Roseanne fans don’t have to wait until March to get their first glimpse at the revival series. In a new sneak peek obtained by E! News, fans can go behind the scenes of the new season of Roseanne.
ABC’s revival series reunited Roseanne Barr with Laurie Metcalf, John Goodman, Sara Gilbert, Michael Fishman, Lecy Goranson and Sarah Chalke, all members of the Conners TV family.
Videos by PopCulture.com
“Times change,” the promo reads. “She doesn’t.”
The new episodes of the classic ’80s and ’90s sitcom will take place in present day, more than 20 years since the season 9 finale in 1997. And while the series did end with Barr’s character revealing it had all been made up — and that Dan died (he didn’t have an affair), and that Jackie was a lesbian, and that Darlene and Becky were with the opposite husbands — show execs say the upcoming nine-episode season will explain all of that.
ABC boss Channing Dungey wouldn’t say how the show was going to rewrite the finale but said, “I’m not going to talk too specifically about the season. I wouldn’t say that it’s ignoring the events of the finale, but I can say that Dan is definitely alive.”
And while the times we live in may be different than when the show wrapped up in the 1990s, fans can count on the tone of Roseanne to stay the same.
“It is very much tonally similar to the original show. It is unflinching, it is honest, it is irreverent at times, and it’s also really, really funny,” Dungey said about the new season at the 2017 TCA summer press tour. “Very topical. We’re not talking specifically about the universe that we live in in that way, but we are addressing issues like foreclosure. We’re addressing how difficult it is for people to get medical insurance. We’re talking about topics in a bigger, broader way. We’re not necessarily talking about the occupants of the White House.”
Goodman alluded to the family carrying on like nothing happening during an interview earlier this year.
“I don’t know, I think they’re just going to ignore (Dan’s death).” he said. “There might be a funny reference to it.”
He even gave fans a sneak peek of where they’ll be at the start of the revival.
“It’s going to be all new turf. We were in our 40s when we left off,” the 64-year-old actor said. “I myself have applied for Medicare. We’re going to have grandkids. It’s just like a new life. I don’t know what they’re going to do, but I’m excited to try it this way.”
As for the two Beckys, Chalke will play a new character who is employing Becky (Goranson) as a surrogate.
Other returning cast members include Johnny Galecki, Estelle Parsons, Sandra Bernhard, James Pickens Jr., Natalie West and Adilah Barnes.
Roseanne returns on Tuesday, March 27 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.