CBS Orders Patricia Heaton's First Show Since 'The Middle' Ended

Patricia Heaton might be heading back to CBS for her next TV project following the end of The Middle.

The actress, who along with her long stint on The Middle also gained fame starring on CBS sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond, is reportedly set to start in new series Carol's Second Act for the network.

The multi-camera comedy has reportedly gotten a series commitment for CBS, The Wrap writes, with Heaton attached to star and executive produce the project. Emily Halpern and Sarah Haskins, who created the short-lived ABC comedy Trophy Wife, will write the script.

Heaton stars as Carol Chambers, a retired teacher who attempts to become a doctor. The series is produced under Heaton and David Hunt's FourBoys Entertainment production deal with CBS TV Studios. The series is also produced by Kapital Entertainment. Other executive producers attached to the new series are Adam Griffin, Rebecca Stay, Aaron Kaplan and Dana Honor.

Heaton's new gig comes a few days after The Sue Heck-centered The Middle spinoff, Sue Sue in the City, was revealed to have an official title as well as another Middle co-star joined the cast.

The new series, which will star Eden Sher in her fan-favorite role as Sue Heck, will follow Sue as she leaves Orson to find herself and grow into adulthood in the city of Chicago.

She will be joined by her trusted best friend Brad Bottig (Brock Ciarlelli), who appeared as a recurring character on 56 episodes of the original series. Though this time around, he will be a series regular.

Sue Sue in the City has a pilot order at ABC, with rumors of its production beginning shortly after The Middle wrapped its run in May. During the series finale, Sue was revealed to have had a tumultuous on-again-off-again relationship with the Hecks' neighbor Sean Donohue (Beau Winick) before they eventually got married many years later. No details have been revealed on if the new series will follow that ending, however.

"Cue the Sue happy dance," the show's official synopsis reads, via Entertainment Weekly. "More Sue Heck is on the way. The series follows the twentysomething adventures of eternal optimist Sue Heck as she leaves the small town of Orson to navigate the ups and downs of a career and young adulthood in the big city of Chicago."

With her new job lined up, Heaton will likely not sign on for a regular return on the Sue-inspired spinoff, though it would not be surprising if she reprised her role of Frankie Heck on a guest starring basis for the spinoff.

Photo Credit: FilmMagic / Michael Tran