Getty
The comedian says her "life's work was stolen, stolen by people who I thought loved me. And there was silence."
It's been five years since the reboot of "Roseanne" became the spinoff "The Conners" -- still airing on ABC -- and Roseanne Barr is still feeling some kind of way about it.
In a new interview published Thursday by the Los Angeles Times, the disgraced comedian continued to lash out at the powers that be that removed her from the show she created, as well as those comparing her to two other embattled comedians, Dave Chappelle and Louis C.K.
Getty
'The Conners' Stars Sara Gilbert, Laurie Metcalf Talk About Their 'Grief' and Relationship Status with Roseanne Barr
View Story"They didn't do it to anyone else in Hollywood," she said of the fallout of her controversial late-night tweets while, she claims, on Ambien. In the tweet that sealed her fate, Barr compared White House advisor Valerie Jarrett to the "Planet of the Apes" movies; she subsequently said she didn't know Jarrett was Black.
Barr did apologize, but it was too late as ABC had already fired her from her show. She would subsequently relinquish all rights to the series so that it could continue without her. It was rebranded "The Conners" the following season, with her character having died.
"I've survived. I've come out on the other side of it, finally. But it was a witch-burning," she told the Times. "And it was terrifying. It was."
"Oh my God, they just hated me so badly. I had never known that they hated me like that," she continued. "They hate me because I have talent, because I have an opinion. Even though 'Roseanne' became their number one show, they'd rather not have a number one show."
Getty
Louis CK Won a Grammy and Twitter Is Not Happy About It
View StoryReferencing the comparisons to C.K. and Chappelle, Barr conceded that perhaps C.K. "did lose everything but he committed an actual [offense]." In 2017, the comedian admitted to masturbating in front of female colleagues.
As for Chappelle, Barr says that while she lost her show and her legacy, he "was protect by Netflix." He came under fire for his transphobic jokes, some of which landed in a Netflix special and led to a walkout at the company.
Since these controversies, Chappelle has continued to work with Netflix. C.K. did see his FX series "Louie" canceled, but after some time away, he returned to standup comedy and self-publishing his specials. Both men have won Grammys for their work after their respective controversies.
"I'm the only person who's lost everything, whose life's work was stolen, stolen by people who I thought loved me," she said. "And there was silence. There was no one in Hollywood really defending me publicly, except for Mo'nique, who is a brave, close, dear friend."
Getty
Dave Chappelle Addresses Anti-Trans Backlash, Says Protesters Were Trying to Incite Violence
View StoryAs for her former castmates and colleagues from "Roseanne," Barr admits she has struggled with those relationships in the wake of her firing. "I can't know what they think or feel," she said.
"I don't know why they did what they did. I'm not like them. I realized that," she continued. "I can't believe what they did, with all the pain that I went through to bring the show back. And it didn't faze them to murder my character, either."
But, she insisted that she's not harboring any resentment toward them. "I forgive everybody," she told the outlet. "I started thinking that God took me out of there to save me. And once I started thinking that way, I was, like, a lot better off."
Barr appears to be done apologizing as she prepares to launch her latest comedy special on Fox Nation. "Roseanne Barr: Cancel This!" drops Monday on the streamer alongside a new documentary career retrospective called "Who Is Roseanne Barr?"
"I'm so happy that this is the most offensive in my stand-up that I've ever had the balls to be," Barr said of the new special.
