Roma Downey is celebrating the 30th anniversary of Touched by an angel not ruling out the possibility of a reboot.
In a new interview with ET’s Kevin Frazier, the 63-year-old actress said her mantra about the potential for more seasons (or even possibly a follow-up film) is “never say never.”
Downey, who played the adorable celestial body named Monica for nine seasons, said that while she’s not completely averse to returning to the role, she has serious hesitations given that the show’s other two main cast members, John Dye and Della Reese, have both died.
“That’s not a bad idea, unfortunately, we see all these reboots and a lot of the original cast, Della has sadly passed away and John Dye, our wonderful angel of death, has also passed away,” she said. “I always hoped that wonderful angel of death would come to them both and take them home.”
Reese, who played Monica’s angelic supervisor Tess, died in 2017 at age 86. Dye, known on the show as Andrew, died in 2011 at age 47 from acute methamphetamine poisoning.
Regarding the lasting legacy of the series — which welcomed notable guest stars like Maya Angelou, Muhammad Ali, Celine Dion, Sally Ride, Rosa Parks and more over its nearly 10-year run — Downey says she’s not surprised that the public is still discovering and returning to it decades later.
“I think it’s still inspiring to people,” she said. “It took a very simple premise that there was and is a god that you are loved by, that god wants to be part of your life and I think people tuned in to that message.”
As for his return to television, Downey said his new show, The Baxters, was the perfect project to throw back onto the small screen. The series, an adaptation of Karen Kingsbury’s novels, also stars Ted McGinley, Ali Cobrin, Cassidy Gifford and Kathie Lee Gifford.
The actress, who plays matriarch Elizabeth Baxter and also serves as an executive producer, told ET that she acquired the rights to the books years ago after discovering the series and immediately recognizing the potential it had to be a hit.
“Someone gave me the book and I was reading it on the plane and I couldn’t put it down. I was thinking, ‘This is a great story, great characters, this has to be a TV show.'” ” she said. “I called Karen and asked if she would trust me… we started our conversation by saying, ‘I believe this is the time, I think we need a show like this on television. I think it will bring families together. ‘”
According to Prime Video, the series follows perfect parents Elizabeth (Downey) and John Baxter (McGinley) who reunite with their five children to support one of them. Elizabeth and John encourage their children to come forward, while her daughter, Kari (Cobrin), reveals that her husband is having an affair with one of his students.
Downey says it’s the perfect Easter weekend binge for families who are getting together and want to enjoy a drama full of heart, laughter and tender moments that also feel deeply relatable.
“(It’s) a bit like a soap opera, but we think it’s better to call it an opera of hope,” she shared. “It models the family well. They’re not perfect people, there are some dysfunctions, they have problems like everyone else, but I think it makes them very relatable.”
Watch the trailer for the new series in the player below:
The show’s launch has been a long time coming for the cast and crew, who filmed the entire first season more than half a decade ago in 2018. Downey says they encountered several obstacles on the way to airing, including purchasing a major studio and a global pandemic that slowed things down.
“Well, you know, there was a pandemic and there was a big buyout at MGM, like workers, when Amazon bought the company,” she said.
The actress is referring to Amazon’s 2022 purchase of MGM Studios. The e-commerce giant purchased the legendary film studio for a whopping $8.5 billion in a deal that concluded in March of that year.
“Everything slowed down,” she said. “But I firmly believe that things happen when they are supposed to happen and at a time like this, The Baxters will be on Prime Video’s Easter weekend.
The Baxters premieres on Prime Video on March 28.
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