Due to the coronavirus pandemic, production was put on hold for the comedy series. However, executive producer and co-showrunner Gloria Calderón Kellett decided to create an animated special. Production will be done remotely, and the special is expected to air later this spring.
The series’ midseason finale will air tonight at 9:30 PM EST on Pop TV and will be simulcast on TV Land. It is expected that fans can watch the animated special the same way once a premiere date is announced.
“As we all know, it’s hard to keep One Day In A Time off the air. During this unprecedented time, we wanted to find a way to keep our family – on camera and behind the scenes – together and create more entertaining content for our fans who are self-distancing at home,” said Kellett in a press release. “This animated special gives us an exciting opportunity to imagine the Alvarez family in a colorful new way while continuing to tell important and relevant stories.”
According to the press release, “The One Day At A Time animated special centers around Penelope’s conservative family visiting. Penelope dreads that with the election coming up, they won’t be able to avoid fighting over politics. The Alvarez family spends the episode discussing strategies of how to get through it, illustrated through fantasy sequences.”
Jonas Diamond, executive producer and co-owner of Smiley Guy Studios in Toronto, will oversee the animation. The cast will provide their voices for their own characters and will be joined by celebrity guests that will be announced at a later date.
“In my 97 years, I’ve never known of a multicam comedy to animate a single episode as a special. Even this I get to experience,” Emmy-award winning Norman Lear, who produced the 1975 series of the same name, said in a statement. The show, which had its fourth season premiere in March, has seen its ratings grow each week.
The Sony Pictures Television show stars Rita Moreno, Justina Machado, Todd Grinnell, Isabella Gomez, Marcel Ruiz and Stephen Tobolowsky.
