The comedic legends Carol Burnett and Vicki Lawrence have reunited onscreen for the first time in years. Indeed, they will be appearing together in season two of Burnett’s Apple TV+ series Palm Royale.
Burnett And Lawrence Reunite
Burnett, 92, and Lawrence, 76, starred together on the sketch comedy series The Carol Burnett Show from 1967 until 1978. Though Lawrence is 16 years Burnett’s junior, one of her most famous characters was “Mama,” the mother of Burnett’s Eunice. The characters were so popular that they were given the 1982 TV movie Eunice. Then came the 1983 sitcom Mama’s Family, which ran for six seasons.
Now, Lawrence is playing Burnett’s mother once again onscreen. Indeed, she’ll be playing Lottie, the mother of Burnett’s character Norma Dellacorte.
Burnett and Lawrence had a blast reuniting onscreen after all these years.
“Being with Vicki again was like old times,” Burnett told Parade. “I mean, it was as if all the years had not passed, and here we are again together.”
Burnett went on to reveal that it was actually the Palm Royale showrunner Abe Sylvia who suggested Lawrence for this role. He reportedly asked Burnett, “How would you feel if we have Vicki on?” to which she replied, “Of course, I was thinking the same thing.”
“So it was really such fun,” Burnett gushed. “And when she showed up on the set, you know, it was, as I say, it’s like the years just washed away. And here we were again, you know, Carol and Vicki together.”
“What happened was Abe Sylvia called Vicki and said, ‘Okay, we would like you to be on the show, and you’ll be Carol’s mother.’ And Vicki said, ‘So what else is new?’” Burnett added with a laugh.
Watch Burnett talk more about this in the video below.
Lawrence Felt ‘Very Comfortable’
As for Lawrence, she was all too happy to sign on for the role.
“I feel like I was right back where I always was,” Lawrence told TV Insider. “It was very comfortable and so good to see Carol and so good to meet all those lovely ladies that I’m a fan of. It was a fun set, a fun group.”
“When he gave me the offer, I was so excited because all those women are so gorgeous,” she continued of Sylvia. “The costumes, the makeup, everything is beautiful. I couldn’t wait to see what I was going to get to do. I did not see a nun coming.”
In the trailer for season two of Palm Royale, which premiered in November, Lawrence can be seen in a traditional nun’s habit.
“Abe thought that would be extremely hysterical and people that got it would love it and people that didn’t would still enjoy the episode,” Lawrence stated. “With Mama and Eunice, Mama was mean. She was really not a very nurturing mother. Agnes and Lottie have a much more close, loving relationship. Norma could go to her for advice, and she would be honest and loving about it. Thelma, not so much. She was a totally dysfunctional mother.”
“She’s still a feisty old gal,” Lawrence added of her character Lottie. “She kind of reminded me of my mother-in-law who was crazy fun, tough to the bitter end. That’s the way I played Lottie. And yeah, she was, I guess, a little bit of a tramp when she was young.”
Burnett And Lawrence Are Still Close Friends
While they haven’t appeared onscreen together in many years, Burnett and Lawrence have always been close friends who socialize together in real life.
“I see her quite often,” Lawrence explained. “I go up north and visit her in Santa Barbara. We laugh a lot. We went to one of the local restaurants one night, and she invited some friends. When we left, the maitre d’ said, ‘I haven’t heard that much laughter in this restaurant ever.’ It’s always good to see her and reminisce about the good old days.”
Burnett and Lawrence are two living legends. Seeing them back onscreen together making us all laugh is nothing short of a treat.
New episodes of Palm Royale season 2 drop every Wednesday on Apple TV+. If you love Burnett and Lawrence as much as we do, be sure to check it out!