The set of “Morning Joe” reacted with a mix of admiration and envy to news that Roseanne’s return to television this week had been a ratings monster. On Thursday co-host Mika Brzezinski channeled her inner Regina George after reporting news that Donald Trump had actually called Roseanne to congratulate her.
“I’m not into these comeback shows but that looked fun,” she said, affecting her voice with sarcasm. “NBC News has confirmed that the president actually called Roseanne Barr — of course he did; he has nothing else to do — to congratulate her on the ratings win. Of course he did.”
On the reboot, Roseanne plays an unapologetic Trump voter, with sharp dialogue that reflects the current political mood.
Also on “Morning Joe” Thursday, Joe Scarborough took a long view analysis, saying that all Roseanne did was bring back the spirit of the 1960s when Archie Bunker battled Meathead on the set of “All in the Family.”
“All families have people on both sides of that political divide and sometimes it can get tough around the household,” he said. “Norman Lear did it 45 years ago with ‘All in the Family’ … A miserable political divide in the late ’60s and early ’70.”
Roseanne’s reboot premiere Tuesday evening stunned industry professionals after drawing in more than 18 million viewers. In addition to her character on the show, Roseanne has staked a pro-Trump stance online, becoming something of a cult figure on Twitter in recent months.