole Brown as his wife Beverly, and stars like Jay Pharoah, Marsai Martin, Gerald “Slink” Johnson, and Rashida “Sheedz” Olayiwola bringing the supporting characters to animated life.
While the premise echoes the original – the Evans family striving for a better life amid the struggles of Chicago’s housing projects – this reimagining doesn’t shy away from edgy, over-the-top satire. Scenes depict shootouts, substance abuse, babies selling drugs, and more outlandish takes on urban strife.
“It turns out the more things change, the more they stay the same, and keeping your head above water in a system with its knee on your neck is as challenging as ever,” reads the official logline, setting the tone for an “unadulterated comedy” take on the source material.
Developed by Norman Lear’s Act III Productions alongside Seth MacFarlane’s Fuzzy Door, Steph Curry’s Unanimous Media, and Sony Pictures Television, the new “Good Times” aims to blend biting social commentary with anarchic humor.
“It’s a thrill to be partnering with Norman Lear and to help bring new life to his groundbreaking show,” said MacFarlane when the project was first announced in 2020. “Animation is the ideal medium with which to reimagine the original.”
Executive produced by Lear, MacFarlane, Curry, and showrunner Ranada Shepard among others, the 10-episode season boldly introduces the classic sitcom premise to a new generation.
As the trailer’s unrestrained depictions illustrate, the creative team is pulling no punches in holding a satirical mirror up to issues of poverty, racial inequality and urban strife through the Evans family’s outrageous animated adventures.
Netflix has announced that all episodes of the edgy “Good Times” revival will debut on the streaming platform on April 12th.