‘Everybody Loves Raymond’: Patricia Heaton Reveals ‘Desperate’ Move She Made in Audition With Ray Romano
What To Know
- Patricia Heaton won the role of Debra Barone on Everybody Loves Raymond after a memorable audition with Ray Romano.
- Show creator Phil Rosenthal praised Heaton and Romano for their “spectacular chemistry.”
- Heaton and Romano reunited for Everybody Loves Raymond: 30th Anniversary Reunion on November 24.
The Everybody Loves Raymond team assembled the perfect cast to play the Barone family. However, finding the right actress for Debra Barone was no easy task, but Patricia Heaton eventually won the role after a very memorable audition.
During the CBS special, Everybody Loves Raymond: 30th Anniversary Reunion, show creator Phil Rosenthal sat down with Heaton and Ray Romano to discuss how they became one of the most beloved sitcom couples. “We saw 200 women before we found Patty Heaton. When she came in, she just knocked it out of the park,” Rosenthal said.
Heaton, who had two young kids at the time, arrived at the audition to find a waiting room of “at least eight women.” She was preoccupied with getting home in time to relieve her babysitter. “I went in and sat there, and I just needed to get this audition done,” Heaton admitted. “There was a guy sitting in the corner, and I thought maybe he could get me some water while we’re waiting for Ray to come in. It was him [pointing to Romano].”
Sonja Flemming / CBS
The creator pointed out that Romano and Heaton had the “most spectacular chemistry” and declared Debra the “best wife on television.”
Romano chimed in, “I think we’re forgetting one key element that really sold me on you during that first audition.” Heaton quipped, “That’s how desperate I was to get the job.”
Romano acknowledged they were being too cryptic with the audience, and Heaton revealed, “I kissed him.” Romano elaborated, “There was a part where it says ‘she kisses her husband,’ and every other actress kind of mimed it. For some reason, she didn’t.” He added, “When she walked out, I go, ‘That’s the one!'”
The chemistry between Romano and Heaton, as well as the rest of the cast, made Everybody Loves Raymond one of the most successful TV comedies of all time. The show debuted in 1996 and ran for nine seasons until 2005.
Everybody Loves Raymond: 30th Anniversary Reunion, Premieres November 24, Streaming on Paramount+
