‘Good Times’ Movie Based On Classic Sitcom Being Written By ‘Black-ish’ Creator
According to BET, a movie based on the 1970s hit sitcom Good Times is in the works. A Good Times movie has been discussed for years, but Sony is now taking steps toward making it happen. Sony set up the project last year and has signed up Black-ish creator Kenya Barris to write the script for the much-anticipated movie.
Deadline has confirmed the news that Kenya Barris has been tapped by Sony to write the screenplay for the Good Times movie. The film is based on the groundbreaking sitcom that aired on CBS from 1974-1979 about an African-American family struggling in the Chicago projects in the turbulent 1960s.
Kenya Barris’ Black-ish on ABC is about an upscale African-American family. Good Times is at the other end of the spectrum and is centered around the struggles of working-class couple James and Florida Evans, who raised three children through financial hardship. They tried to provide for their children and keep them out of trouble during a rough time in a Chicago housing project.
Jimmie Walker’s JJ was that breakout character that kept everyone watching just to hear him describe so many things as “Dyn-O-Mite!” Esther Rolle, who played Florida Evans, worried that JJ was a horrible role model for black youth. He didn’t work, wasn’t in school, chased girls, and hinted that he shoplifted.
“Janet Jackson, Carl Weathers, Kim Fields, Ja’net DuBois, and Jay Leno were among the many actors who starred in Good Times.”
During its six seasons on the air, Good Times tackled the tough reality for impoverished African-American families, as told through the story of the Evans family and their neighbors in the Chicago housing project. The show focused on the uphill battle of solving problems that many poor families face. At the end of each episode, the problem was solved, and the family shared laughter and love.
Families on Good Times were surrounded with some of the same issues African-Americans still face today. It will be interesting to see if Barris will address the many things that have emerged since the 1960s, which was the setting of the sitcom even though it aired during the 1970s.
Barris will have the task of bridging the gap between the 1960s and modern times to make the movie believable. Some of those things will probably include social media, cell phones, computers, fashions, and hair styles.
Fans of the television show are thrilled to know they will be able to see the Good Times movie in the future. What do you think about the Good Times movie that is in the works?
[Image via BET]
