Back when the first version of Roseanne was on the air, Roseanne Barr (then Roseanne Arnold) got a lot of crap from the men in charge of television at the time. She was labeled as “difficult” and “crazy” and “power-hungry” and all of those coded words they use for women. Of course it probably didn’t help that Roseanne actually is far from sane, and that she used her power to give her husband a job when no one wanted him. Back in those days, very few people had Roseanne’s back. John Goodman was one of the few who never said one bad word against her. They’ve always been very close, and even when the 1.0 version of the show went off the air, they still hung out and stayed in each other’s lives.
True to form, when Roseanne was fired for tweeting racist crap, Goodman didn’t say a bad word about her. Do you hate that or respect that? I kind of respect it, sheerly as an act of friendship and professional camaraderie. Now, in a new interview, Goodman spoke with more depth about what happened and… how Roseanne isn’t really racist? Oh no.
He was broken-hearted about ABC pulling the plug on ‘Roseanne’: “I was brokenhearted…but I thought, ‘OK, it’s just show business, I’m going to let it go.’ But I went through a period, about a month, where I was very depressed. I’m a depressive anyway, so any excuse that I can get to lower myself, I will. But that had a great deal to do with it, more than I wanted to admit.”
He says Roseanne isn’t racist: “I was surprised. I’ll put it this way, I was surprised at the response, and that’s probably all I should say about it. I know, I know, for a fact that she’s not a racist.”
Roseanne had to relinquish her rights to the spinoff show: “She had to sign a paper saying that she relinquished all her rights to the show so that we could go on. I sent her an email and thanked her for that. I did not hear anything back, but she was going through hell at the time. And she’s still going through hell.”
What happens to Dan on the spinoff: “I guess he’ll be mopey and sad because his wife’s dead.”
I have no idea if Goodman agreed with all of Roseanne’s racist tweets, but I want to believe that he does not agree with them. I think he’s too close to the situation, and he’s so used to standing up for Roseanne Barr that he never stopped to think “but what if she deserved to be fired for all of that crap?” I also don’t think “being justifiably called a racist when you tweet racist sh-t” is really “going through hell.” Facing up to consequences of your own toxic behavior should never be described as “going through hell.” But still, I don’t absolutely hate the fact that Goodman still won’t breathe a word against his friend.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
Forgive me for not taking your word for it- old White man.
Have a damn seat
Hmm, an entitled white man defending an entitled white woman… what are the chances?
Well he’s certainly not outraged enough of her firing to walk away from a paycheck though.
Ok caucasian male. It’s all about the paycheck he lost. Riiiight on the racism. I don’t believe that for even a second. You say it, you own it. She “hung” herself with her own mouth.
EXACTLY what I was thinking…how could he possibly know? He’s white and we often don’t see our own privilege
Right? That’s EXACTLY what I thought too. He’s in a privileged little bubble because he’s never been the target of it.
Plus there’s, you know, her history of posting racist things.
He was done for me when asked about the show promoting less than stellar ideals, and he said he didn’t care.
yeah, he’s thinking “racist” like either she’s ACTUALLY David Duke or has personally participated in a lynching or cross burning.
racism is about a WHOLE LOT MORE than that. STFU, Dan.
Love it!
Oh dear – cancelled now.
It’d be one thing for him to refrain from commenting but then for him to say that she isn’t racist when there has been more than one documented instance of her tweeting/saying racist things is bs. I guess he doesn’t see her racism because he’s not on the receiving end of it.
It sounds like he’s someone who still thinks a person can only be racist if they’re a segregationist, have a problem with interracial marriage, are committing a hate crime, using the very specific slurs, or making threats.
THIS EXACTLY.
I know for a fact she’s not a racist…says the old white man.
Not OK.
I just see this as someome thinking they are being loyal. He thinks she is already down, he is not going to kick her publicly, after years of friendship.
He perhaps doesn’t agree with her, but I’d like to believe he would tell her personally.
I can’t imagine how hard it must be to react to something like this. I recently found out I had a coworker in another office (Florida) who voted for Trump. I’ve only had to interact with the guy a handful of times, but for decent chunks of time every time. He’s someone who would thank me profusely for my work – tell my bosses he appreciated me. He was always incredibly professional and just a really responsible guy. The kind of guy you’d want working for you. Having all of those positive experiences with him, and finding out how he voted afterwards… it kind of soured him for me. I thought pretty highly of him, and it was a surprise to me. I felt almost betrayed by it – and I’m Canadian, so I know, it’d be so much more upsetting for someone living in the US. But I immediately thought “oh, so he hates women, PoC, poor people, and immigrants”. But nothing in my previous interactions would have hinted at his political affiliation.
So I mean, I can imagine how weird that must be for a friend, and long time coworker to bring this kind of situation on themselves. And the people who were friends with the celebrities who turned out to be harassing and assaulting others. If you’re not seeing that side of their life – I can imagine how difficult it would be to process that, especially if you’ve never had even a inkling of doubt about them before.
