ABC Sets Meetings to Hear ‘Roseanne’ Spinoff Ideas

ABC will reportedly be listening to potential Roseanne spinoff ideas to figure out if the franchise could continue without Roseanne Barr.

After the network canceled the series following Barr’s racist tweet directed at a senior adviser to former President Obama, many fans wondered if the show could go on without it star, and it appears ABC has some conditions.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the Disney-owned network is open to a potential spinoff series on one condition: They have to be without Barr and the actress and former head writer cannot benefit financially from the new series.

A meeting about potential ways to continue the top-rates comedy series is expected to take place next week.

Barr later apologized for her remarks and claimed she begged Disney-ABC TV Group chief Ben Sherwood not to cancel the series. (Although sources told THR that the conversation never happened and Barr had deleted her tweet).

Sources say ABC and producer Tom Werner are open to all ideas. TMZ reported Friday that star Sara Gilbert (Darlene) has been actively pitching a rebranded series following her character. However, insiders told THR the only conversations that have been had are the fact that the network is open to hearing pitches.

Keeping Roseanne going without Barr will not be easy, however, as the series was created by Matt Williams and based on characters created by the disgraced comedian. That could make a spinoff difficult, as it’s not clear if Roseanne Conner is the only character Barr created.

Series stars Gilbert, Laurie Metcalf and John Goodman are still set to be paid for the now-scrapped 13-episode 11th season. They will reportedly be paid around $15 million altogether, whether a single episode is made or not.

Earlier the week, Gilbert was reportedly speaking with writers and producers to discuss potential spinoff ideas. One source told the DailyMail that Goodman and Metcalf would be open to filming with one another as well as Gilbert, provided the idea is right for the series.

Fans have been hoping for a spinoff centered around Metcalf’s character Jackie, going as far as to make a fake poster with the tagline, “You watched for her anyway.”

Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel, as well as mountains of fans, have also pitched some spinoff ideas centered around Dan (Goodman).

Barr’s ex-husband Tom Arnold previously spoke out and said that the cancellation could cost ABC $1 billion in lost ad revenue in sales, meaning this Darlene-inspired spinoff might have a great chance of becoming a reality.