Mere weeks after ABC cancelled the Roseanne revival, the network has picked up a spin-off of the show. Say goodbye to Roseanne and hello to... The Conners.
The cancelation of the highly-rated sitcom came after creator and star Roseanne Barr tweeted a racist message about former Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett, in which Barr compared Jarrett, who is Black, to an ape.
"Roseanne's Twitter statement is abhorrent, repugnant, and inconsistent with our values, and we have decided to cancel her show," Channing Dungey, the president of ABC Entertainment, said in the statement.
Now, ABC has greenlit a sitcom that will exist in the Roseanne universe, but not include Barr in any way, according to a new statement from Barr and the show's executive producer Tom Werner.
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"Tom Werner and Roseanne Barr have reached an agreement that will allow Werner Entertainment to produce a spin-off of the Roseanne series for ABC without Barr’s further creative or financial participation," the statement to Refinery29 reads.
Barr said, via the statement, that she agreed to these terms in order to help the cast and crew of Roseanne, who were out of jobs post-tweet, find new employment.
"I regret the circumstances that have caused me to be removed from Roseanne. I agreed to the settlement in order that 200 jobs of beloved cast and crew could be saved, and I wish the best for everyone involved," Barr said.
Executive producer Werner added:
"We are grateful to have reached this agreement to keep our team working as we continue to explore stories of the Conner family."
According to Buzzfeed, the 10-episode spin-off will feature every lead actor from Roseanne — save for the titular star. The returning characters include Darlene (Sara Gilbert), Dan (John Goodman), Jackie (Laurie Metcalf), Becky (Lecy Goranson), and D.J. (Michael Fishman). Per Buzzfeed, the Conner family will face "a sudden turn of events" in the new series. It's possible, though not confirmed, that Barr's character may die offscreen — an interesting turn of events considering that was the fate of Goodman's Dan in the original sitcom ending.
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