That said, I think no comment would be better in most cases. Or just a “I’m supportive of the victims, and I understand why people are hurt. I have only had positive experiences with this person, but I’m taking in all of this new information, and doing my best to put myself in the shoes of the victims instead of the shoes of this person’s friend”.
“Or just a “I’m supportive of the victims, and I understand why people are hurt. I have only had positive experiences with this person, but I’m taking in all of this new information, and doing my best to put myself in the shoes of the victims instead of the shoes of this person’s friend”.
DAMN, you should be working PR in H’wood, Erinn!
To me, this is more problematic than simply being loyal. I could see silence as loyalty and while not respecting it, I could understand it. Personally, I agree that it is not enough to not be racist now, you must be anti-racist and I call those comments out, but I can understand someone who feels they can’t/oughn’t.
But to come out and say that someone who has espoused blatantly racist epitaphs is not racist emboldens others who share those racist views. And that is doing harm. So I do not accept that he is saying that out of loyalty. The only explanation can be that he doesn’t believe that what she said was racist and that means he is no better than she is.
Agreed.
Of course, nobody better to identify racism than an old white man.
You said it!
Well, everyone can see this however they want. For me, I’m done with him. I will never see anything he is in again. Gilbert and Metcalf are on thin ice. I’ve always felt they all know what she is and signed on anyway. Gilbert bragged about making it happen, in fact. They both took a big hit in my eyes. They are one stupid, arrogant statement away from being cancelled along with Goodman.
I know for a fact she is racist. Because racist things came straight from her mouth.
Truth
Friggin RIGHT?! Like did he not read her tweets or spend any amount of time with her. Good lord.
Right? I was coming to say that her Twitter account says that she is. We’ve seen the posts! And, they’ve been happening for YEARS!
So ya, sit your ass down John Goodman, we’re not stupid.
It’s as simple as that. Slow clap.
Hello!!!!!!! WTF!! He needs to STFU!
I like John Goodman, so I want him to shut up and stop defending Roseanne with obvious lies just because they’re friends
Had a similar experience with my mother-in-law and her old time friend. He made a racist remark saying Asians shouldn’t be hired and MIL came to his defense that he’s not racist coz he has Asian friends & to judge him based on his previous actions not just on this one incident.
Upto that point I thought highly of my MIL, even though she didn’t say it, defending him made her look worse.
Can anyone here give me an alternate opinion so I can view my MIL highly again? Her not saying a bad word about her friend doesn’t trump the he has Asian friends defense.
Your MIL lives in a bubble. Most in the bubble are unaware there is a bubble. That the damage done and how quickly they dismiss and defend those comments is a concept they can’t grasp.
Maybe she doesn’t have hate in her heart, but she has ignorance or maybe on some level agrees with the comment she defended.
You can spin it however, but bottom line is a racist frame of mind was excused because its passive racism.
Well said FLORC.
It’s easier to quickly dismiss a friend’s behavior than to see it for what it really is. I think it’s more about self-examination. Who am I if my friend is racist or my friend says racist things? Living in a bubble is easier; self-examination is hard.
Life is hard enough. I hope you can somehow get past your disappointment in your MIL.
Thanks Florc, Boosandi & JWoolman,
I wasn’t expecting such eloquent responses especially in a forum like Celebitchy. Although it doesn’t make my MIL’s reaction any better, it is helpful in trying to understand it.
Thanks for taking the time to respond, I do appreciate it & I hope you all see this.
Many people with underlying racist or other ist feelings make exceptions for people they know and like. So “having Asian friends” doesn’t mean that a person isn’t simultaneously a bundle of prejudices about every other Asian.
In John Goodman’s case, this is probably what is going on in his head. He knows she is ok with some black people so he assumes she can’t possibly be racist. But her tweets prove otherwise. What she said was ugly and disturbing, as is her Trumpiness in general. I think she must have been very different when John first became friends with her, and he just hasn’t realized yet that she has changed dramatically from those days.
To you John. She has never been racist to you.
The Bar for racism for some people is apparently cross burning and lynching other than that its just a misunderstanding …….Nope
This!
Being racist doesnt just manifest in hate. It’s rooted in ignorance.
This is so typical…and what happens when your entitlement shrouds your brain and causes you to see things…that aren’t really there…and to ignore things that are staring you right in your face…
I think Roseanne is a troubled woman. Is she a racist? Probably. But I don’t blame her cast members for defending her as a person or a friend.
Except he’s defending her racism. He’s not defending her friendship.
Sure, and Donald Trump is not a misogynist because he has women in his cabinet. And “Michael (Jackson) is the most normal personal I know.” – Elizabeth Taylor
Way to let yourself down John Goodman.
Roseanne should have been fired for her tweets because good lord what a flaming mess, but my takeaway is that she is mentally ill and her problematic statements are a manifestation of her illness not necessarily her true self.
