The Middle Spinoff Adds SMILF Actress — Plus: Sue Heck’s New Job Revealed!
Heck hath no fury like a chef scorned. Kimberley Crossman (SMILF) has joined the pilot of ABC’s Sue-centric Middle spinoff, TVLine has learned, playing Remi, a talented hotel chef still recovering from a messy breakup that ended with her boyfriend driving away with their food truck — taking all of her dreams with it.
If you’re wondering what puts Sue (Eden Sher) in the path of this particular chef, we’ve got another bit of scoop for you: When Sue moves to Chicago, she’ll find herself working at the same hotel. Speaking with TVLine back in July, Sher said the new project — which has not yet been ordered to series — would focus on “Sue being Sue as a young adult.” (It will also be set prior to Sue marrying her neighbor Sean, as seen in a flashback during The Middle‘s series finale.)
In addition to Sher reprising the fan-favorite role of Sue Heck, The Middle‘s spinoff — whose reported title, Sue Sue in the City, remains unofficial — also stars Brock Ciarlelli, who recurred throughout all nine seasons of The Middle as Sue’s best friend Brad. Sue and Brad dated in the show’s first season, but things fizzled out when she discovered he smoked cigarettes. Things looked even less hopeful for their romantic future when, in Season 7, Brad came out as gay.
Your thoughts on this latest Middle spinoff update? Drop ’em in a comment below.
I’ll be watching. I love Sue & Brad
Can’t wait
I so miss The Middle! This will help to fill my hole. :) STILL needs a better title though, and I hope the showrunners are paying attention to comments sections, as that last post really had some great ideas!
She said “fill her hole” lol
I thought only I was that immature…then I saw your comment.
I noticed the double entendre when I posted the comment…if it made anyone giggle, it was worth it. ;)
Nice! A sense of humor, so refreshing these days of PC hurt feelings anger.
I much prefer it when the comment sections are fun than to when they are trollish! ;)
I still want Sue with Darren?
Give it up already, Darren was a dork. Besides “The Middle” ended with previews of what’s to come and Sue definitely ends up with Sean.
OMG….I just want to know why we never saw the actor who played Darren again and why no one ever mentioned him. There’s definitely a mystery there.
I believe it was a flash forward that saw Sue marrying Sean…
I hope this is done right.
She deserved an Emmy for her work on the middle.
Keep the good news coming please! Can’t wait!!!!
Sue is one of my favorite characters of all time. It will be great to have her back.
I like how they’re doling out info a little bit at a time. I really hope this gets picked up to series.
I was not going to watch this show but as a Kiwi…I feel it’s my solemn duty to support my fellow Kiwi… Super proud of her…love Kim to bits. Hope she won’t become too big to occasionally appear on The Project like she does now. I wish her well, hope this role sticks.
I hope she gets recast.
Her performance on Shortland Street years ago was terrible, and hasn’t shown much growth since then. I remember how nuts NZ media went a few years ago when she booked a one episode guest role on NCIS (they made it sound like she was going to be a series regular) and her scene was over-acted, had a terrible fake accent and was over in an instant.
This sounds like it would be a much better fit on Freeform, like Grownish, than ABC.
This is the best news I’ve heard all day! Thank you!
She, like Eka Darville, Adelaide Kane, Rose McIver, Brandon McLaren, and Felicity’s Amy Jo Johnson, is a Power Rangers alum. She appeared in Power Rangers Samurai as Lauren, and served as the first woman to be a hero Red Ranger in the entire franchise
Eden Sher’s Instagram post picture tagged Brock Ciarlelli and Kimberly and a few others. I will have to go back and check it out. I loved The Middle especially Sue. That show was best showing family and friends and their relationships. Hope this Remi does not harass Sue, I had enough of her being treated badly by Axl , and various others over the years. I still want to know what happened to Darrin. He was a nice guy. I think most of us want to see the other Hecks, Lexie, Carly. The last season of The Middle drove me crazy due to the writers keeping Sue and Sean apart. Please show us some of that relationship. Let Sue and Sean be happy. Also loved Hutch. Sue’s snow globe breaking in the last episode was very sad. Please repair it or give her a new one. I admittedly cried at the end of the Christmas episode, and the last episode was great, Axl leaving home, Sue and Sean and the”love yous.” I just want it to take less than 10 years to see this engagement and wedding. New characters are fine. The Middle already had great characters, please use them.
Finesse Mitchell and Aaron Branch were also tagged in Instagram posts by Eden and Kimberley over the weekend. Dunno if that’s everyone they’ve got lined up to be regular (or recurring, if it goes to series). I’m hoping they’re going to continue to announcing them one by one, and giving us more details about the characters and the plot as they go.
Can hardly wait!!!!
“as seen in a flashback”
Not to be picky (well. maybe a little) but wouldn’t that be considered a “flash-forward” (like Lost was famous for)?
Middle is one of my 5 fav shows all time, watched it beginning to end, have the DVDs, but I won’t waste my time with this garbage. It won’t last, because the first time Brad kisses a man, there goes the audience! Leave the middle where it lays, in TV Mt Olympus!
Hopefully they will not turn Brads character into a ABC After School Special. They did a great job with Brad. He was a character that happened to be gay. That is not what solely defined him. They should continue to let Brad develop as he has throughout The Middle. Don’t ruin him!
I know that after the Season 9 Episode 12 episode where Brad asked Sue to continue to date Aiden, so that he could get close enough to that Luke character, people were up in arms. Hello people! Brad is gay. My problems with that episode were about Brad expecting Sue to date that klutz Aiden, who kept injuring poor Sue. Brad almost did not seem to care, he just wanted to ask Luke out. Some BFF. Brad supposedly knew for years that Sue had this big crush on Sean and was at this point in love with him. I just hope that in this spinoff Brad finds happiness, but not at Sue’s expense. I could also see Brad getting on Sean’s last nerve, if they have Sean on the show.
No thanks!
I am disappointed. I wanted to see “Sue Sue, Mrs. Donahue”!
That’s so cute!
I also forgot to ask TV Line why they always seem to put mostly unflattering pictures of Eden Sher in these articles. By the end of Season 9 she looked exhausted, though the show was doing a great job with her hair. Eden cut her hair off. Is Eden going to have to wear a wig as Sue like Patricia Heaton did.? I can’t see Sue Heck with super short hair.
I *LOVED* The Middle! I love that Sue’s friend Brad will be there. I hope the other characters get cameos or appear once in awhile, because I believed them as a family. They had the best chemistry! It will be good to see Sue Heck flourish as an adult, and maybe go back to her school on career day, to offer advice to new students – she is proof that one should never give up! Go Sue!
Since they are not putting Atticus Shaffer(Brick) in it, I won’t be watching.
Where did they come up with the idea that Sue was the better character?
Brick was the one that made you laugh. I hope if they offer Atticus to be a guest on the new show, he turns it down, like they did him.
I guess I have different feelings towards this then everyone else. I’m not looking forward to the spin-off. I want to remember every cast member the way they were. Every spin off of any show seems to suck. They also seem to be super pc lately which makes it even worse. I don’t want to be disappointed. Maybe I’ll just ignore the spin off and watch reruns. I hope you that choose to watch the spin off enjoy it :)
I really miss the Heck family, wish the show could come back. Looking forward to this spinoff.