Michael Fishman


Michael Aaron Fishman is an American actor, writer, and producer known for playing D.J. Conner on the long-running series Roseanne and its spin-off show, The Conners.

Early life

Fishman was born in Los Angeles County, California, to a family of Jewish descent.

Career

''Roseanne'': 1988–1997, 2018

Fishman's acting career began after he met Roseanne Barr during an early audition. She asked him to tell her a joke. He said, "Why did the turtle cross the road? it was the chicken's day off." She was impressed, and although he had no experience, Barr fought for Fishman to play D.J. Conner. He worked on Roseanne from age six to fifteen.
On April 28, 2017, it was announced that an eight-episode revival of Roseanne was in the works and being shopped around to various networks and that it would feature most of the original main cast. However, at the time, it was unknown if Fishman would reprise his role as D.J. Conner. On May 16, 2017 it was confirmed that Fishman had signed on to appear in the revival, to air mid-season in 2018 on ABC.
On March 30, 2018, the series was renewed for an 11th season to consist of 13 episodes, following the success of the revival's premiere night. On May 29, 2018, in the wake of controversial remarks made by Barr on Twitter regarding Valerie Jarrett, ABC cancelled the revival after a single season, but a spinoff series, The Conners was approved in June 2018 for fall broadcast.

1997–2017

Fishman continued to act while attending the Orange County High School of the Arts at Los Alamitos High School in the Musical Theater and Technical Theater departments.
He appeared in guest roles on Walker, Texas Ranger and Seinfeld, and earned a recurring role alongside Andrew Dice Clay on Hitz just before it was canceled. Fishman also appeared in films, including Steven Spielberg's A.I. Artificial Intelligence. He then reconnected with Barr as a co-host of The Roseanne Show, which ran for two years before it was canceled in 2000.
Fishman has also worked on many television shows and films in other roles aside from acting, including executive producing, writing, directing, set building, production staff and camera operating. Some of his credits include, Great Job, Thanks!, The Real Roseanne Show & Sport Science.
In 2013, he was cast in Joseph Mazzello's directorial debut sports comedy-drama film Undrafted as Antonelli. The film was released on July 15, 2016.

''The Conners'': 2018–

On June 21, 2018, ABC announced a spin-off from Roseanne, titled The Conners, with all the original cast to return; the show premiered on October 16, 2018. On March 22, 2019, ABC announced that the show had been renewed for a second season. Fishman was not listed as part of the returning main cast, but the network press release said that additional cast to be announced at a later date.

Personal life

Fishman and Jennifer Briner married on October 22, 1999. They were separated as of June 16, 2017, according to a formal application for legal separation Briner filed on December 27, 2018. On April 22, 2019, Briner officially filed for divorce. The couple has two children.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

Emmy Award
TV Land Award
Young Artist Award
YoungStar Awards