Life in Piece's Betsy Brandt Previews 'Incredibly Fun' Season 4: 'It's Been So Long'
Life in Pieces is finally back — and no one is more excited than star Betsy Brandt.
The actress, who has taken turns on some of the most beloved shows on TV, is happy that the hit CBS sitcom is coming back after taking it extended break following last season’s two-part finale in May 2018.
“I feel like it’s been so long that I’m kind of like, it is going to come on air, right?” Brandt, 46, tells PEOPLE ahead of the show’s season 4 premiere on Thursday at 8:30 p.m. ET.
“I forget what we’ve done and what we’ve seen, especially on this show with all the separate stories that I don’t get to see until it airs,” she adds. “So that makes me more eager to see it because I’m a fan of the show, too. I think these are really great episodes and I really want people to get to see them. It feels like we’re hoarding the show.”
The sitcom follows the Short family in their every day life, led by Brandt’s character’s older sister Heather, brothers Matt (Thomas Sadoski) and Greg (Colin Hanks) and their parents, played by James Brolin and Dianne Wiest. Thrown in are spouses, kids and new loves, with each storyline getting it’s own “piece” of the episode.
It’s all the different kinds of characters that makes the show special.
“I’ve always said that there’s something for everybody, and I so believe that to be true,” Brandt says. “Season 4 is I think when the really good stuff comes in a show. You’ve established who everybody is so that allows you to just jump right into the story without setting up and explaining it anymore. They’re all going through the family stuff and they’re all going through the individual stuff, and yet they still all come together. And it’s not always easy, but it’s always funny and it’s always loving. It’s a really, incredibly fun season.”
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Life in Pieces is the second-longest show Brandt has been on, with only Breaking Bad‘s Marie beating her out for the most time playing a character. She’s also spent time on Parenthood, Masters of Sex and The Michael J. Fox show. With so many beloved shows under her belt, the actress is easily recognizable to all kinds of fans — making for some funny encounters.
“Sometimes people come up to me and tell me they’re a fan and it’s so funny sometimes because I look at them and I would think they’re a Breaking Bad fan and then they’re like, ‘No no no, Life in Pieces!’ ” she says with a laugh. “That always tickles me when I think it’s going to be a fan of one show and it’s another.”
Brandt is happy to play characters that people love, and she’s even more excited to share Heather’s new escapades in the shortened fourth season.
“There are great things that come from doing 13 episodes,” she says. “It’s nice to have a season here and there where you leave the party early. We do 13 and then hopefully we come back and do however many more.”
Life in Pieces airs Thursday nights on CBS at 8:30 p.m. ET.
