‘The Conners’ Features Major Change for DJ’s Daughter Mary

The COVID-19 pandemic played a significant factor in the drama on Wednesday night’s episode of The Conners. Not only did Mark (Ames McNamara) get into a tiff at school because he was wearing a mask, but Mary (Jayden Rey) explained to Darlene (Sara Gilbert) that she was experiencing loneliness as she has been doing school from home and her father, DJ (Michael Fishman) has been working long hours after getting a promotion at work. As a result of their conversation, Darlene and Becky (Alicia Goranson) decided that it would be best if Mary moved in with them.

Since DJ has been busy at work, Darlene and Becky informed him via email that they were moving his daughter into the family house for the time being. He wasn’t exactly pleased to receive this news over email, as he later expressed to his family, nor was he happy about the possibility of his daughter not living with him. However, after Mary expressed that she was also on board with living at the Conners’ household, he eventually came around on the idea. So, at the moment, Mary will be moving into the Conners’ house to live alongside the rest of her family members.

DJ’s family wasn’t just at the center of the drama on the most recent episode of The Conners, but the real-life DJ, Fishman, was also at the center of the story behind-the-scenes, too. The latest episode of The Conners wasn’t just special because of the Halloween antics, but it also marked a major milestone for Fishman, who directed it. In an interview with ABC 11 News, Fishman explained that his turn as a director provided for a special, “full circle” moment for him, as he initially started to portray DJ Conner on Roseanne when he was only 6 years old. He also shared how excited he was over being able to direct the show’s annual Halloween episode, explaining that he was the “perfect person” to be behind the camera.

“Growing up on this show I loved Halloween,” Fishman said. “I’m the perfect person. Let’s make this magical and harken back to the old days.” As the actor went on to explain, he tried to learn as much as possible about the entertainment history while filming Roseanne at such a young age. That experience definitely helped him direct his onscreen family for the Halloween episode. He added, “It’s so funny. It’s like telling your parents and siblings what to do. Everybody was so supportive, and they knew I did my homework and came prepared.”

Fishman noted that his goal isn’t just to perform, but he also wants to be a part of driving along relevant storylines for The Conners and future projects. According to the star, his reasoning behind wanting to do so is especially personal. “We have this mixed, blended, multi-racial family with a bunch of backgrounds and beliefs, so for me I want to see families like mine in production,” he said. “When you direct, you u can help be part of the voice.”