Reba McEntire Fans Cannot Wait for Her Return to TV in 'Fried Green Tomatoes' Series

Fans are ecstatic after it was confirmed Wednesday that Reba McEntire is heading back to the small [...]

By Allison Schonter

Fans are ecstatic after it was confirmed Wednesday that Reba McEntire is heading back to the small screen in NBC's Fried Green Tomatoes adaptation. The country music singer and actress, 65, is set to star as Idgie Threadgoode, marking her first multi-episode credit since appearing as Reba MacKenzie in Malibu Country, a role that had followed the 2007 conclusion of her own series, Reba.

Along with starring, McEntire will also executive produce the series, which is being described, according to Variety, as a "modernization of the novel and movie that explores the lives of descendants from the original work." Fried Green Tomatoes was first a 1987 novel by Fannie Flagg's, which was then adapted into a film by the same name in 1991 starring Kathy Bates, Jessica Tandy, Mary Stuart Masterson, Mary-Louise Parker, and Cicely Tyson. Debuting to critical acclaim, that film received two Oscar nominations: a best-supporting actress nod for Tandy and a best-adapted screenplay nomination for Flagg and co-writer Carol Sobieski.

Fans of the novel and big-screen adaptation were excited to learn that Fried Green Tomatoes would soon be getting a run on the small screen. Even more, McEntire fans were ecstatic to learn that she had been cast in the lead role. Keep scrolling to see how fans are reacting to news of her casting.

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In the hour-long episodic drama, McEntire will star as present-day Idgie, who returns to Whistle Stop after a decade away and must wrestle with a changed town, estranged daughter, faltering café, and life-changing secret. The series will be written by Jennifer Cecil, who will also executive produce alongside McEntire, with Flagg set to executive produce. The remainder of the cast has not yet been announced. The series will air on NBC. A premiere date has not yet been announced.

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Another fan, reacting to news of McEntire's casting in an all caps-tweet, said they are "SO SO SO HAPPY YOU ARE COMING BACK TO TV." That same person, who added a slew of varying emojis, including hearts, praying hands, and the heart eyes emoji, added, "And For a1 hour show." They concluded their post by again expressing their excitement, asking "WHEN DOES IT START????!!" and stating that they "love you TEBA."

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According to Today, the 1991 Fried Green Tomatoes film had been a blockbuster hit, grossing $119.4 million worldwide on an $11 million budget. It had also reached critical acclaim, and currently has a 91% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with a 74% average Tomatometer score among critics, with the Philadelphia Inquirer's Desmond Ryan having written in 2014 that the film "is a case of a film acted with such skill and conviction that glaring problems of narrative, pace and structure seem like minor slips."

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On Twitter, one excited fan wrote, "1) I love Reba," adding, "2) I love Fried Green Tomatoes." That same person, however, did express some hesitance, stating, "3) I need to know ahead of time if they're straight-washing one of fiction's greatest lesbians. The movie was egregious enough." Unlike Flagg's novel, the 1991 film was adapted to not explicitly articulate a lesbian romance between Idgie and Ruth, instead choosing to leave the relationship up to the viewer's discretion, something that has faced some pushback.

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McEntire, of course, is no stranger to the small screen and has a number of credits to her name. The country crooner starred on her sitcom, Reba, for six seasons, the series running from 2001-2007 on The WB and The CW. McEntire's latest TV credits include Young Sheldon, Last Man Standing, Baby Daddy, and The Neighbors. She also starred on ABC's Malibu Country from 2012 to 2013.

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Expressing their excitement, one fan expressed hope that McEntire's time on NBC's adaptation will fare better than her past credits. That fan, in a Twitter post, wrote, "Well, she had bad luck with Malibu Country and bad luck with the Marc Cherry pilot. Gotta hope this is 'third time lucky'. Fingers and toes crossed!" They added, "Go, [Reba]!"

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Speaking about Reba in September, McEntire had indicated that she would be up for a reunion if it ever came down the line. Speaking during a media event, according to The Country Daily, McEntire said, "The problem is the higher uppers, if they're for it. But we've let them know that we're anxiously awaiting some feedback and letting us know whether or not we can do a reboot, a two-hour special, a movie of the week. We don't care. We just love each other. We've got so many more stories that we didn't get to tell before when they canceled us that we're just excited to get back together."

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