ABC canceled Roseanne on Tuesday after star Roseanne Barr posted a racist and offensive tweet about Valerie Jarrett, former aide to President Obama.
“Roseanne’s Twitter statement is abhorrent, repugnant and inconsistent with our values, and we have decided to cancel her show,” said ABC Entertainment President Channing Dungey in a statement.
Walt Disney Co. CEO Bob Iger also weighed in, tweeting: “There was only one thing to do here, and that was the right thing.”
Overnight on Monday, Barr tweeted: “Muslim brotherhood & planet of the apes had a baby=vj,” with VJ representing Jarrett.
The reaction on Twitter was swift and condemning. Joe Scarborough, anchor of MSNBC’s Morning Joe, tweeted:
“Hey @ABC, Roseanne Barr compared Valerie Jarrett to an ape. There is no apology she can make that justifies @ABC turning a blind eye to this bigotry by airing another second of her show. Even in the Age of Trump, there are red lines that can never be crossed. This is one.”
Barr apologized and said she was leaving Twitter.
“I apologize to Valerie Jarrett and to all Americans. I am truly sorry for making a bad joke about her politics and her looks. I should have known better. Forgive me — my joke was in bad taste.”
That didn’t prove to be enough to save the show.
Consulting Producer Wanda Sykes immediately quit the show, while executive producer and star Sara Gilbert, who plays Roseanne’s daughter Darlene on the series, tweeted her dismay prior to the show being canceled, saying Barr’s comments are ”abhorrent and do not reflect the beliefs of our cast and crew or anyone associated with our show. This is incredibly sad and difficult for all of us, as we’ve created a show that we believe in, are proud of, and that audiences love — one that is separate and apart from the opinions and words of one cast member.”
Making the decision to cancel Roseanne could not have been easy for ABC. The rebooted series completed the 2017-18 TV season as the top-rated scripted show in primetime among adults 18-49. It was the first time ABC had had TV’s top series in 24 years, Disney-ABC TV Group President Ben Sherwood told advertisers at the upfronts in New York earlier this month. The show had been renewed for a second season of 13 episodes.
As Tuesday wore on, TV networks and streaming services worked to scrub the show from their schedules, with Viacom-owned Paramount Network, TV Land and CMT all pulling repeat episodes of the originals from their networks, Hulu removing it and multicast net Laff ending its run. In addition, talent agency ICM dropped Barr as a client and ABC suspended its Emmy campaign for the show and removed it from its press site.
READ MORE: The Hollywood Reporter, The New York Times