Common Sense Media Review
By Melissa Camacho
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Fun, mature girlfriend comedy has cursing, sex, drinking.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 16+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Run the World
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
Co-executive produced by Boomerang writer Leigh Davenport and Living Single creator Yvette Lee Bowser, RUN THE WORLD is a comedy series about four Black 30-something women living and working in Harlem. Ella (Andrea Bordeaux) is a writer with a broken heart who, after a failed career as a novelist, is hired by Barb Ballard (Erika Alexander) to write for her digital pop culture magazine. Meanwhile, Renee (Bresha Webb) is a confident, successful marketing executive on the brink of divorce who likes to have fun. Their friend Whitney (Amber Stevens West) is an investment banker who's getting increasingly anxious about her upcoming nuptials to fiancé Olabisi (Tosin Morohunfola), while Sondi (Corbin Reid) stands for her Black feminist ideals while negotiating a romantic relationship with her Ph.D. thesis advisor (Stephen Bishop) and taking care of his young daughter. Their lives are complicated, but they are always there to remind each other that they are going to take over the world.
Is It Any Good?
The fun dramatic comedy series in the mold of Sex and the City follows four professional 30-something women who are working, socializing, and trying to thrive in New York City. Like SATC, Run the World features lots of gossip, advice giving, and sexual encounters; it also stars a cast that is self-empowered, self-reliant, and comfortable with its sexuality. But this series tells the stories from the point of view of four strong, modern Black women, who unapologetically acknowledge how their race informs how they see the world, and their place in it. In doing so, Run the World stays away from stereotypes, and offers moments that are both entertaining and meaningful. Best of all, it never loses sight of the fact that life is just better when you have a loyal group of friends who are there when you need them.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the common stereotypes that have historically been used in movies and TV to represent Black women. In what ways does this series challenge them?
What is the purpose of featuring things like sexually explicit scenes and lots of cursing in a TV series? Does it make the story world more realistic? Or is it to make it more entertaining? Could Run the World tell the stories it wants to tell effectively without including this content?
TV Details
- Premiere date : May 16, 2021
- Cast : Andrea Bordeaux , Bresha Webb , Amber Stevens West , Corbin Reid
- Network : Starz
- Genre : Comedy
- Topics : Friendship
- Character Strengths : Communication , Perseverance
- TV rating :
- Award : NAACP Image Award - NAACP Image Award Nominee
- Last updated : September 30, 2025
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