{"id":591333,"date":"2026-04-18T07:48:08","date_gmt":"2026-04-18T07:48:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/591333\/"},"modified":"2026-04-18T07:48:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-18T07:48:08","slug":"laurie-metcalf-reveals-snl-legend-norm-macdonald-wrote-iconic-roseanne-scene","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/591333\/","title":{"rendered":"Laurie Metcalf reveals ‘SNL’ legend Norm Macdonald wrote iconic ‘Roseanne’ scene"},"content":{"rendered":"

Laurie Metcalf is still getting credit for one of the funniest moments in sitcom history \u2014 but she says another comedy legend also deserves a mention.<\/p>\n

The three-time Emmy winner, currently promoting Netflix\u2019s \u201cBig Mistakes,\u201d<\/a> stopped by \u201cThe Drew Barrymore Show\u201d<\/a> this week and revisited her iconic \u201cRoseanne\u201d scene \u2014 the chaotic phone call where Jackie Harris tries to tell her hard-of-hearing aunt that her father has died.<\/p>\n

According to Metcalf, the unforgettable bit had help from a future \u201cSaturday Night Live\u201d<\/a> giant.<\/p>\n

Laurie Metcalf attends the NYC premiere for \u201cBig Mistakes\u201d on April 6, 2026. Getty Images for Netflix<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know who wrote that,\u201d Metcalf said. \u201cNorm Macdonald was one of the staff writers during that season, and he wrote that little scene.\u201d<\/p>\n

The sequence, from the Season 5 episode \u201cWait Till Your Father Gets Home,\u201d aired in 1993 and remains one of the most replayed clips from the hit sitcom.<\/p>\n

In it, Metcalf\u2019s Jackie starts gently: \u201cI have some bad news. Dad is not with us anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n

Metcalf as Jackie Harris in the iconic 1993 scene from \u201cRoseanne\u201d which won her an Emmy. ABC<\/p>\n

When that doesn\u2019t land, she tries again, louder: \u201cI said, Dad has passed away.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The call quickly unravels as Jackie grows increasingly frantic: \u201cHe\u2019s passed away. He\u2019s dead! No, dead! DEAD!\u201d<\/p>\n

After another failed attempt, she gives up entirely: \u201cNo, he\u2019s fine. He sends his love.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hanging up, she tells Roseanne: \u201cI am not doing that again. You can\u2019t make me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Norm Macdonald, who died of leukemia in 2021, appearing on \u201cThe View\u201d in 2018. Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images<\/p>\n

The performance became a defining moment for Metcalf\u2019s portrayal of Jackie and helped earn her an Emmy win that year for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy \u2014 one of three she would take home for the role.<\/p>\n

While the episode is officially credited to \u201cGilmore Girls\u201d creator Amy Sherman-Palladino, Macdonald was working in the writers\u2019 room at the time, meaning he likely contributed the now-famous exchange during the script-breaking process.<\/p>\n

He only spent one season on Roseanne before moving on to \u201cSNL,\u201d where he became the deadpan face of \u201cWeekend Update\u201d and one of the show\u2019s most distinctive voices.<\/p>\n

Barrymore, who has her own history with Macdonald through their shared connections to Adam Sandler, reacted to the reveal by calling him \u201cthe great Norm Macdonald.\u201d<\/p>\n

Metcalf, right, appearing on \u201cThe Conners\u201d with Sara Gilbert, John Goodman and Lecy Goranson. Disney via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Metcalf and Macdonald would cross paths again years later on \u201cThe Norm Show,\u201d which ran from 1999 to 2001 and featured the pair as social workers \u2014 a quieter reunion compared to the explosive energy of that earlier sitcom moment.<\/p>\n

Metcalf eventually returned to her role as Jackie for the \u201cRoseanne\u201d revival and its spinoff \u201cThe Conners,\u201d<\/a> keeping the character alive for a new generation of viewers.<\/p>\n

Macdonald died in September 2021 after a private battle with leukemia, prompting an outpouring of tributes from across the comedy world.<\/p>\n

Adam Sandler, Steve Martin and David Letterman were among those who honored his legacy.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn every important way, in the world of stand-up, Norm was the best,\u201d Letterman said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAn opinion shared by me and all peers. Always up to something, never certain, until his matter-of-fact delivery leveled you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Decades later, one of television\u2019s most quoted scenes still lands \u2014 and, as Metcalf now points out, it carries Macdonald\u2019s unmistakable comic fingerprint.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Laurie Metcalf is still getting credit for one of the funniest moments in sitcom history \u2014 but she…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":591334,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[57],"tags":[236,1036,88,115793,258200,3174,3175,12016,92],"class_list":{"0":"post-591333","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-celebrities","8":"tag-celebrities","9":"tag-comedy","10":"tag-entertainment","11":"tag-laurie-metcalf","12":"tag-norm-macdonald","13":"tag-roseanne","14":"tag-roseanne-barr","15":"tag-snl","16":"tag-tv"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/591333","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=591333"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/591333\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/591334"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=591333"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=591333"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=591333"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}