This afternoon, ABC made the shocking decision to cancel Roseanne, the highest-rated show of the season, after creator Roseanne Barr compared Valerie Jarrett, a black former senior advisor to Barack Obama, to if the “muslim brotherhood & planet of the apes had a baby.” Barr apologized for her tweet (unlike her bizarre tweets where she thanked President Donald Trump for freeing children around the world from sex slavery), but it was too little, too late for ABC Entertainment president Channing Dungey, who soon called her comments “abhorrent, repugnant, and inconsistent with our values.”
Following the announcement, Walt Disney Company CEO Robert Iger tweeted Dungey’s statement and added, “There was only one thing to do here, and that was the right thing.” Emma Kenney, who played Roseanne’s granddaughter on the sitcom, also agreed with the cancelation, writing, “As I called my manager to quit working on Roseanne, I found out the show got cancelled. I feel so empowered by [Wanda Sykes], Channing Dungey, and those at ABC standing up against abuse of power and lack of values. Bullies do not win. Ever.”
If you’re wondering whether Barr’s ex-husband Tom Arnold added his two cents, wonder and worry no more. “Ton of respect for Bob Iger. Tough decision with financial consequences for his company but right for America,” he tweeted. “Now don’t bug Bob but maybe someone else find out if I’m still banned from all of @ABCNetwork for calling Roseanne Barr out first on her racist conspiracy tweets?” Now he’ll presumably return to his full-time job: finding the pee tape.
Here are more reactions to the biggest TV story in recent memory.
Imagine getting a second chance to make your show and all you have to do is not compare black people to apes on social media and you can't fucking do it
— Chase Mitchell (@ChaseMit) May 29, 2018
Glenda? It's Laurie. …Laur-ie! I'm fine. …FINE! …I'M FINE! I have some good news…Roseanne was canceled…I said Roseanne was canceled…It’s CANCELED! …The show is GONE! …THE SHOW’S DEAD! …It’s DEAD! …NO, DEAD!!!! DEEEEEEAAAAAD!!!!!!!!!!!
— Brian Burns (@briantburns_) May 29, 2018
I wrote on the original "Roseanne" where we used to denounce nativism, racism & homophobia. Nauseating to see what she's become. Looking forward to continue not watching this show.
— Danny Zuker (@DannyZuker) May 29, 2018
Odds that Trump brings up Roseanne at rally tonight in Tennessee are not low.
— Josh Dawsey (@jdawsey1) May 29, 2018
Remember when the family winning the lottery was the worst thing that could happen to the show Roseanne?
— Mike Drucker (@MikeDrucker) May 29, 2018
https://twitter.com/kumailn/status/1001522829748301825
@therealroseanne, you break my heart — You are a sorry excuse for a human being. How odd that you, as a comedienne, have forgotten then meaning of a "joke" and a personal comment. Your meanness is staggering and will earn you a ticket to a sad, lonely and sorry life.
— Rita Moreno (@TheRitaMoreno) May 29, 2018
https://twitter.com/ArmyStrang/status/1001527530044698630
Okay, jokes aside…a good 200 or so crew people who thought they’d have jobs this fall are suddenly unemployed through no fault of their own. Meanwhile Roseanne will probably get a huge payout. And that makes me angrier than her racist-ass tweets. pic.twitter.com/kn3afREA0D
— Eric Haywood (@EricHaywood) May 29, 2018
Thank you, Channing. #justice
— shonda rhimes (@shondarhimes) May 29, 2018
Roseanne now has more free time to investigate pizzagate
— Desus MF Nice💯 (@desusnice) May 29, 2018
— Russ Fischer (@russfischer) May 29, 2018
ABC cancelled Roseanne after her racist tweet!
Roseanne, that entire cast supported you when you didn’t deserve support because they believed in the art of the show.
You alone are responsible for the loss of their jobs.
— Dana Goldberg (@DGComedy) May 29, 2018
Shame on ABC for rebooting Roseanne in the first place, and for using Trump to promote it. They knew she was a racist, like Trump. But they hired her anyways. I’m not gonna applaud a network for eventually doing the right thing. It should’ve never been rebooted. #FightSupremacy
— Scott Dworkin (@funder) May 29, 2018
LAST MAN STANDING, S7, E1
TIM ALLEN: Hey everyone! Look who moved in next door!
ROSEANNE [after thirty full seconds of canned applause]: Michelle Obama runs a pedophile ring— Jason O. Gilbert (@gilbertjasono) May 29, 2018
For mad conservatives who feel like Roseanne should be able to tweet what she wants and keep her show “because: first amendment”…
Where were you when Black men wanted to be able to take a knee and not be reprimanded for it by the NFL?
I’ll hold for how “this is different…”
— jarrett 🫶🏽✨🍉 (@jarretthill) May 29, 2018
https://twitter.com/andylassner/status/1001522381322514432
