‘Roseanne’ returning to ABC with original cast
The iconic comedy series “Roseanne” is scheduled to return to ABC, Channing Dungey, president of ABC entertainment, announced Tuesday.
The eight-episode reboot, featuring the original cast – Roseanne Barr, John Goodman, Sara Gilbert (Darlene), Laurie Metcalf (Jackie), Michael Fishman (D.J.) and Lecy Goranson (Becky) – will air in 2018.
The network announced Sarah Chalke, who played Becky in later seasons, will also appear in another role.
When it premiered on ABC, the series broke new ground for its realistic portrayal of a working-class family, the Conners, barely scraping by in the fictional town of Lanford, Illinois.
“The conners’ joys and struggles are as relevant – and hilarious – today as they were then, and there’s really no one better to comment on our modern America than Roseanne,” said Dungey.
The series dominated the ratings as one of the highest-rated television series on the air for its near-decade run.
In addition to being a primetime ratings hit for ABC during its nine seasons, the series won a Peabody award and a Golden globe award for best television series (comedy or musical).
Barr and Goodman each won Golden Globes for best performance by an actress and actor. Barr went on to win an Emmy as lead actress, and Metcalf won two supporting actress Emmys for her work on the series.
