Actress Taraji P. Henson is set to appear in an upcoming episode of ABC’s Abbott Elementary.
On Saturday, the announcement about Henson’s casting was shared during an Abbott Elementary panel, which featured Sheryl Lee Ralph, Lisa Ann Walter, Tyler James Williams and William Stanford Davis. The other cast members, Janelle James and Chris Perfetti, joined the conversation via Zoom while Quinta Brunson prepared for her ‘SNL’ hosting gig.
Henson will star as Vanetta, the mother of leading character Janine (Brunson), in an episode titled “Mom.” The episode shows Janine planning a solo trip for Memorial Day weekend. However, her plans are disrupted when her unannounced mother shows up and requests her assistance.
Henson is the latest addition to the list of guest stars playing Janine’s family members in the series, as the show dives deeper into the backstories of its characters. Earlier in season two, ‘The Bear’ star Ayo Edibiri played Ayesha, Janine’s sister. Previous episodes have touched on the teacher’s troubled relationship with her family, with Ayesha and Janine working towards resolving their problems.
“I think relationships with mothers are very defining, especially for someone who is then taking care of children — like Janine, who’s caring for kids,” Brunson said last year. “It connects a lot to her relationships in the school. I know a lot of women in my life who have had very complicated relationships with their moms unfortunately.”
Taraji’s debut on the award-winning show will be in the second to last episode of season two, which is scheduled to air on April 12th.
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