Everybody Hates Chris is an American sitcom created by Chris Rock and Ali LeRoi and produced by CBS Paramount Television, which is inspired by the teenage experiences of comedian Chris Rock (who narrates the show), while growing up in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighbourhood of Brooklyn.
Motivated by his childhood experiences, comedian Chris Rock narrates this story of a teenager growing up as the oldest of three children in Brooklyn, New York during the early 1980s.
Uprooted to a neighbourhood and bused into a primarily white middle school two hours away by his strict, hard-working parents, Chris struggles to find his place, all while keeping his younger brother and sister in line at home and surmounting the tests of junior high school.
This dependable, resilient teen brings a unique, comedic spin to his everyday trials and upsets in the single-camera comedy Everybody Hates Chris.
The year that Chris turned 13 was 1982. Filled with dreams that being a teenager would be really cool, Chris' entry into adolescence is turning out to be less pleasant.
Moved from the projects to the tough "Bed-Stuy" neighbourhood of Brooklyn, Chris is still stuck in his big brother role.
As the family's "emergency adult," he's accountable for taking care of his younger brother Drew and his younger sister Tonya, while his parents are working; Drew, although younger, is taller and more confident than Chris, while Tonya is the baby of the family, who gets all of the attention from his parents.
Chris' rough, cost-conscious father Julius works numerous jobs in order to properly support his family. Meanwhile, his very strict, sassy mother Rochelle, who works part-time in a small real estate office, runs the household on a very tight budget, while demanding the best for her children.
With his mother strong-minded to see him in a good school, Chris reluctantly faces multiple bus transfers each day to attend Corleone Junior High School in the fiercely Italian neighbourhood, South Shore.
Although being an immediate target for bullies, Chris' innate charm and sharp wit enable him to make new friends at school, such as Greg, another smart, nice kid...who can't fight.
As Chris Rock pointedly looks back, his younger self is set to find what his family already knows: Chris' sharp, scrappy character is going to take him places.
But first, he's going to have to think, talk or run his way through one growing experience after another at both home and school, and on any number of buses along the way.
Everybody Hates Chris is executive produced by Michael Rotenberg (King of the Hill), Dave Becky (Lucky Louie) and Don Reo (My Wife and Kids). The series is a production of CBS Paramount Network Television Inc. in association with Chris Rock Enterprises, Inc. and 3 Arts Entertainment.
Trivia
The title is a spoof on the sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond.
When the show starts Chris is 13.
The family's surname is never mentioned but it's assumed it's Rock.
Bed-Stuy refers to the New York area known as Bedford Stuyvesant. It includes areas called the Village of Bedford and Stuyvesant Heights.
Unlike other sitcoms Everybody Loves Chris has no laugh track.
Every episode starts with the title: "Everybody Hates ..."
The show is filmed with a single camera as opposed to the three cameras usually used to film a sitcom.
There are various running gags that recur through different episodes that are specific to particular characters. Some of these are:
- Chris's dad Julius always knows exactly how much anything that's wasted by the family costs.
- Chris's mom, Rochelle, can't cope with anyone thinking her or her family is poor.
- Greg runs away whenever Chris is in trouble.
- Chris's youngest sister Tonya always tells on Chris.
- Whenever a girl makes a pass at Chris, Greg always says: "You are so in there."