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Edward Burns Revives 'McMullen' Saga With 'The Family McMullen,' Now Streaming on HBO Max

Burns reframes his 1995 breakthrough as a contemporary rom-com shaped by housing pressures, with younger co-stars helping fine-tune the voice for today.

Overview

  • Thirty years after The Brothers McMullen, the sequel reunites Connie Britton and introduces Tracee Ellis Ross as Burns’ on-screen love interest.
  • The story centers on a newly divorced Barry navigating middle age as his twenty-something children return home, a premise sparked by reporting on housing affordability.
  • Burns leaned more into romantic-comedy rhythms than the original, aiming for a lighter tone that still keeps family dynamics at the core.
  • Pico Alexander, Juliana Canfield, Halston Sage and Sam Vartholomeos were encouraged to reshape dialogue to keep their characters’ voices authentic.
  • After a lengthy development stretch, Warner Bros. and HBO Max backed the project, which began streaming December 5 on HBO Max.