Michael Fishman, who portrayed D.J. Conner throughout the original “Roseanne” series and its 2018 revival, became emotional as he publicly defended the sitcom’s cancellation after eight years of receiving criticism about the decision. In an Instagram video posted on Monday, the 44-year-old actor responded directly to a follower’s comment defending Roseanne Barr’s firing, calling the defense “ignorant and inaccurate.”
The commenter had argued that “America decided to backstab Roseanne” after she made “the usual jokes a comedian makes,” blaming what they called “woke crap” taking over and destroying careers. Fishman addressed this narrative head-on, saying: “I get this every day. I get these kinds of ignorant and inaccurate comments daily. Mostly, I try to ignore them. For over eight years, I’ve been dealing with it quietly. Usually, I don’t respond.”
The controversy that led to the show’s cancellation dates back to May 2018, when Barr posted a racist tweet about Valerie Jarrett, a former senior adviser to President Barack Obama. Barr wrote that Jarrett was the result if “Muslim Brotherhood & Planet of the Apes had a baby.” The tweet, which has since been deleted, prompted immediate backlash and sparked calls for ABC to take action against the star of its surprisingly successful revival.
ABC’s Entertainment Division President Channing Dungey responded swiftly, calling Barr’s statement “abhorrent, repugnant and inconsistent with our values.” The network canceled the series within hours, ending what had been a major ratings success. The revival had premiered on March 27, 2018, and was renewed for a second season just days later before the controversy erupted.
After the cancellation, Barr offered multiple explanations for her tweet. She claimed she had been taking Ambien, the sleep medication, and said she did not know Jarrett was Black. Later, she told Rabbi Shmuley Boteach in a podcast interview: “I have to face that it hurt people. When you hurt people even unwillingly there’s no excuse.” In a 2018 interview with Sean Hannity on Fox News, she stated: “I wish I worded it better” and apologized to Jarrett and “all Americans.”
In his Instagram response, Fishman emphasized that there was no joke in Barr’s remarks. “There was no joke. And the show was rightfully canceled. It’s the last time I’m really gonna go into this,” he said, referencing Barr’s own characterization of her words as “indefensible.” He pointed out that she herself acknowledged the comment had no comedic merit.
Fishman acknowledged understanding that “good people make mistakes” and stressed that he continues to have compassion for Barr. “I love the one who made this mistake and always will,” he said. However, he was unequivocal about the real-world consequences of dehumanizing language, citing cases of deaths involving Black Americans like Tasia Fortune, Trey Reed, and Nolan Wells.
The actor warned against downplaying racism masked as comedy: “Dehumanizing people is never a joke. When we’re onstage as comedians, or on camera, we have the freedom to say whatever we want. But that doesn’t mean there’s no responsibility and no consequences.”
Following the cancellation, ABC quickly retooled the show as “The Conners,” a spinoff without Barr’s involvement. The series lasted seven seasons, ending in April 2025 with a finale that saw the extended Conner family visit Roseanne’s grave. Though Fishman had appeared in the first four seasons of the spinoff, he was absent from the final three seasons and the series finale, a creative decision he addressed with grace, telling fans on Instagram that he had “only gratitude” for the show’s legacy.
Fishman concluded his video with a forceful message to those defending racist rhetoric online: “Be smart enough to just shut the hell up. Don’t finish the statement, don’t hit send and certainly don’t rage against anybody else. Because words have real-world consequences, and some of us deal with them every day. That’s freedom of speech.”
In a caption accompanying the video, Fishman wrote: “Humanity crumbles when justify dehumanization and stay silent to suffering, inequality, exclusion, and oppression. We can do better. I was shaped by the show I grew up on. Now I am building bigger. Words have consequences.”
The actor’s statement comes as debates about accountability, free speech, and the consequences of public figures’ statements continue to dominate conversations about celebrity culture and social responsibility in the digital age.