Go ahead, sing it with us: “My giiiiirlfriends…myyyyy girlfriends…there, through thick and thin…” Eleven years after the end of their hit sitcom and several online petitions later, the women of ‘Girlfriends’ are back together.
Fans of the early 2000s hit TV show Girlfriends are in for a treat. On Thursday, Tracee Ellis Ross tweeted a clip of herself announcing to the camera: “We have an extra special episode of Black-ish! It’s a feminist episode, and I brought in some…back up…from some of my…girlfriends.” And then, with a sly smile, she slowly turns the camera to reveal none other than Jill Marie Jones, Golden Brooks, and Persia White—her former Girlfriends co-stars.
The sitcom, which premiered in 2000 and originally aired on UPN and later, The WB, centered on four friends as they navigated work, life, and love. There was the lovably uptight Joan, played by Ross; the self-proclaimed (and admittedly self-centered) “cute one,” Toni, (Jones); the bohemian, free-spirited Lynn, played by White; and the group’s mama bear, Maya, (Brooks).
The Kelsey Grammar-produced series has gone down in history as one of the few television shows to depict Black female friendship, and can be credited for paving the way for hit series of today like Insecure and A Black Lady Sketch Show.
“The timing was perfect to be able to bring Girlfriends to a whole new audience. We haven’t all been together on camera since 2006,” Ross told the folks over at Entertainment Weekly. “Girlfriends ran for eight years and was important to so many people. Being able to merge the worlds of black-ish and Girlfriends was surreal for me — and so much fun. These are women I grew up with and love deeply and it was easy to tap back into the magic of our chemistry and how much we love each other. It was giggles on top of giggles on top of giggles.”
The giggles will play out on the Oct. 8 episode of Ross’ ABC comedy in an episode entitled “Feminisn’t.” Will you be tuned in?
