Podcast Summary

Podcast: Totally Booked with Zibby
Host: Zibby Owens
Guests: Eileen Heisler & DeAnn Heline (Co-Creators of The Middle)
Episode Date: February 20, 2026
Main Theme:
A heartfelt, behind-the-scenes exploration of The Middle with its creators, examining the show's enduring resonance, its creative genesis, the realities of working in television, and how honest writing finds universal connection across generations and continents.

Episode Overview

Zibby Owens welcomes Eileen Heisler and DeAnn Heline to discuss their experiences co-creating and running the beloved sitcom The Middle. Zibby, a self-professed superfan, guides the conversation through the origins of the show, its unexpected resurgence with younger viewers, the value of truthful storytelling, and the emotional impact the show's characters have had on their creators, cast, and fans. The episode brims with nostalgia, humor, and affection for the everyday family complexities The Middle immortalized.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Middle: Unexpected Resurgence and TikTok Fame

[05:21-06:33]

• The Middle has found a new audience through TikTok clips, surprising both creators:

  “We kind of hear from our kids. Like, did you know, like, the Middle is kind of like this…all these clips on TikTok now, and we had no idea. Had nothing to do with it. People just keep finding and discovering the show, which is fantastic.” — Eileen Heisler [05:43]

• The show was always discovered across generations, with both kids and parents finding common ground:

  “It’s really, really awesome. Makes us feel really good.” — DeAnn Heline [06:06]

2. Universality Through Specificity

[07:45-08:21]

• Although set in the Midwest and clearly rooted in “middle” identity, the show’s appeal has proven global:

  "It is interesting how you write something very specific, but it really is universal." — Eileen Heisler [07:45]

3. Creative Origins: Tired Moms in the Middle

[08:38-10:56]

• The series sprang from Heisler and Heline reflecting on their own exhausting experiences as mothers:

  “We sort of looked into each other's tired faces and thought... there hasn’t really been a single cam show from the point of view of an exhausted mother.” — DeAnn Heline [08:38]

• Deeply personal real-life moments formed the show’s DNA — even lines delivered by characters came from family anecdotes:

  “My grandma said to [my grandpa], you never tell me you love me anymore. He said, I told you I love you the day I married you, if anything had changed I’d have let you know.” — Eileen Heisler (on Mike and Frankie) [10:06]

4. Writing from Life: The Writers’ Room as Group Therapy

[20:18-22:56]

• The authenticity in The Middle came from using writers’ own family traumas, annoyances, and joys. Every writer’s home life became plot fodder:

  “It’s like a big therapy, you know, room … I am not proud to say that this social worker coming to your house happened to my house. Only I was not the perp. I was Mike in that.” — DeAnn Heline [21:37]

• Truthfulness was the foundation for connecting with audiences across backgrounds.

5. Casting Stories & the Journey to Patty Heaton

[12:00-14:23]

• The show’s pilot initially cast Ricki Lake as Frankie. Only Atticus Shaffer (Brick) crossed over to the new cast.
• The casting process was fraught with challenges and ultimately serendipity:

  “The casting was not... the people were not available. The things were not falling into place... As the economy started tanking, we kept feeling like this is very close to our heart and is still relevant. And I still just, I have a little gut feeling it’s not done.” — DeAnn Heline [12:28-12:48] “We got a call from a network executive that said, well, what do you think of Patricia Heaton? I think, like, that would be the perfect person to be in our show.” — DeAnn Heline [14:13]

6. The Unmade Sue Heck Spinoff

[17:19-18:49]

• A spinoff centered on Sue Heck nearly happened but was derailed by bad timing and network upheaval:

  “As frequently happens, so much of whether a show goes or not is timing... So they were running out of money. So there was, I guess, I guess they, they said no, but I think it was a mistake.” — Eileen Heisler [17:32-18:29]

7. Emotional Truths and Impact on Families

[19:19-26:45]

• Zibby shares how The Middle led to touching moments with her own family:

  “I watched that with my son, and then … he made an effort and called me when he went [to boarding school], and I was just like. That was because of you guys.” — Zibby Owens [29:03]

• The creators describe the bittersweetness of saying goodbye to their characters after nine years:

  “On the last day that we were together as writers ... to leave the hex, like, you almost felt like you’re abandoning them...That missing the characters, missing and feeling kind of like, I don’t know, it does feel weird, like they're off, they're somewhere.” — Eileen Heisler [24:48-25:29]

  “You are connected so, you know, thoroughly because you’re sort of like co parents of this other person.” — DeAnn Heline [25:29]

• The authentic feelings onscreen reflected the rawness of the writing room:

  “In the writing, emotionally, it was as raw as it is on tv because we were. You know, we cried in that writer’s room. We laughed. People's people lost their parents. People’s kids did. I mean, we were just in it, and I think we were aware of the bittersweetness of all of it.” — DeAnn Heline [29:25]

8. Life After The Middle and New Creative Projects

[33:24-36:45]

• Eileen and DeAnn are working on a play inspired by their shared experience with California wildfires—a life imitating art moment.

  "[During an evacuation] We just kind of thought, it’s kind of funny... when you really have to live with someone or be with someone, their marriage or your marriage... So we've been working on this play where it’s the Palisades, it’s a fire, people are evacuated. And so it’s really weird that then it actually happened and our house burned down..." — Eileen Heisler [33:56-34:45]

• They express interest in possibly writing a book of essays in the future.

9. The Midwest Connection

[38:17-38:25]

• Both the show’s creators and Zibby bond over their and their family’s Midwestern roots, which infuse The Middle with its grounded, relatable spirit:

  “Midwest knows Midwest. And I was. I grew up in Cincinnati, so, yes, I saw that.” — Eileen Heisler [38:25]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “It is interesting how you write something very specific, but it really is universal.” — Eileen Heisler [07:45]
• “It started there and then became like middle age, middle class, middle of the country.” — DeAnn Heline [08:38]
• “Every argument we have with our husband, every annoyance with our kids or what we wish for … went into the show.” — Eileen Heisler [10:06]
• “Carl Reiner, like, famously said, you know: write what is the plot of land that only you stand on? ... The more specifically that you write, a lot of times, I think then the more people it relates to.” — DeAnn Heline [21:39]
• “On the last day that we were together as writers ... to leave the hex, like, you almost felt like you're abandoning them...” — Eileen Heisler [24:48]
• “It was like a big therapy, you know, room. ... It always started from the truth.” — DeAnn Heline [21:37-22:56]
• “I feel like it’s helping us all gain an understanding of each other in a way that nothing else can do.” — Zibby Owens [28:32]

Important Timestamps

• [05:21]: The show’s TikTok resurgence and generational discovery
• [08:38]: Origins of The Middle in the creators’ lives as mothers
• [12:00]: Early casting, the lost Ricki Lake pilot
• [17:19]: The spinoff that didn't make it
• [19:19]: Why the show endures, universality and truth in the writing
• [24:06]: Saying goodbye to beloved characters after nine years
• [29:03]: Zibby describes the impact of the show on her real family relationships
• [33:45]: New creative projects and writing post-Middle

Final Thoughts

The episode is a celebration of the power of honest storytelling fueled by lived experience and genuine affection for family life, both its chaos and its comforts. Listeners are treated to rare, sincere reflections on both the practical challenges and deep rewards of creating television that resonates and endures.

If you cherish behind-the-scenes glimpses, value emotional-driven comedy, or seek wisdom on why some stories become timeless family treasures, this episode is a must-listen.