Ahead of the 'Mad About You' Revival premiere, here's a look at how other 90s sitcom revivals fared
Nearly 20 years into the 21st century, one thing permeates, the nostalgia for everything 90s, which extends from fashion and includes television as well. With the 'Mad About You' limited series revival hitting Spectrum's On-Demand platform on November 20th, we decided to look at the other 90s sitcoms that have been subjected to the revival treatment and how they did.
While some did well enough to be renewed for further seasons ('Will & Grace'), others racked up controversy, either surrounding its lead actress ('Roseanne') or its material ('Murphy Brown').
Will & Grace
The NBC sitcom originally aired from 1998 to 2006, with the revival being ordered by NBC in the form of a limited series. However, the revival was welcomed by fans and critics alike with an 88% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, so NBC renewed the show for additional seasons. The revival will end with the current season, which is technically the 11th season of the sitcom.
'Will & Grace' picked up right where it left off when it ended in 2006 with critics saying that it added "a fresh relevance and a series of stories that make sharply funny use of the passage of time". Fans loved seeing Will, Grace, Karen, and Jack on their screens again and what was originally supposed to be just ten episodes, lasted for three full seasons.
Roseanne
'Roseanne' originally aired on ABC from 1988 to 1997 with the revival coming back for one season in 2018. It was meant to last for longer and certainly did well with the episodes that aired.
However, due to the controversy surrounding the lead actress, Roseanne Barr where she had posted a racist tweet referring to Valerie Jarrett, an Iranian-born African-American who served as Senior Advisor to former US President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2017, ABC canceled the show.
Shortly after the cancelation news, a spin-off focusing on Sara Gilbert's Darlene, called 'The Conners' was announced. The new show would include every original main cast member except Roseanne Barr. Since its premiere on ABC, the show has been a strong and consistent performer and is often considered to be a "sure bet" when it comes to renewals for newer seasons.
Murphy Brown
'Murphy Brown' originally ran on CBS from 1988 until 1998 and the revival premiered on the same network during the 2018 fall season. The 13-episode revival saw Candice Bergen reprise her Emmy Award-winning titular role, with a few other original cast members returning, and Jake McDorman playing Murphy's adult son.
When the revival premiered, it got off to a rocky start and critics held out hope for it to get better. However, in its attempt to stay topical in the highly political environment in the post-Trump era saw the revival often falling flat on its punchlines, which led to CBS canceling the show after one season.