Common Sense Media Review
By Emily Ashby
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Host upstages cute kids in mediocre reboot; some innuendo.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 9+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Kids Say the Darndest Things
Parent and Kid Reviews
Based on 11 parent reviews
Parents say the show often misses the mark due to its host's focus on herself rather than allowing the children to shine, leading to concerns about inappropriate content and a lack of authenticity. While some find humor in the kids' remarks, many reviewers express disappointment with the overall direction of the show and desire a return to the original format where kids are the central feature.
- self-centered host
- inappropriate content
- lack of authenticity
- desire for change
- focus on kids
Summarized with AI
Summarized with AI
Based on 2 kid reviews
What's the Story?
In KIDS SAY THE DARNDEST THINGS, host Tiffany Haddish interviews kids onstage to hear their perspective on various topics. From their hobbies and career goals to their favorite entertainment stars, Haddish poses questions that encourage the kids to be themselves and answer honestly, usually with hilarious results for the studio audience and especially for their family members on set. Some segments show Haddish in behind-the-scenes conversations with potential participants, where they show off their talents, and others involve staged acts and fake TV shoots designed to gauge the kids' honest reactions to funny -- and sometimes uncomfortable -- scenarios.
Is It Any Good?
This reboot sets out to put kids and their unfiltered humor in the spotlight, but it's the obtrusive host who winds up stealing the show from the intended young stars and starlets. Haddish seems unable to take a backseat to her small co-stars, instead turning many of the conversations into avenues to promote herself -- by plugging her voice work in The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part, emphasizing her own celebrity status, and even calling some of her famous friends during filming. If you're coming to the show hoping to hear what kids have to say, know that you'll hear a lot more of what Haddish herself wants you to know.
And on the subject of what kids have to say, the show's assertion that the young interviewees have not been coached on what to say is arguable, but they certainly have been groomed for performing on camera. That they do with unnatural ease, both in speaking their mind and in putting on awkwardly placed talent shows over the course of an episode. Kids Say the Darndest Things has a lot going on; unfortunately very little of it involves kids saying adorable and reliably unscripted things.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the effectiveness of Kids Say the Darndest Things' humor. What makes it stand out from scripted comedies? Do you think kids know as much as adults? Why or why not?
Do the interviewees seem like "average" kids, or do you think that they have been coached to some degree? How might your kids answer the host's questions differently? How "real" can we reliably assume reality TV is?
Would you ever want to go on TV and answer questions? Why or why not? Would it be easier if you knew what the questions were ahead of time?
TV Details
- Premiere date : October 6, 2019
- Cast : Tiffany Haddish
- Network : ABC
- Genre : Reality TV
- TV rating :
- Last updated : October 9, 2025
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