Why Roseanne Barr Has Beef With Her Former Co-Star Sara Gilbert
Roseanne Barr's sitcom "Roseanne" depicted the day-to-day goings on of the Connors, with their outspoken and brash matriarch, Roseanne (portrayed by Barr), her husband, Dan Connor, their kids, Darlene, Becky, David "DJ" and Jerry Connor, and Roseann's sister, Jackie Harris. They were one big happy family—albeit often dysfunctional—until the show ended in 1997. However, things eventually took a dark turn, resulting in some serious beef between Barr and her former co-star Sara Gilbert.
Gilbert, who played Roseanne's daughter, Darlene, went on to create "The Talk." She explained the show's origins to Ellen Degeneres. "I actually had a joke with a friend that I would be the absolutely worst talk show host," Gilbert said, revealing that "The Talk" emerged from a spoof of chat shows. Per the New York Times, it was another skit that Gilbert performed on "The Talk" alongside her former onscreen dad, John Goodman, that resulted in the "Roseanne" revival of 2018. The reboot was an immediate smash hit. According to AdWeek, it was the year's most-watched show in the US, drawing in an average of 20 million viewers.
However, after Barr tweeted a racially-charged insult at Obama's former presidential adviser Valerie Jarrett, ABC canceled the Roseanne reboot after just one season. Barr later claimed in a raging YouTube video (via the Guardian) that she'd "thought the b**** was white." Her defiant explanation didn't work in her favor, and ultimately led to Roseanne Barr's beef with her former co-star, Sara Gilbert.
The death of the happy family
Things quickly turned sour between Sara Gilbert and Roseann Barr after ABC nixed the "Roseanne" reboot. A tearful Gilbert addressed the "Roseanne" cancellation with her "The Talk" costars. "The show has always been about diversity, love, and inclusion. And it's sad to see it end in this way," she said. "I'm sad for the people who lost their jobs in the process. However, I do stand behind the decision that ABC made."
Gilbert told the NYT that to "preserve [the show's] legacy," she made the decision to kill off Barr's character and relaunch the sitcom as "The Connors," with her as the main character. In April 2019, Gilbert announced she was leaving "The Talk" after nine seasons to concentrate on "The Connors," which she executive produced in addition to starring in.
To say Barr was spitting mad would be an understatement. She accused Gilbert of ruining her life and of being a duplicitous backstabber. "It wasn't enough that she stabbed me in the back and did what she did to me [on "The Talk"]," Barr told Megyn Kelly on her Sirius XM show. "But then she would go on her talk show every day and talk about how shocked she was at my racism on top of it." Barr said that she called Gilbert and menacingly warned her, "You better shut your blankin' mouth about me. I'm telling you, you better shut your effing mouth."
For richer and for poorer
Sara Gilbert condemned Roseanne Barr's racially charged insults, which followed a stream of increasingly angry and nasty rants. "Roseanne's recent comments about Valerie Jarrett, and so much more, are abhorrent and do not reflect the beliefs of our cast and crew or anyone associated with our show," she tweeted.
"It was her tweet that canceled the show," Barr claimed to Megyn Kelly. "I was just floored [by her tweet]. I was just floored," Barr continued. It's safe to say there's no love lost between the two. "She destroyed the show and my life with that tweet," Barr told the Washington Post. "She will never get enough until she consumes my liver with a fine Chianti."
It wasn't just Gilbert who was sickened by Barr's words, though. "You fought, built, and designed Roseanne for inclusiveness. That is why yesterday was so out of character with the last 30 years. It was in your hands from the beginning to the end. No one can deny that," Michael Fishman, who played D.J. Connor, tweeted. "Please leave me alone, thanks," Barr replied. However, one "Roseanne" star stuck by Barr's side. John Goodman distanced himself but still defended his onscreen wife. "I know, I know, for a fact that she's not a racist," he told The Sunday Times magazine. "She was going through hell at the time. And she's still going through hell," he continued, admitting he'd suffered depression himself after ABC's decision to cancel the show.