Roseanne Barr has a fight on her hands to be paid her full compensation from her canceled ABC sitcom, DailyMail.com can reveal.
ABC executives believe the star has brought the network into disrepute and has breached her contract obligations with her racist tweet, a source with knowledge of the situation claims.
It’s understood senior ABC figures are keen to block any payments due to Barr amid the embarrassment her incendiary tweet has caused the network.
It has been reported the star raked in an estimated $250,000 per episode of the show and will likely lose more than $3 million in the wake of the scandal.
Roseanne Barr smokes a cigarette and chats on her phone outside her Salt Lake City, Utah home on Tuesday
Roseanne might a long fight for her compensation ahead of her. ABC execs believe Roseanne Barr has brought the network into disrepute and has breached her contract obligations with her racist tweet, an insider told DailyMail.com
This comes amid reports that ABC is considering a spin-off of the show that would center around Sara Gilbert, who played Barr’s daughter on Roseanne.
Gilbert was one of the first members of the cast to speak out against Barr following her tweets, calling them ‘abhorrent’.
Barr, 65, is still keeping a low profile at her parent’s house in Salt Lake City, Utah, where she is holed up with partner Johnny Argent.
She was snapped looking increasingly weary on Tuesday walking near the home in a plain black dress.
Smoking a cigarette and chatting on her phone a make-up free Barr appeared glum and lost in her thoughts in DailyMail.com’s exclusive photos.
The disgraced television star had vowed to take a break from Twitter, but on Tuesday she tweeted: ‘I’m making restitution for the pain I have caused.’
While Barr takes stock ABC execs are hammering out the future of the show.
If a reboot doesn’t materialize then the source reveals the network has agreed to commit to their monetary responsibilities for those caught up in the wake of the scandal.
Barr, 65, is still keeping a low profile at her parent’s house in Salt Lake City, Utah, where she is holed up with partner Johnny Argent. She was snapped looking increasingly weary on Tuesday walking near the home in a plain black dress
After initially saying she was taking a break from Twitter, Roseanne Barr returned late Tuesday with a cryptic tweet promising to make ‘restitution for the pain’ she has caused
Sara Gilbert, who played Roseanne’s on-screen daughter Darlene, appeared on The Talk on Monday saying she was saddened about how ‘Roseanne’ ended but supported the cancellation
It’s understood Barr’s co-stars, including John Goodman and Sara Gilbert, will receive close to their full agreed contracted fees for the canceled run.
The source added that ‘only the significant’ lead writers in the creative room are in talks of compensation packages.
The crew of the show has not been made any promises of financial compensation, however.
The source said: ‘There’s a lot to sort out. Some of the senior crew members are actively looking for work, with no decision yet made on any spin off or reboot.
‘Roseanne’s contract was canceled because she brought the show and the network into disrepute so network bosses aren’t going to want to pay her but they’re more than happy to pay the rest of the cast.
‘Even Roseanne’s comments on Twitter in recent days have the legal team adamant that she has broken the moral obligations of her contract.’
It’s understood Goodman, Gilbert and Laurie Metcalfe will be paid for the unfilmed ten episodes – even though 13 were commissioned.
The source claims the stars have already accepted those terms behind closed doors.
Another source from ABC told People that talks about a possible spin-off are currently ‘underway’, however.
Roseanne Barr’s mother, Helen, was seen outside her Salt Lake City home on Tuesday carrying a plate of food. Roseanne is staying with her in the aftermath of her racist tweet scandal
It’s understood Barr’s co-stars, including John Goodman and Sara Gilbert, will receive close to their full agreed contracted fees for the canceled run. Goodman is pictured above outside The Herb smoke shop with a bandage around his arm
‘But it’s too preliminary to know if it’s going to gel or not,’ they added.
The source also revealed that the cast were ‘always on edge’ about Barr and whether she would go ‘off track’ while they were filming.
‘Everyone is upset for the cast and the crew, but there was always a feeling that something was going to happen,’ the source said.
‘There was always a heightened awareness with her and we were always on edge. Did we think she would say something like that? No. But then it all fell apart.’
Sara Gilbert led the way for a number of Barr’s co-stars to speak out against her last week.
‘I am disappointed in her actions to say the least,’ Gilbert wrote on Twitter last Tuesday
‘This is incredibly sad and difficult for all of us, as we’ve created a show that we believe in, are proud of, and that audiences love – one that is separate and apart from the opinions and words of one cast member.’
Barr – who has an estimated worth of over $80 million – has been widely condemned ever since she compared former Barack Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett to an ape on Twitter last month.
ABC swiftly canceled ‘Roseanne’ in the wake of the racist tweet scandal.
Following the fallout, Barr apologized for the tweet about Jarrett and to her colleagues but has repeatedly insisted she is not racist.
She has since retreated to Utah.