Roseanne cancelled by American network ABC after TV star's 'abhorrent, repugnant' racist tweet
Updated
Walt Disney Co's ABC network has cancelled the popular US television comedy Roseanne after star Roseanne Barr compared a former Obama administration official to an ape in remarks on Twitter.
The show, a revival of the 1990s hit Roseanne, was ABC's most widely watched show for the TV season that ended last week, drawing more than 18 million viewers on average each week.
"Roseanne's Twitter statement is abhorrent, repugnant and inconsistent with our values, and we have decided to cancel her show," ABC Entertainment President Channing Dungey said in a statement.
Disney chief executive Bob Iger added on Twitter: "There was only one thing to do here, and that was the right thing."
Others approving of the move included Georgia congressman John Lewis.
The civil rights leader tweeted thanks to ABC, saying the network did the right thing.
In a deleted tweet, Barr compared former Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett to an ape, saying it was like the "muslim brotherhood & planet of the apes had a baby."
Barr, 65, apologised "for making a bad joke" about Ms Jarrett, who is black and was born in Iran to American parents.
Barr's fellow cast member Sarah Gilbert wrote on Twitter that the cancellation was "incredibly sad and difficult".
One of Rosanne's consulting producers, Wanda Skyes, also said she would not be returning to the show.
Roseanne was ABC's biggest hit of the 2017-2018 season.
The show drew an average of 18.7 million viewers, second only to CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory, according to Nielsen data through May 20.
Ms Jarrett, through spokesman Jordan Finkelstein, declined to comment.
The original Roseanne aired from 1988 to 1997. It featured a blue-collar family, the Conners, with overweight parents struggling to get by and was praised for its realistic portrayal of working-class life.
President Donald Trump has latched onto the show's huge viewership as evidence that his supporters, which include Barr, want shows that speak to their concerns.
Wires/ABC
Topics: arts-and-entertainment, united-states
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