The Conners star Michael Fishman confirmed coronavirus will be part of the new season. The actor, 38, posted a new photo on Instagram that showed him wearing a face mask while filming a new episode of the ABC sitcom.
In a new pic shared to his social media page, Fishman, who plays D.J. Conner on the show, wore a disposable blue face covering while standing in the famous kitchen featured on the Roseanne spinoff. A dish towel could be seen hanging from the sink and there was clutter on the countertops in the TV family’s famously messy house.
In the caption to the pic, the actor noted that even though you can return to familiar surroundings, change is constant. He added he is continuing to grow each day.
In the comments section to the post, fans used the opportunity to ask The Conners star some questions, which he answered. One fan asked if there will be a studio audience this fall.
“Not yet,” Fishman replied. “I hope so though because I really value and appreciate our audience.”
Another fan questioned if this was the same set and studio from the 1990s when Roseanne aired on ABC. The actor explained that it had to be recreated.
And when another viewer asked if the cast has to wear masks when filming and wondered if The Conners will feature a quarantine episode, Fishman teased that COVID-19 will make a cameo when the comedy series returns to ABC this fall.
“I’ll just say we always acknowledge real life,” he said.
While a premiere date for the third season of The Conners has not yet been announced, another fan asked Fishman when to expect new episodes.
“I believe late September,” he wrote.
While the real-life pandemic will affect life in Lanford, it won’t be the focus of the entire season.
During an appearance on Good Morning America this week, series star Sara Gilbert said “there’s definitely some [COVID] fatigue” setting in, so the show will balance the real-life scenario with other stories that have nothing to do with the health pandemic.
“People probably also want a break to some degree and not always be hearing about the pandemic,” she said, per TV Line . “There are storylines that touch on it. It affects each of our lives in terms of our livelihood. But we also have a lot of storylines that are not related [to COVID-19].”
Gilbert added that viewers will see the Conners wearing masks, but that it’s “not always front and center in every storyline.”
Earlier this week, the first key art for The Conners was released. A portrait featuring main cast members Fishman, Gilbert, John Goodman, Laurie Metcalf, and Lecy Goranson featured them all sporting matching afghan-patterned face masks in tribute to the iconic quilt that has been draped over the Conner clan’s couch for more than 30 years.
