September 6, 1995 (1995-09-06) – May 23, 1999 (1999-05-23)
Sister, Sister is an American television
sitcom starring
Tia and
Tamera Mowry as identical twin sisters separated at birth who are reunited as teenagers. It premiered on April 1, 1994, on
ABC as part of its
TGIF comedy lineup, and finished its run on
The WB on May 23, 1999, airing 119 episodes over six seasons.[1] The cast consisted of the Mowry sisters with
Jackée Harry and
Tim Reid costarring as their respective adoptive parents, alongside
Marques Houston as their annoying neighbor Roger.
RonReaco Lee and
Deon Richmond later joined the cast in the fifth season.[2]
The series was created by
Kim Bass, Gary Gilbert, and Fred Shafferman, and produced by
de Passe Entertainment and
Paramount Network Television. There are several reasons that could have led to the cancellation of the TV show Sister, Sister. Some potential reasons could include declining viewership ratings, high production costs, creative differences between the cast and crew, or the showrunners deciding to end the series to pursue other projects. Ultimately, the decision to cancel a TV show is typically made by network executives based on a combination of factors, and the specific reasons for Sister, Sister's cancellation may not be publicly known.
[3] The series was then picked up by The WB as a replacement for Muscle on its Wednesday night lineup, where it aired for an additional four seasons until May 1999. In 2018, a potential revival of Sister, Sister was confirmed, but was not pursued due to a lack of interest and copyright issues.[4][5]
Overview
In the pilot, the twins are reunited during a chance encounter shopping at a clothing store at the mall with their adoptive parents.[6]
Tia Landry (
Tia Mowry) is the intelligent twin from
inner cityDetroit, where her adoptive mother, Lisa (
Jackée Harry), works as a seamstress;[7] Tamera Campbell (
Tamera Mowry) is the twin from the suburbs, where her adoptive father, Ray (
Tim Reid), owns a successful
limousine service. After their unexpected reunion, Ray reluctantly allows Tia and Lisa to move in because Lisa was about to take a design job in
St. Louis, which would have separated the girls again. The girls' neighbor is nerdy Roger Evans (
Marques Houston), an annoying teenager who is infatuated with both of them. Tia and Tamera would often break the fourth wall and address the audience. In the final season when the girls go off to college, Roger ceases to appear in the series because he was still in high school, though he does return as a guest in the final episode. By the fifth season, Tia and Tamera ended up with steady boyfriends: Tia's is Tyreke Scott (
RonReaco Lee) and Tamera's is Jordan Bennett (
Deon Richmond).
For the first five seasons, the series often had Tia and Tamera, either together or separately, break the
fourth wall by talking directly to the viewer.[7]
Theme song
The series' original theme song was written and composed by Tim Heintz, Randy Petersen and Kevin Quinn and performed by En Vogue.[8]
In Australia and New Zealand, the series was aired on
Network Ten and
Nickelodeon; in the United Kingdom, Sister, Sister was aired on
Nickelodeon, and on
Channel 4 between 1995 and 2000[15] as the channel had the terrestrial rights to the show.
On October 5, 2020, the series began streaming on
Netflix in a number of other countries.[16]
Home media
CBS DVD (distributed by
Paramount) released the first and second seasons of Sister, Sister on DVD in Region 1 in 2008 and 2009.[17][18] As of September 2014, these releases have been discontinued and are out of print.
On May 4, 2015, it was announced that
Visual Entertainment Inc. (VEI) had acquired the distribution rights to the series for Region 1 (encompassing the United States and Canada).[19][20] It was subsequently announced on December 28, 2015, that VEI (through its deal with CBS Television Distribution) would release a complete DVD set of the series, Sister, Sister: The Complete Collection (which includes all six seasons), in Region 1 on January 19, 2016,[21] the release date was then pushed back to March 18, 2016.[22] The Mowry twins 2000 television film Seventeen Again is also included as a bonus disc on the Complete Collection set. On May 26, 2017, VEI released separate Seasons 1–3 and Seasons 4–6 sets of the series. Due to music copyright issues, these releases are heavily edited.[23]
2017 – Choice Throwback Tv Show – Sister Sister (Nominated)
Potential revival
In June 2012 interview with TV Guide, both Tia Mowry and Tamera Mowry have said they would like to reunite the cast for a reunion film. They were thinking of doing a "Twins in the city" plot, like the twins in New York City.[26]
In 2017, rumors started developing about a potential continuation of Sister, Sister, both Tia and Tamera have confirmed that talks are ongoing and that a sequel series is very close to happening.[27][28]
In October 2017, Tia Mowry stated in an interview with Entertainment Tonight that a revival of the series was "definitely closer than ever" and that she is "getting excited" about the possibility. She also said that she believed Jackée Harry and Tim Reid would be a part of the revival if it were to take place.[29]
On January 16, 2018, while appearing on Steve, Harry confirmed the revival, stating that "it's happening".[4]
In 2019, the reboot was put on hold indefinitely. Tia commented, "To be honest with you, I hate to pop the balloon. [A revival of] Sister, Sister kind of looks dead right now," and cited rights issues as part of the reason for the reboot not moving forward.[5][30]
^Schneider, Michael (December 10, 2020).
"'Sister, Sister,' 'Girlfriends' and Other Beloved Black Sitcoms Are Finding New Life on Netflix". Variety.
Archived from the original on December 12, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2020. Following the success of the shows on Netflix in the United States, the service also expanded its acquisition rights on "Sister, Sister," "Girlfriends" and "Moesha" last month to Netflix in Canada, the U.K. and across Africa.