NBC has just greenlit what has become the most-talked-about new comedy series of the pilot season, handing out a series order for Happy’s Place which will reunite Reba costars Reba McEntire and Melissa Peterman.
The new series will see McEntire returning to her comedy roots as the lead of the new multi-camera comedy from Reba executive producer Kevin Abbott. McEntire will star as Bobbie, a woman who “inherits her father’s restaurant and is less than thrilled to discover that she has a new business partner in the half-sister she never knew she had.” Meanwhile, Peterman will appear as Gabby, the bartender at the restaurant who “is a bit needy and dramatic and would have loved to be Bobbie’s sister.”
Happy’s Place brings McEntire and Peterman back together nearly 20 years after Reba wrapped its six-season run on The WB. While the pair have shared the screen over the years, this will mark the duo’s first team-up in which both actresses will appear as series regulars since their time on Reba.
Belissa Escobedo has been tapped to play McEntire's sister Isabella on the show with Rex Linn, Tokala Black, and Pablo Castelblanco rounding out the show's cast in the respective roles of the restaurant's cook Emmett, waiter Takoda, and accountant Steve.
Reba is leaving The Voice (at least we expect her to)
While fans are thrilled to see Reba McEntire and Melissa Peterman teaming up for the new comedy, which is sure to make waves whenever it arrives as part of NBC’s 2024-25 TV calendar, the series order of Happy’s Place hints that Reba is leaving The Voice.
Given McEntire will be leading the new comedy series, it’s highly unlikely her schedule will allow her to film Happy’s Place and also appear as a coach on the next season of The Voice. As such, it’s expected that McEntire will be stepping back from The Voice after two seasons as a coach on the show.
With The Voice season finale coming on May 21, it’s likely NBC will confirm the coaching line-up for season 26 sometime in the upcoming weeks. At that time, it’s expected NBC will confirm that McEntire is stepping back as a coach and a new or returning coach will be named to take over her chair for the next season of the network’s hit singing competition series.
What will be interesting is to see who NBC might tap to bring in to replace McEntire as well as whether any additional coaches might be leaving the show after season 25 concludes this May.