'The Conners’ Star Was Surprised Character’s Storyline Worked After Roseanne’s Death

John Goodman admitted he was surprised that fans were okay with his character Dan Conner’s second marriage on The Conners. In 2021, the longtime character wed Louise Goldufski (played by Katey Sagal) on the Roseanne spinoff. The marriage came three years after Roseanne Barr’s lead character was killed off the show, leaving Dan a widower after 45 years with his high school sweetheart.

In an interview with The Los Angeles Times ahead of the series finale, Goodman said the only reason his character’s new relationship worked was because it was with Sagal. “Well, that's just Katey,” he told the outlet. “I don't think we could have gotten away with it with anybody else. I think Dan was looking forward to playing the field a little bit, but Katey is so great. We hit it off naturally.”

Producers put a lot of thought into the Conner patriarch’s moving-on process. In 2021, executive producer Dave Caplan told TV Line that writers tried to be “very thorough” and “respectful of both the Roseanne character and of Dan’s feelings.”

Fellow showrunner Rob Helford noted that Goodman and Sagal had natural chemistry, which translated to the camera. “He and Katey have a great relationship,” Helford said. “They’ve become such good friends on stage and have such a good time together that it has become very real."

Before The Conners, Sagal was best known for her roles on Married…With Children and Sons of Anarchy. In an interesting twist, she almost lost out on her breakout role as Peg Bundy on Married …With Children to none other than Barr. According to Vulture, producers originally approached Barr for the role of the Bundy matriarch, but she turned it down to focus on her stand-up comedy career. One year later, she landed her own sitcom with Roseanne.

Related: ‘The Conners’ Star Would ‘Love’ a Spinoff For Longtime Character