'Roseanne' star Sara Gilbert praises Emma Kenney for 'seeking treatment'
Sara Gilbert, co-star and on-screen mother to Emma Kenney on the hit ABC series
"Roseanne" star Emma Kenney is firing back at critics who have slammed the show for taking on politics and called the revival divisive, claiming it's not a good representation of an average American family.
The show features a pro-Trump lead actress, Roseanne Barr, and in the revival's premiere it was revealed Roseanne's character voted for President Trump.
Kenney said the cast doesn't talk politics when the cameras aren't rolling and she encourages viewers to be open-minded and give the reboot a chance.
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"There’s a whole lot of different storylines that are going on other than politics."
“Something I want the viewers to know is we talk so much about things going on in [the] current day other than politics," Kenney told The Hollywood Reporter. "There’s a whole lot of different storylines that are going on other than politics.”
Sara Gilbert, who plays Darlene, echoed Kenney's comments in a previous interview on “Watch What Happens Live" on April 1.
“The show is not about politics. It’s not about anyone’s position or a policy, it’s really about what happens to a family when there’s a political divide, which is something that I think the entire country can relate to and something we need to talk about," she said.
Kenney said the show aims to showcase a typical family.
“The show is all about a family and family differences and how they bond together at the end of the day and end up having a nice family meal," Kenney said. "And maybe it’s not so nice, maybe they’re screaming at each other, but it’s all in normal family fun.”
Kenney, who plays Darlene's daughter Harris Conner on the show, is one of several new characters to join the cast more than 20 years after the original first aired — and it's a role she takes pride in.
"I’m so excited to have been able to join this iconic '90s family and be working with the class acts that have graced the covers of The Hollywood Reporter before," Kenney, 18, told the publication. "Just working with that level of talent is a true blessing and an amazing experience."
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Barr has gotten plenty of backlash since the show returned.
"Diversity of opinion is part of diversity," she tweeted two days after the reboot first aired. "Hating ppl for not agreeing with your approach to ending hatred is not cool."
Barr doesn't shy away from sharing her political beliefs. She's also defended her real-life support of President Trump, though she clarified in the past that she's "not a Trump apologist."
“I’m still the same — you all moved. You all went so f---ing far out you lost everybody,” Barr told late-night host Jimmy Kimmel during a guest appearance on March 22 when he said he remembered her being a "very socially liberal" person in the past. “A lot of us, no matter who we voted for, we don’t want to see our president fail.”
Kenney, meanwhile, is an emerging star, but she recently told In Touch magazine her fame hasn't been carefree. She revealed she went to recently rehab to seek treatment for her "battles."
'Roseanne' airs on Tuesdays on ABC.
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