Suddenly facing a real dearth of middle-class sitcoms that aren’t raging, gaping garbage fires on its schedule, ABC has announced that it might do the safe, sane thing, and go back for more of The Middle. (Remember The Middle? It was funny, and smart, and nobody blamed sleeping pills for their racist tweets.) Specifically, THR reports that the network is developing a spin-off based around Eden Sher’s character, Sue Sue Heck, the doggedly good-hearted middle child of the show’s hard-working central family.
The long-running ABC sitcom ended with the often-forgotten Sue working her way through college, complete with a flash-forward showing her getting married to her long-time on-and-off-again boyfriend Sean. That still leaves plenty of present-day material to cover, though, and word is that the network is currently mulling over a pilot order for a Sue-based show. There’s no other word yet on what format the series would use, or even if it’ll feature any other Middle stars, presumably because last week, ABC didn’t have to worry about shoring up any open holes in its Tuesday night comedy schedule, and now, suddenly, it does, so this all might be just a teensy bit rushed.