Former One Life to Live star Tika Sumpter (ex-Layla Williamson) has landed the mother of all sitcom roles: she has joined the upcoming Black-ish spinoff as a really rad mom.
TV Line reports that the Black-ish spinoff/prequel will be set in the 1980s and will focus on the twelve-year-old version of Black-ish matriarch Bow, played by Arica Himmel. Sumpter has signed on to play Bow's mom, Alicia, and will be joining Anders Holm as Bow's dad, Paul. As fans of the original show may already know, the adult versions of Bow's parents were previously played by Anna Deveare Smith and Beau Bridges.
Additional cast members of the backdoor pilot, which will air as a regular episode of Black-ish later this season, include Gary Cole as Paul's father/Bow's grandfather Harrison; Ethan William Childress and Mykal-Michelle Harris as Bow's siblings, Johan and Santamonica; and Christina Anthony as Alicia's sister/Bow's aunt.
The as-yet-untitled series marks the second extension of the Black-ish franchise, the first being Freeform's Grown-ish, which followed Black-ish character Zoey.
Sumpter played One Life to Live's Layla from 2006 to 2011 before going on to star in TV series like Gossip Girl, The Game, and The Haves and Have Nots. She recently wrapped production on Jeff Fowler's live-action/animation hybrid film Sonic the Hedgehog, which also stars James Marsden and Jim Carrey, and can next be seen in Tyler Perry's Nobody's Fool.
What do you think about Sumpter joining the cast of the upcoming Black-ish spinoff? Can you imagine her playing Bow's mom? We want to hear from you -- so drop your comments in the Comments section below, tweet about it on Twitter, share it on Facebook, or chat about it on our Message Boards.
