“…it was working-class people who elected Trump…”
On March 27, viewers will be invited back to “ Roseanne’s ” house, more than 20 years after the original show ended.
The nine-episode reboot will feature the same rambunctious, and at times, dysfunctional, Conner family, which actress Sara Gilbert described to Reuters as “divided by politics but still filled with love.”
Although Roseanne Barr and her on-screen husband, John Goodman, play supporters of President Donald Trump, not everyone shares the same political views.
This was a detail that Barr believed was very important to include if she wanted it to be a “true reflection of the society we live in.” She told The Hollywood Reporter:
“I feel like half the people voted for Trump and half didn’t, so it’s just realistic. And, in fact, it was working-class people who elected Trump, so I felt like that was very real and something that needed to be discussed and especially about polarization in the family and people actually hating other people for the way they voted, which I feel is not American.”
While the “ Roseanne ” reboot is fictional, actor Michael Fishman, who plays the role of son D. J. Conner, said it offers something real-life could use more of — civil political discourse.
“We have the conversation about why we don’t agree,” Fishman revealed Reuters. “That dialogue is kind of missing.”
Despite politics being included in the show, executive producer Bruce Helford explained to Reuters that “there is no agenda” except to portray a relatable family with “honest feelings.”
Gilbert, who is also an executive producer on the show, hopes that in a time “when our country is divided,” people will see the fictional Conners disagree, but still love each other and realize they can do the same.
