Scandal star Dan Bucatinsky is paying tribute to Eric Gilliland. The producer and writer, best known for his work on Roseanne, passed away on Sunday from colon cancer. After news of his death broke, Bucatinsky took to Instagram to share some sweet words for Gilliland, even if it was hard to find the right ones, and it’s heartbreaking.
“There are no words,” Bucatinsky wrote. “For a man who was so good with his… brilliant. Sweet. Kind. FUNNY. Generous. His legacy is the wake of love he generated from so many friends. Heartbreaking. Say hi to Jamie for me Eric. Love you. Will miss you. RIP.”
Gilliland was a writer and producer on Roseanne from 1992 to 1996, and also served as a consulting producer on spinoff The Conners for two episodes of Season 2. While Bucatinsky doesn’t seem to have crossed paths with Gilliland during a television role, he has also done a lot of producing and writing work, so it’s possible they found each other that way. However they met, though, it’s clear that Gilliland left an impact on him and Bucatsinsky already misses his friend.
Many tributes have been pouring out to Gilliland. Ryan Reynolds honored his friend of 27 years with a lengthy Instagram post detailing how they met and what their friendship was like. Meanwhile, Roseanne star Michael Fishman shared a short but sweet message to him. Many people took to the comments of Bucatinsky’s post and shared their own kind words, both for the actor and Gilliland. There have been many other tributes for Gilliland, and likely many more to come, as he clearly made an impact on Hollywood with his famous friends and the shows he worked on.
Eric Gilliland’s final project was the 2021 podcast series The Cinnamon Bear: A Holiday Adventure, where he served as a writer and executive producer. The Conners was his final TV job, having aired in 2019. According to his IMDb, he did have a new series in the works, Elna, but at this time, it’s unknown what the status of the show will be or if it will even be moving forward following his death. Regardless, he made plenty of friends throughout his long career, and it’s not surprising to see tribute after tribute coming out for Gilliland.