ABC Tuesday saw its most valuable entertainment property, Roseanne, burn to the ground, courtesy of star and Twitter arsonist Roseanne Barr.
Two immediate questions dominate after the network's swift cancellation of the hit revival, just hours after the actress-comedian's racist tweet: Is there any way Roseanne, already resurrected once after its 1997 finale, can come back from the dead again? And, how does ABC reconstruct a fall schedule built around the top-rated comedy?
For the series, it's likely toe-tag time. Although Roseanne's large audience and accompanying ad dollars seem appetizing, it's difficult to envision a scenario in which the comedy is exhumed by another network or streaming service because of expected PR blowback.
Creatively, it would be almost impossible to separate the show from its namesake star, even if it killed off its central character. Barr's singular comedic style is the show's voice and was the main reason it became a hit when it premiered in the late '80s. It's not Roseanne without Roseanne and viewers might not be as interested.
Barr can't just be cut loose, either, since she's a creator and executive producer who would continue to have approval rights and profits from the show. Any network that picked it up could therefore be accused of condoning — or at least excusing — her behavior.
Besides, Roseanne's tweet erodes the value of the series. It would likely lose both a sizable portion of its huge audience (23 million viewers for its nine-episode spring season) and advertisers, who typically avoid any whiff of controversy.
More: ABC cancels 'Roseanne' hours after Roseanne Barr's racist tweet targeting Obama adviser
More: Roseanne will never change, and that's why her No. 1 show is now canceled
Fox, despite surface appearances, seems an unlikely home, though the network is reviving Last Man Standing, canceled last year by ABC, which stars Tim Allen, the outspoken, politically conservative actor. (Unlike Roseanne, produced by the independent Carsey-Werner studio, Fox owns Last Man, so it has a financial stake in extending the sitcom.)
As for streaming services, Hulu Tuesday yanked its Roseanne reruns, indicating a level of toxicity likely to deter others.
More: Inside Roseanne Barr’s history of offensive tweets
Even if a network picked up Roseanne, what would it be getting?
Barr has lost support within the show, leaving any reconstruction project likely to be shorthanded. Executive producer Tom Werner spoke out in support of ABC's decision, and said Barr should seek "the help she so clearly needs." Comedian Wanda Sykes, a consulting producer, quit the series just before ABC canceled it and co-stars Sara Gilbert, an executive producer, and Emma Kenney distanced themselves after Barr's tweet.
More: ABC's fall schedule: Four new series, a kid version of 'DWTS' and Alec Baldwin
While Roseanne's future is entirely theoretical, ABC must contend with an immediate, real-world loss.
The network, which announced its 2018-19 schedule only two weeks ago, is expected to quickly reset a lineup built around the top-rated comedy hit, though nothing in its arsenal will come close to making up for the loss. Returning Black-ish and Splitting Up Together and two new shows, The Kids Are Alright and The Rookie, will suffer from the loss of Roseanne's ratings boost.
The broadcast networks are now beginning the "upfront" ad-sales market, when the bulk of inventory for the coming season is sold. ABC didn't make as much as might be expected from the first season of Roseanne, because there was no expectation it would turn into a giant hit, but the network will feel a significant loss of advertising dollars by not moving forward with a second season.
ABC will take a hit, but survive; Roseanne, it appears, won't.
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