I visited the set of Roseanne as part of the Disney/Lucasfilms-hosted Star Wars: The Last Jedi Event.
The set of Roseanne wasn’t the first set I’ve ever visited, but it was definitely one of the coolest! They weren’t shooting during our visit, so the entire set became a virtual playground.
Photos From The Roseanne Set
The living room was full of photos, just as you’d expect in any family. Look closer and you’ll see photos of the new grandchildren mixed in with the older photos.
The kitchen looks much as it did during the original run of the show, although a new refrigerator has replaced the old one.
Artwork around the kitchen shows that Dan and Roseanne are now Pop Pop and Grammy Rose. (Or in one case Granny Rose.)
Although, look closely and you can see that Roseanne is still Rosie to Dan.
A lift chair in the living room and prescriptions on the kitchen windowsill hint at some health problems.
Although many things stayed the same, there are plenty of things changing in the new episodes of Roseanne.
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First of all, the Conner kids are now adults. In some cases that means having kids of their own. In all cases, it means facing adult issues. According to Michael Fishman, we can expect a quick recap to satisfy the fans and to catch everyone up on the last 20 years. “I think the writers did a really good job of kind of explaining where we are now and how it kind of fits in the transition.”
After all of these years, the cast is still a family. “It feels like going home,” says Lecy Goranson. “That’s how I felt here, especially when I see these faces and I hear Roseanne’s voice piercing through the set.”
Why are they going back? According to Sara Gibert, it was time. “I felt like our country is so divided. And I feel like this is a working-class family that can have varying political views, even within the family, but still love each other. And I thought what a great way to try to help unite people, have people listen to each other. I strongly believe that we can disagree without being so divided.”
I thought I was going to have a big scoop when I asked if the chicken shirt would be back. Then they went and put the chicken shirt in the commercial, ruining my surprise. I can share that the original chicken shirt was lost someone over the years, but never fear. “You can buy a chicken shirt online,” reports Lecy.
A lot of the crew from the original run is back. That means cast and crew alike remember some of the old jokes from the original set. “People show up with shirts from the original run that were jokes then,” says Michael. “We’ve seen the meat stinks shirt. I saw a Wellman’s Plastics shirt the other day.” You can also keep an eye out for Laurie Metcalf wearing a shirt featuring the iconic photo of Michael in a bow tie that was seen in the original show’s opening.
Not only did the Conner kids answer our questions and welcome us to the set, they brought their mom along for a quick visit. That’s right. Roseanne Barr herself stopped in for a quick photo opp.
Catch the one hour Roseanne premiere event tonight, March 27, 2018 on ABC at 8/7C. You can also catch up on any episodes you’ve missed online or via the ABC app.
“Twenty Years to Life” – During the first half-hour episode of the season premiere, Roseanne and Dan adjust to living under the same roof with Darlene and her two children, Harris and Mark, when Darlene loses her job. Meanwhile, Becky announces she is going to be a surrogate to make extra money; and Roseanne and Jackie are at odds with one another.
Guest starring in this episode are Sarah Chalke as Andrea and Marques Ray as Ramon.
“Twenty Years to Life” was written by Bruce Rasumussen and directed by John Pasquin.
“Dress to Impress” – During the second half-hour episode, Darlene’s son, Mark, gets caught with a pocket knife after being bullied on the first day of his new school. Meanwhile, Becky invites Andrea over to meet the family and is nervous to bring her home.
Guest starring in this episode are Sarah Chalke as Andrea, Judy Prescott as Miss Crane and Izzie Leigh Coffey as Girl.
“Dress to Impress” was written by Darlene Hunt and directed by John Pasquin.
The series stars Roseanne Barr as Roseanne Conner, John Goodman as Dan Conner, Laurie Metcalf as Jackie Harris, Lecy Goranson as Becky Conner-Healy, Sara Gilbert as Darlene Conner, Michael Fishman as D.J. Conner, Emma Kenney as Harris Conner-Healy, Ames McNamara as Mark Conner-Healy and Jayden Rey as Mary Conner.
Roseanne Barr is an executive producer, along with Sara Gilbert, Tom Werner, Bruce Helford, Whitney Cummings and Tony Hernandez. The series is from Carsey-Werner Television.