John Goodman (a.k.a. Dan Conner) has been strangely silent about the cancellation and subsequent reboot of Roseanne following the flap surrounding some controversial tweeting that the star of the show unleashed. In a way that’s kind of understandable. A lot of people had their jobs and careers on the line with that show, including Goodman himself I suppose. Taking sides and rocking the boat when the future of the cast was uncertain might not have seemed like the best move. But now the actor has broken down and given an interview where he talks about how the show’s cancellation affected him and what we should expect from the future.

Speaking to the British Sunday Times, Goodman first admits that he fell into depression for about a month after the cancellation and that he was “brokenhearted.” But after that, he goes to bat for Roseanne Barr and in doing so, appears to reveal how the writers are taking her out of the script. (TV Line)

Goodman went on to defend his former leading lady, whose since-delated tweet described ex-Obama aide Valerie Jarrett as the offspring of the “Muslim Brotherhood & Planet of the Apes.”

“I know for a fact that she’s not a racist,” he said, before suggesting that he was not entirely supportive of ABC’s decision to cancel the sitcom. “I’ll put it this way, I was surprised at the response,” Goodman said clearly choosing his words carefully. “And that’s probably all I should say about it.”

Regarding how spinoff series The Conners will address Barr’s absence, Goodman said, “It’s an unknown. I guess he’ll be mopey and sad because his wife’s dead.”

That’s was sort of a mouthful to drop on us all at once. I don’t think anyone is terribly surprised that they decided to kill the character. Any other explanation where she remains alive but “elsewhere” begs all sorts of questions about a possible divorce, why the kids aren’t hearing from her – not to mention her own sister – and everything else. It’s not as if the show hasn’t blown huge continuity holes in its own storyline before, but having the soul of the show permanently off camera would be intolerable.

Of course, that leaves them with the prickly issue of what happens if Roseanne Barr is at some point seen as having sufficiently atoned for her sins and the fans are still clamoring to have her back. What then? Does it turn into another of those scenes from Dallas where Bobby Ewing steps out of the shower? But then again, if they can have Becky disappear, only to be replaced by an entirely different Becky, and then have the original Becky show up as a complete stranger I suppose anything is possible.

More to the point is Goodman’s defense of Roseanne Barr, insisting that she’s not a racist in any way, shape or form. That’s got to remain a sticking point for the cast and the management at the network. It’s clearly not a settled issue, and it may yet come back to bite them in the backside in more ways than one. For her part, Roseanne took to Twitter to thank Goodman for his comments while warning that he may face industry backlash for taking her side.

I thank John Goodman for speaking truth about me, despite facing certain peril from producers and network.

— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) August 28, 2018

I still plan on giving the premiere a chance, but without Roseanne there the entire thing kind of seems pointless. Who will take over the role of red against the blue, right against the left? Dan? Some other character we’ve never seen before? Or will the show just turn into yet another single sided festival of progressive, liberal values? If that’s the case, I don’t see it lasting a single season. And I probably won’t last two episodes.