ABC head Channing Dungey said that Roseanne Barr’s “egregious tweet” about former Obama advisor Valerie Jarrett was the “last straw” and the reason “Roseanne” was canceled.
“[The press] knows because you were asking me the last time I had an executive session about Roseanne’s Twitter [at the Television Critics Association’s press tour]. It’s not a secret that she has had a tendency in the past to be sort of outspoken and go off-book,” Entertainment President Dungey told the Hollywood Reporter Tuesday night. (RELATED: Roseanne Barr ‘Disgusted’ By Stars Throwing Support To James Gun After ‘Blacklisting’ Her)
Executive producer/actress Roseanne Barr, actors John Goodman, Lecy Goranson and Sarah Chalke of the television show Roseanne speak onstage during the ABC Television/Disney portion of the 2018 Winter Television Critics Association Press Tour at The Langham Huntington, Pasadena on January 8, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
“We’ve had multiple conversations about wanting to keep the focus on the show and not to let some of the other stuff eclipse the show,” she added. “So, in some ways, this was a last straw. But it was also such an egregious tweet that it felt like no matter what, there would have been some action that we would have taken.”
At one point, Dungey shared that the decision to pull the plug on the popular sitcom was easy.
“It wasn’t that difficult,” the network head explained. “It felt like a line had been crossed and we needed to stand by our values as a company.”
“I think the swift, decisive action really spoke volumes and I think we’re proud of what we did,” she added. “I am excited about the fact that we were able to bring the cast back and a majority of the crew back to work on The Conners — that’s important to me. That was my one disappointment that day — thinking about the innocent people who were affected by the decision. The fact that we’re now able to move forward with The Conners feels good.”