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Reba McEntire finds herself behind the bar in her latest return to network TV, making a series that's a nicely calibrated cocktail of drama and comedy.
“The things that are most important in my life is love, hope, faith, happiness, energy, light. And that’s all of the things that are happening with this show,” the country music legend says.
NBC's “Happy's Place” — premiering Friday — finds McEntire’s character, Bobbie, inheriting a Tennessee tavern from her recently-deceased father and finding out in the first episode that he had a second family.
Even more alarming is the fact that her dad left ownership of the bar to both Bobbie and her newly-discovered sister, Isabella. Add to the tension is that the two women are divided by ethnicity and a generation or two.
“I’m shocked. I mean, I didn’t think Daddy could ever do anything like this, ’cause he always said family was the most important thing,” Bobbie says. To which, Isabella replies: “Maybe that’s why he started two of them.”
Belissa Escobedo, who plays Isabella, says the new series can be seen as both sweet and sour, as these two women learn to make peace and move forward.
“I think Bobbie reacts to this news very differently than Isabella does, and the audience is able to see it and understand both sides. I love that Isabella kind of just inches her way into Bobbie’s heart,” says Escobedo.
In the series, Bobbie finally looks at Isabella and realizes what she's done: “I’ve been looking at you like a person that has been forced upon me. Instead, I should be looking at you like a sister that’s been given to me.”
Escobedo, whose film credits include “Blue Beetle,” “Hocus Pocus 2” and who has been a series regular in TV shows like “The Baker and the Beauty,” says working with McEntire is a joy.
“She is an angel. She is so sweet, so down to earth. She does everything with a smile and comes in ready to work, but also ready to have fun.”
The new series comes from TV veteran Kevin Abbott with a lengthy list of credits, including producing “Reba,” “Last Man Standing,” “Roseanne” and “Golden Girls.”
The show has a welcome “Cheers” vibe, another NBC stalwart set in a bar, which allows easy reasons for new stories through guest stars and room for some oddball regulars to flourish, including a reunion with McEntire and Melissa Peterman, who shined together in “Reba" and Rex Lin, a frequent collaborator.
One of the early production ideas was to cast McEntire as a schoolteacher and have Peterman as the principal. But “Abbott Elementary” came out on ABC so that idea went out the window. The next proposal was exploring the idea of a secret family, inspired by 23andMe, the ancestry-tracing company.
“A lot of people can relate to this — finding that you’ve got a third cousin you didn’t know. I think that’s what helps shows be successful is when they’re relatable. That happens with books, songs, movies: If you can relate to it, it’s going to be more successful,” says McEntire.
Alongside Reba, Escobedo and Peterman, the cast also includes Pablo Castelblanco (“Alaska Daily”), Tokala Black Elk (“American Primeval,” “1883”) and Rex Linn (“Young Sheldon,” “Better Call Saul”). It's a multicultural set — Castelblanco is from Colombia, Linn is of Sioux descent and Escobedo has Mexican roots.
“To have that diverse cast has been interesting on screen and off screen for us because when we’re not doing something — when they’re rewriting or we’re waiting on something or we’re at rehearsals — we sit and visit and talk about each other and learn from each other. It’s been an education for all of us,” McEntire says.
McEntire will be hoping fans of “Reba” will check it out. Over six seasons, “Reba” performed more than decently for The WB — and later The CW — but faced competition at the awards shows from the likes of “Everybody Loves Raymond,” “Friends,” “Will & Grace,” “Sex and the City,” “Desperate Housewives,” “Malcolm in the Middle,” “Ugly Betty” and “30 Rock.”
The indefatigable McEntire, who is also shooting “The Voice” for NBC and presides over clothing and footwear lines, teamed up with iconic songwriter Carole King to write the new show’s theme song.
In one powerful scene from the new show, a framed children's drawing at the tavern falls and reveals that it was drawn by Isabella, proof their father cared about his secret child.
“I think the theme that we really explore, while also bringing comedy into it, is grief and what comes out of grief?" says Escobedo. "When one door closes, another opens — that’s one of the things that I think is not touched upon enough.”
