The Conners cast guide: How old was the Roseanne cast then (and now)?

Back in 1988, the world met the hilariously dysfunctional Conner family in the ABC sitcom Roseanne. The average American working-class family reside in Lanford, Illinois managing to stay afloat with a limited income. Almost 30 years to the day after its premiere in October 2018, the Conner family returned in the continuation series The Conners.

Before The Conners premiered, Roseanne returned for its 10th season a few months prior, but after its titular star made racist comments online, the network pulled the plug on the revival. ABC turned the 11th season renewal into a whole new show — the family sitcom that's still on air to this day. The Conners has kept the original series' legacy alive with the same relatability and sense of humor.

While the series continues with its sixth season on ABC, the first five seasons of the sitcom became available to stream on Netflix in March 2024. As Roseanne fans tune into the series to relive their nostalgia for the original and new fans tune in to see what the fuss is all about, you will naturally wonder how older characters like Darlene and Becky were in the OG versus in the revival.

We're sharing what to know about the cast of The Conners, including how old they were in the '80s, how old they are now, and a little about what they've been up to from past to present. Also, get to know the new generation of Conners that's bringing the laughs in the new edition of the sitcom!

John Goodman as Dan Conner

John Goodman was born on June 20, 1952, making the Dan Conner actor 71 years old as of March 2024. When he returned to his iconic sitcom role in The Conners in October 2018, Goodman was 66 years old. Back in October 1988 when he originated the role of Dan Conner in Roseanne, he was 36 years old.

For his role on Roseanne, Goodman received seven consecutive Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series between 1989 and 1995. He later won an Emmy in 2007 for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series for his role in Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. He also won a Golden Globe Award for his role on Roseanne in 1994.

Some of John Goodman's best known film roles include Raising Arizona, Barton Fink, The Big Lebowski, O Brother Where Art Thou?, The Flintstones, Argo, Monsters Inc., The Emperor's New Groove, Inside Llewyn Davis, 10 Cloverfield Lane, Kong: Skull Island, and Atomic Blonde among others. On the small screen, he's also appeared in Treme, Damages, Alpha House, Black Earth Rising, and The Righteous Gemstones.

Goodman has been married to Annabeth Hartzog since 1989, and together they had a daughter, Molly Evangeline, in 1990.

Laurie Metcalf as Jackie Harris-Goldufski

Laurie Metcalf was born on June 16, 1955, making the Jackie Harris actress 68 years old as of March 2024. Metcalf played the role as Roseanne's younger sister Jackie since the sitcom's premiere in October 1988 when the actress was 33 years old. When she returned 30 years later to reprise the role, Metcalf was 63 years old.

For her role as Jackie in Roseanne, Metcalf won three consecutive Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series in 1992, 1993, and 1994. She received another nomination for the role in 1995. She's since landed seven more Emmy nominations for her work in shows like Desperate Housewives, Getting On, and The Big Bang Theory. In 2018, she was nominated again for Roseanne season 10. She won her fourth Emmy in 2022 for her guest role in the Max series Hacks.

Metcalf has also won two Tony Awards and has been nominated for an Academy Award for her work in Greta Gerwig's Lady Bird. She's appeared in a number of popular films, including Desperately Seeking Susan, Uncle Buck, the Toy Story franchise, and a fan-favorite role in Scream 2. On the small screen, Metcalf has guest starred on many popular series like 3rd Rock from the Sun, Malcolm in the Middle, Frasier, Grey's Anatomy, Supergirl, The Dropout, and more. Prior to The Conners, her series regulars roles were in the comedies The Norm Show, Charlie Lawrence, Easy Money, Getting On, and The McCarthys.

The Emmy winner has been married twice, with the first time being to actor Jeff Perry from 1983 to 1986. The couple had a daughter together in 1983, actress Zoe Perry, who would later star in her mother's The Big Bang Theory role in the sitcom's prequel series Young Sheldon. Metcalf married actor and Roseanne costar Matt Roth in 1993. They had three children together before splitting in 2008 and divorcing in 2014.

Sara Gilbert as Darlene Conner-Olinsky

Sara Gilbert was born on Jan. 29, 1975, making the Darlene Conner actress 49 years old as of March 2024. When the world first met Gilbert in Roseanne back in October 1988, she was just a teenager at 13 years old, and when the cast reunited 30 years later for The Conners, Gilbert was 43 years old.

