Disney/Christopher Willard
‘The Conners’ Cast Says Filming the Show’s Final Episode Was ‘Hard’: ‘It’s Taken a Long Time to Process’
It certainly has not been easy for The Conners cast to say goodbye to the characters we have all come to know and love. Amid the show’s final episodes airing on ABC, the cast members reflected on what it was like to finish filming season 7 when they taped the final episode last October.
“Honestly, I couldn’t wrap my head around it. I would have grief, but then it would switch to this feeling that I couldn’t ground myself in the idea that it was over. It felt surreal,” Sara Gilbert admitted in a Wednesday, April 9, interview with the Los Angeles Times. “Laurie and I talk about it still. I think we can’t fully grasp that it’s over because it was such a part of our routine for so many years.”
John Goodman, who plays Dan Conner, said, “It was hard. No, it wasn’t hard to get through. We did it. But, you know, when you pull the plug on something like that, it’s hard for me. But we had so much fun doing it. It’ll always be a great memory.”
Laurie Metcalf, who plays Jackie Harris, also agreed with her costars, saying, “I think we all felt, cast and crew, very fragile during the last taping. We’d been together for decades and this was the end. I was having a ‘magical thinking’ experience and was convinced we’d all be back on the set on Monday like always. It’s taken a long time to process.”
Ames McNamara, who plays Darlene’s son, Mark Healy II, said, “My first day of work was just after my 10th birthday, and my last was on my 17th birthday. I can remember walking on to the stage for the first table read pretty clearly, even though I don’t think I had a good sense of the amazing family I was joining at the time.”
Jay R. Ferguson, who plays Darlene’s husband, Ben Olinsky, said he “will miss those moments backstage with everyone on tape night, right before we would get introduced.”
“I was always pinching myself as I looked around at our cast as well as all the amazing guest stars we had, not understanding how I was there, but eternally grateful that I was,” he added.
In the upcoming episode of the show, which is set to air on Wednesday, April 16, “Dan sidesteps vulnerable emotions surrounding Roseanne’s death ahead of an upcoming deposition. Meanwhile, Becky prepares for a job interview, and Harris impulsively hires a new server at the Lunch Box.”
The episode is titled “Danny Boy, the Interview, the New Hire, and the Hanging Chad.”
The final season of the sitcom only consists of six episodes, with the show’s series finale set to air on April 23.
“Jackie prepares for a series of physical tests in an effort to rejoin the police force; Darlene confronts the insecurities in her marriage with Ben; Dan’s deposition stirs up feelings, and final farewells are made in true Conner family fashion,” the plot for the series finale said.
The Conners airs new episodes on Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
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