John Goodman just shared an update on where he stands with his former TV wife Roseanne Barr.
The actor reflected on the recent series finale of the Roseanne reboot, The Conners, in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter published on Friday, July 11. When asked if he has connected with Barr about the show’s conclusion, Goodman said, “No. I’d rather doubt if she wants to talk to me.”
In fact, he revealed that the pair “haven’t talked for about seven or eight years.”
Goodman’s timeline matches up with when ABC brought back Roseanne for a 10th season in 2018. That same year, the show was canceled as a result of Barr posting a racist tweet about former White House adviser Valerie Jarrett. In the now-deleted post, the actress stated, “Muslim brotherhood & planet of the apes had a baby=vj.”
Barr later posted an apology via X, writing, “ I apologize to Valerie Jarrett and to all Americans. I am truly sorry for making a bad joke about her politics and her looks. I should have known better. Forgive me-my joke was in bad taste.”
ABC/Adam Rose
The then-President of ABC Entertainment, Channing Dungey, called Barr’s tweet “abhorrent, repugnant and inconsistent with our values” in a March 2018 statement.
Roseanne was reworked into The Conners, which premiered in October 2018. The series focused on the other members of the famous TV family, with the original show’s titular matriarch dying off-screen.
As for whether Goodman’s lack of communication with Barr made it tough to work on The Conners, the actor told THR, “No. We got a good cast, and everybody stands out.”
The Conners wrapped up its seventh and final season earlier this year. The April 23 series finale saw Goodman’s Dan Conner have an emotional moment while visiting his late wife’s grave. “I still can’t believe you’re not here,” he said during the private moment. “Hey, I know you wanted good things for me, too, and it probably didn’t include [my new wife] Louise. But if you meet anybody wherever you are, I’m cool with it.”
Following the episode, Barr’s son and rep, Jake Pentland, told TMZ that she was glad The Conners cast and crew got several years of work out of the ABC series, despite he and Barr never tuning in themselves. Pentland also noted that they were unaware the show was coming to an end.
In an April 24 interview with Us Weekly, Pentland stated that he and his mother didn’t care about “cheap knockoffs,” adding, “We support the real brands. We only pay attention to things that matter to the American people.”