Ray Romano is heading back to familiar territory — the complicated, messy, emotional family — this time for HBO Max. He has been tapped to star in drama pilot How To Survive Without Me, from Greg Berlanti, Bash Doran, and Warner Bros. Television. Romano will play Leo, the newly widowed patriarch of the De Angelis family, left scrambling to become the emotional center of the household after the death of his wife, Beverly. The series kicks off in the aftermath of Beverly’s passing, as the family begins to drift without the woman who held everything together. But in classic mom fashion, Beverly isn’t done running the show — even from beyond the grave. The family must stay connected and show up for one another if they want to experience her final “project,” forcing them to confront love, loss, and their own fractured relationships. The role was written specifically for Romano, following his work with Berlanti on the 2024 Apple film Fly Me To the Moon.