TV Q&A: No chance for Roseanne Barr's return on 'The Conners'

Q: In the first episode of "The Conners" (spoiler alert), the show killed off the Roseanne character by an opioid overdose. In the original "Roseanne" series, John Goodman's character (Dan) was killed off by a heart attack but came back to life in the new show as if everything that happened was a bad dream. Is there any possibility ABC will forgive Roseanne Barr and bring her back alive again?

A: The circumstances of the two deaths were very different. Dan died in the original series at the end of its run, with the assumption that the show would not be back. When ABC and Barr decided to resume the comedy, it had to be with one of its most important characters — which Dan was, and is — so the revival simply ignored his previous demise (aside from a couple of meta jokes). But killing Roseanne was necessitated by her departure from the show after a furor over her off-camera comments. As James Poniewozik said in the New York Times, "what really killed Roseanne Conner [was] Roseanne Barr's racism." It's unlikely the network will bring her back after that.

Q: Has "Suits" been canceled?

A: No. It's on a break but will be back for an eighth season in 2019. You can also look forward to a spinoff, currently untitled, focusing on the character of Jessica Pearson, played by Gina Torres. That show will find Jessica working in Chicago, and it's reported that the cast was shooting recently in the Windy City.

Q: I loved watching "Xena: Warrior Princess" with Lucy Lawless and Renee O'Connor. Did they play in any other TV shows or movies? What are they doing now?

A: Since "Xena" ended in 2001, Lawless has been a frequent screen presence, including in the series "Battlestar Galactica," "Spartacus," "No Ordinary Family," "Parks and Recreation," "Salem" and, most recently, on Starz, "Ash vs. Evil Dead." O'Connor has also been on-screen, for example in the series "Ark," movies such as "Beyond the Farthest Star" and the 2017 film "A Question of Faith."

Q: Any information about the return of "The Orville"? I really enjoyed the spoof-like stories and all the futuristic inventions.

Q: We thought the movie "August Rush" was marvelous. My husband says Freddie Highmore did not play the guitar in the movie. I said it looked like he did. Who is right?

A: According to a 2007 story in the Christian Science Monitor, Highmore underwent three months of intense training. "Jeff McErlain, Highmore's New York-based guitar instructor, says the actor spent three to six hours each week on lessons," the newspaper said. "Ultimately, a hand double [guitarist Kaki King] was used, although sparingly, and only because certain virtuosic passages were added too late in the filming schedule for Highmore to learn."