In a joint statement with Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, the fired 'Roseanne' star also expresses her disappointment with the 'grim and morbid' way her character was killed on 'The Conners'.
- Oct 18, 2018
AceShowbiz - Roseanne Barr has blasted the "grim and morbid" way her "Roseanne" character was killed off in the series premiere of spin-off show "The Conners".
In May, the controversial comedienne's rebooted '80s sitcom "Roseanne" was cancelled by ABC network bosses after she was accused of being racist following a tweet she posted about Valerie Jarrett, one of former U.S. President Barack Obama's top aides.
She subsequently gave her permission for executives to create a spin-off with Roseanne's fictional family, titled "The Conners", and the show premiered in the U.S. on Tuesday night (October 16) - revealing the fate of the Conner family matriarch.
The premiere picked up weeks after her character died of an opioid overdose, which surprised members of her family, played by John Goodman and Sara Gilbert, as they originally thought she had passed in her sleep after having a heart attack.
Roseanne, who had already spoiled her character's fate in an interview in September, issued a statement with good friend Rabbi Shmuley Boteach to blast the decision on Tuesday night.
"While we wish the very best for the cast and production crew of The Conners, all of whom are deeply dedicated to their craft and were Roseanne's cherished colleagues, we regret that ABC chose to cancel "Roseanne" by killing off the Roseanne Conner character," they wrote. "That it was done through an opioid overdose lent an unnecessary grim and morbid dimension to an otherwise happy family show."
They also went on slam network bosses for not giving Roseanne another chance and for cancelling her show.
"After repeated and heartfelt apologies, the network was unwilling to look past a regrettable mistake, thereby denying the twin American values of both repentance and forgiveness. In a hyper-partisan climate, people will sometimes make the mistake of speaking with words that do not truly reflect who they are," they continued. "The cancellation of Roseanne is an opportunity squandered due in equal parts to fear, hubris, and a refusal to forgive."
I AIN’T DEAD, BITCHES!!!!
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) October 17, 2018
The 65-year-old gave her thoughts in a more simple manner on Twitter, writing: "I AIN'T DEAD, B**CHES!!!!".
