Roseanne may have been axed following Roseanne Barr’s racist social media comments, but the original cast and crew are set to return to ABC – sans Barr – with the network giving the go ahead to a spinoff entitled The Conners.
THR reports that the new show has received a 10-episode straight-to-series order, with the multicamera comedy set to premiere in the fall, taking up the Tuesday at 8pm slot where the revived Roseanne enjoyed such huge ratings success last season.
The Conners will see the return of cast members John Goodman, Laurie Metcalf, Sara Gilbert, Lecy Goranson and Michael Fishman and follows the family who “after a sudden turn of events, are forced to face the daily struggles of life in Lanford in a way they never have before.”
Although Barr has no financial or creative involvement in the series, she has reached an agreement with executive producer Tom Werner to allow The Conners to move forward, but will receive an executive producer credit and retain all rights to the Roseanne character, along with the rights to any future spinoffs or reboots.
“I regret the circumstances that have caused me to be removed from Roseanne,” said Barr. “I agreed to the settlement in order that 200 jobs of beloved cast and crew could be saved, and I wish the best for everyone involved.”
“We have received a tremendous amount of support from fans of our show, and it’s clear that these characters not only have a place in our hearts, but in the hearts and homes of our audience,” said Goodman, Metcalf, Gilbert, Goranson and Fishman in a joint statement. “We all came back last season because we wanted to tell stories about the challenges facing a working-class family today. We are so happy to have the opportunity to return with the cast and crew to continue to share those stories through love and laughter.”
Are you excited about the prospect of The Conners without the Roseanne character? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below…
