‘Kevin Can Wait’ Producer Talks Potential Romance Between Kevin James and Leah Remini in Season 2

Kevin Can Wait fans may have to wait a while until Kevin James‘ character Kevin Gable gets back into the dating game after his wife’s death.

Executive producer Rob Long tells TVLine that there is no “master plan” to make Kevin and Leah Remini‘s character Vanessa Cellucci a couple in the second season. However, the two will be working together in some capacity, forming an “uneasy” relationship.

“Honestly, we’re trying not to [put them in a romantic relationship],” Long says. “I know that sounds crazy!”

Long stresses that the series is not trying to remake the two stars’ relationship from The King of Queens.

“These two actors have incredibly fun chemistry together, but they’re also great antagonists,” he says. “So as much as there’s a lot of snap and crackle on screen, there’s also a lot of fun in watching two people not get along.”

He maintains that fans shouldn’t expect a romance any time soon.

“We’re really just enjoying these two people working together and having a working relationship, which is something this series never really dealt with before,” Long continues. “We kind of look at each other after every table read as the story’s breaking and think, ‘OK, well, let’s keep doing this.’”

Kevin Can Wait will pick up one year after Erinn Hayes’ character Donna Gable’s death. It will jump right into Kevin’s life as a single father.

The show premieres on Monday, Sept. 25 at 9/8c on CBS.