Kevin Can Wait's Erinn Hayes To Appear On AMC's Kevin Can F**k Himself

In casting news that will delight everyone — well, everyone except maybe for Kevin James — onetime Kevin Can Wait star Erinn Hayes is set to appear on AMC's Kevin Can F**k Himself.

Character details are being kept under wraps. The network will only confirm that Hayes will guest-star opposite series stars Annie Murphy, Mary Hollis Inboden, Eric Petersen and Alex Bonifer during the second and final season of the sitcom satire (premiere date TBA).

The hourlong dramedy — whose title is an obvious play on CBS' Kevin Can Wait, a two-season comedy primarily remembered for just how sloppily it handled Hayes' expulsion as James' significantly better half — explores the secret life of the sitcom wife, and asks what the world looks like through her eyes. Alternating between single-camera realism and multi-camera comedy, the series imagines when Murphy's Allison McRoberts "escapes her confines and takes the lead in her own life," according the official logline.

The Season 1 finale, which aired last August, saw Kevin's best friend Neil confront Allison after he overheard her confess to a plot to murder her husband. But then Allison's neighbor, Patty, stopped Neil from strangling Annie to death by smashing a bottle over his head.

Are you looking forward to seeing Hayes get the last laugh on Kevin Can F**k Himself? Scroll down to relive the complete Kevin Can Wait saga, then hit the comments with your reactions to the news. 

Kevin Can Wait premieres and introduces audiences to Kevin Gable (James), a newly retired cop, a caring father and a deeply devoted husband to school nurse Donna (Hayes). The first episode is watched by 11.1 million viewers, but TVLine readers say it's "just OK," giving it an average grade of "C."

CBS announces that Leah Remini will reunite with her onetime King of Queens hubby on Kevin Can Wait. Because Kevin can only have one sitcom wife at a time, Remini is cast as Kevin's former police partner, Vanessa Cellucci.

Remini appears in the two-part Season 1 finale opposite James (and Hayes!), and viewers... kinda dig it? The reunion earns a not-terrible TVLine reader grade of "B-."

Three weeks later, CBS announces that Remini will join James (and Hayes... right? Right?) as a full-fledged series regular when Kevin Can Wait returns for Season 2.

Less than 24 hours later, TVLine exclusively reports that Kevin Can Wait is consciously uncoupling its central duo. Hayes will not be returning for Season 2, as the multi-cam goes in "a new creative direction."

"True, I've been let go from the show," Hayes tweets shortly thereafter. "Very sad, I had a great experience [in] Season 1. Thank you for all the support from our wonderful fans."

Two months later, CBS reveals that Donna will be sent six feet under. "The character will have passed away [when Season 2 premieres]," Thom Sherman, Senior EVP of Programming, reveals at the Television Critics Association's summer press tour. (R.I.P.!)

In a pre-season interview with TVLine, executive producer Rob Long suggests that the series is killing off Donna "out of respect" for Hayes. Yes, really. "The goal [is] to give Kevin's character a real drive and a real predicament [involving] how a family comes back together [after tragedy]," the EP explains.

One month later, Kevin Can Wait returns and sidesteps the specifics of Donna's demise. Her death is briefly addressed when Kevin receives a piece of mail from her gym, then insists on holding onto it because there's "a coupon for a kung-fu lesson on the back."

The "new creative direction" doesn't go according to plan. Ratings sink by nearly 20 percent, and CBS puts the kibosh on its quasi-King of Queens revival. #Justice4Donna

Seven months later, AMC announces that Kevin Can F**k Himself — a new dramedy told from the perspective of the put-upon sitcom wife — is in development. A series order is announced in July 2019, and the Internet crosses its collective fingers (and toes) that Hayes is cast as "Wife." In February 2020, the part goes to Schitt's Creek standout Annie Murphy.

One year later, James is asked about the title and seems genuinely tickled. "I think if they can use me to get their show made, and it's a great show, God bless them," he tells TVLine. "Good for them." The series premieres that June.

The following spring, AMC announces that Hayes will guest-star on Kevin Can F**k Himself, proving that good things come to those who wait. Unless your name is Kevin.