For her work on Roseanne, Gilbert was nominated for two consecutive Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series in 1993 and 1994. During the later years of the series, she attended Yale University and graduated in 1997. After the sitcom ended its initial run in 1997, guest starred and recurred in shows like 24, Will & Grace, ER, The Big Bang Theory, Jane the Virgin, and Atypical. and had main roles in shows such as Welcome to New York, Twins, Bad Teacher, and Living Biblically. Gilbert also created the CBS talk show The Talk and was a co-host from 2010 to 2019 through the show's ninth season.

From 2001 to 2011, Gilbert was in a relationship with television producer Ali Adler. Together, the former couple shares two children: son Levi Hank (born 2004) and daughter Sawyer Jane (born 2007). After their split, Gilbert married singer-songwriter Linda Perry in 2014 and they had a son named Rhodes in 2015. Gilbert and Perry divorced in 2019.

Lecy Goranson as Becky Conner-Healy

Lecy Goranson was born on June 22, 1974, which means the Becky Conner actress will turn 50 years old in 2024. When she originated the role of Becky in October 1988, Goranson was 14 years old, and when she returned 30 years later for the revival series, she was 44 years old. After five seasons, Goranson departed the role of Becky to attend Vassar College in 1992. The role was taken over by Scrubs and Firefly Lane actress Sarah Chalke for seasons 6, 7 and 9. Goranson and Chalke shared the role for season 8.

After Roseanne, Goranson appeared in the 1999 film Boys Don't Cry, which won an Academy Award for Hilary Swank's performance. The Becky actress also appeared in episodes of Sex and the City, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Fringe, Damages, and Inside Amy Schumer before returning to television full time in The Conners in 2018.

Michael Fishman as D.J. Conner

Michael Fishman was born on October 22, 1981, making the D.J. Conner actor 42 years old as of March 2024. Back when he landed his first-ever on-screen role on Roseanne in 1988, he was 6 years old (almost 7) and when he came back for the revival 30 years later, Fishman was 36 years old (almost 37).

When the original Roseanne ended in May 1997, Fishman was only 15 years old. While he continued to make television appearances in shows like Seinfeld and Walker, Texas Ranger, he was also still attending high school. He also reunited with his former sitcom mother Roseanne Bar for her 1999 talk show The Roseanne Show as her cohost and sidekick. After the fourth season of The Conners, Fishman didn't return to his role, with the actor stating that he was told his role had been cut.

Fishman was married to Jennifer Briner from 1999 (when he was 18 years old) to 2019, and together the couple have two children, a son and a daughter.

Emma Kenney as Harris Conner-Healy

Emma Kenney was born on Sept. 14, 1999, making the Harris Conner-Healy actress 24 years old as of March 2024. She was 19 years old when she joined the cast of the revival series as Darlene's teenage daughter, which she balanced with her role as Debbie Gallagher in Showtime's Shameless. Kenney starred in Shameless for all 11 seasons from 2011 to 2021.

Ames McNamara as Mark Conner-Healy

Ames McNamara was born on Sept. 27, 2007, making the Mark Conner-Healy actor 16 years old as of March 2024. When he started playing the role of Darlene's son in The Conners in 2018, he was 11 years old.

Jayden Rey as Mary Conner

Jayden Rey was born on April 25, 2009, meaning the Mary Conner actress will turn 15 years old in 2024. When she first started playing D.J. and Geena's daughter in the first season of The Conners in 2018, Rey was 9 years old. Following the fifth season, Rey left the series as a series regular.

Jay R. Ferguson as Ben Olinsky

Jay R. Ferguson was born on July 25, 1974, making the Ben Olinsky actor 49 years old as of March 2024. Ferguson had been recurring in The Conners in the first two seasons before becoming a series regular in the third season forward. He plays Darlene's boss and, by the end of the fourth season, her husband. In real life, he's married with three children.

Ferguson might be best known for his work in the television series Evening Shade, Mad Men, and The Real O'Neals, but he's also made a number of appearances in other popular titles, such as the Nicholas Sparks movie The Lucky One. He's also had guest roles in shows like Judging Amy, Surface, Weeds, Ghost Whisperer, The Mindy Project, Twin Peaks, and Briarpatch. He starred with The Conners costars Laurie Metcalf in The CW series Easy Money and Sara Gilbert in the CBS sitcom Living Biblically.

The first five seasons of The Conners are currently available to stream on Netflix.