Roseanne and her famous sitcom returned to our screens this week, drawing an estimated 18.4m viewers, including one very notable fan.
US president Donald Trump called actress and writer Roseanne Barr to thank her for her support - both Roseanne and her TV alter-ego are Trump supporters.
Barr told ABC’s Good Morning America: “I’ve known him for many years and he’s done a lot of nice things for me over the years".
The portrayal of the Connor family as Trump supporters has created controversy - both on-screen and off - as Jackie (her sister played by Laurie Metcalf) is a staunch opponent of the president. Ahead of the relaunch Barr defended her choice to portray the Connors as Trump supporters, saying: "[this] is a show that’s always been able to represent the world".
At the show’s New York premiere on Monday Barr reiterated that the conflict between the sisters was representaives of families all over America.
“It shows people’s different opinions and how they resolve them,” she said. “I saw it happening in all the families I know, so I thought, ‘Well this is, you know, it’s good, hopefully it will get people talking to each other.’”
Roseanne was the most-watched show in America in 1989/90 and topped the charts for its original nine-season run, however the debut episode of the new series managed to top that with 10 per cent more viewers tuning in than watched the original finale in 1997.
The show has so far receieved mixed reviews from critics with EW saying: "Is this Roseanne revival necessary? Probably not. But it's still real nice to have the Conners back."
The Hollywood Reporter commented on the Trump storyline: "the 'I like Roseanne, but I don't know if I can deal with the Trump stuff' is such a strange worry. That Roseanne can still make you squirm, just a little, is proof that it's still Roseanne."
While Vulture said: "In other important ways, Roseanne hasn't changed at all. It is still funny in the same ways it was always funny, using classic sitcom jokes and storylines to highlight issues of class."
