Roseanne, who? Roseanne Barr still sounds angry about ABC cancelling her show, but The Conners family is doing just fine without her. ABC just renewed The Conners for Season 2, with returning stars including John Goodman as Dan Conner, Laurie Metcalf as Jackie Harris, Sara Gilbert as Darlene Conner, Lecy Goranson as Becky Conner-Healy, and Ames McNamara as Mark Conner-Healy.
According to TVLine, Season 2 of the Roseanne spinoff will feature 13 episodes, an increase of two over Season 1's 11 episodes. The site added that John Goodman, Laurie Metcalf, and Sara Gilbert all got raises for Season 2 and will reportedly make $375,000 an episode -- up from $250,000 for Season 1 -- plus a piece of the back end. Lecy Goranson also reportedly got a raise and will make $165,000 an episode, which TVLine said was a double-digit increase.
ABC's renewal announcement said more cast members would be announced at a later date. TVLine said Michael Fishman (D.J.), Emma Kenney (Darlene and David’s daughter Harris), Maya Lynne Robinson (D.J.’s wife Geena), Jayden Rey (D.J. and Geena’s daughter Mary), and Johnny Galecki (David) are all expected to return in some capacity in Season 2.
The Conners came to life when ABC cancelled Roseanne after its Season 10 revival. The network had already renewed Roseanne for Season 11 before backtracking after Roseanne Barr's controversial tweet. ABC decided to continue following the Conner family without Roseanne, killing off the character of Roseanne Conner at the start of The Conners. Roseanne Barr was not happy about that. She recently blasted ABC in a new stand-up routine, and apparently she lays a lot of the blame specifically at former co-star Sara Gilbert's feet, with Gilbert as one of the show's executive producers as well as a star.
ABC bragged that The Conners Season 1 was the #1 new comedy in the 2018-2019 season in total viewers (9.5 million) and in the key 18-49 demo (2.2/10). It also topped the ratings of its Tuesday at 8 p.m. competition by 16%, and gave ABC a five-year high for the half-hour.
Last month, ABC Entertainment President Karey Burke said they were close to a Season 2 renewal for The Conners, they just had to finish finalizing deals with the main cast. On March 22, Burke praised the cast when announcing the show's second season:
We are proud to be continuing the story of the iconic Conners family. This team is fearless in their willingness to tackle contemporary issues with humor and heart, and I have no doubt they will continue to outdo themselves.
The Conners Season 1 had an amazing guest cast -- including Matthew Broderick, Juliette Lewis, Katey Sagal, Mary Steenburgen, Justin Long, Jay R. Ferguson, and Sarah Chalke -- and fans can probably expect more stars to stop by in Season 2. A premiere date has yet to be announced for 2019-2020, so stay tuned for updates.