That said, kind of like the ongoing issues with Rose McGowan, there is zero reason to give damaged, unstable people a platform. I feel for John Goodman trying to draw this distinction for the public and I hope that anyone who has ever been close to someone with a mental illness will empathize with his position. But shame on the execs and her team who putting her out there to begin with.
I think there is a tendency to put kid gloves on these folks…Isn’t it more likely that she’s both racist and mentally unstable? And her instability is the reason she’s no longer able to cover her racism as well? Sometimes mentally ill people are also racist assholes but I don’t think it helps anyone to allude that mental illness “causes” racism.
Definitely not implying *in any way* that mental illness causes racism. But it can cause bizarre, hateful outbursts/behaviors/convictions that make someone unrecognizable to their friends and loved ones.
Whether her outbursts are simply symptomatic or whether her “crazy” is letting her real racism show through … it’s not about giving her a pass it’s about not giving a public platform to people who are not fully in possession of themselves to begin with.
I get what you mean – in the last video CB posted of her, she was acting erratically and it was shocking, not really bc of what she said but her physical mannerisms as well.
She should be getting some sort of help but I’m honestly finding it difficult to give her any kind of grace here because ultimately, she’s still spewing hate, supporting monsters, and hurting people.
And I totally get what you mean — toxic behavior is toxic regardless of whether the toxic person is rational. But I am going to give John Goodman some space to process and reconcile the friend he thought he knew with the person she is now. It’s not an easy, sound-bitey journey, you know?
Why do white people get the mental illness defense for their hateful actions? White male mass shooters: mentally ill. Racist white woman: mentally ill. Meanwhile people of color are terrorists or thugs. I can’t with the double standard.
This is a good question. Why? Why do white people get an excuse?
He deserves to be dragged for this. He should have stuck to saying nothing at all.
Goodman is either a very bad liar or he is deluding himself.
Phew! I’m so relieved now. Thanks John Goodman for clearing that up.
-Said no one.
I’ve cut off racist family and longtime friends, so no, I don’t respect anything about Goodman or his statement.
He owes his entire career to her! Of course he’s trying to defend her! And he is way overrated as an actor.
ohhh sandy went there!
When you belittle him by calling him an old white man, isn’t that a bit racist and ageist too. Before you start, I’m not a “white racism” person either, I don’t believe it is an issue in our society . However, a few people seem to like to fight with pretty weak arguments, like you couldn’t understand you’re white, your’e a man how do you know, you don’t have kids how do you know, you are too old to understand, you’re too young, etc. I could literally go on forever. Kind of a school yard comeback, which I think a bigger portion of society than I would like believes in. Look at Trump and there you have the king of bad school yard put downs. Honestly, there are plenty of reasons to not like his comment without going to he is white and old.
There is so much wrong with this, I don’t even know where to start.
Maybe I do.
Calling someone white cannot EVER be racist. Ever. Racism is based on power structure and there is no where in North America where white people are not in charge of the power structure. So no. It is not racist to call out his white privilege. And that is what is being done. Calling out privilege. And we know it is, al least in part based on privilege because he feels he can say that even though she has vomited vile, disgusting racists statements, he – who has never been and will never be impacted by racism – can stand there and excuse her behaviour and state definitively that she is not racist. There are only two reasons for that – one – he cannot see outside the bubble of his privilege or two – he is a racist. Attributing the statements to his privilege is actually the most generous attribution one can make.
Is it ageist to point out that he is old and that may contribute to his privilege? No. Ageism is once again about discrimination based on the power structure – but based on age, not race. So it is about disallowing participation in the social construct because of age. That is not what is being done. What is being done is recognizing the his bubble of privilege is influenced by 2 things – his whiteness and his age. I’d argue that a third influence is his wealth. So it is not a bad school yard put-down to say that his opinion reflects his white privilege, his age and his wealth.
And calling out that privilege is not the same as suggesting that if you are white, male and old you cannot understand concepts outside of your sphere. But to do so requires that you acknowledge your privilege and the lens through which you view the world and that your viewpoint does not represent reality for everyone else. You have to be able to get out of your own way and do some work. Had he done something other than to say he knows she isn’t racist (after she clearly made racist remarks) and demonstrated some understanding of his privilege and perspective, it might be unfairly reductive to attribute his comments to his privilege, but he didn’t, so it isn’t.
Look, I get it that discussions around racism can be hard. I’m white. I screw up. I don’t always recognize my own privilege, but if you actually want to have meaningful discussions around this topic, you can’t rely on everyone else to educate you – you have to take steps on your own. There are amazing resources out there and every white person should do themselves a favour and read what people of colour have written about how to have these discussions. It’s a way more productive use of your time than defending this crap from John Goodman.
👏👏🏻👏🏼👏🏽👏🏾👏🏿
Thank you. I wish I could copy and paste that whenever I see claims of reverse racism.
I feel like this is one of those situations where the guy is just too close to it to see it clearly.
He has a big blind spot and probably too much optimism when it comes to her.
After the fiascos of years ago, he should have reconsidered doing the reboot in the first place. I guess he and the other original cast members put their desire for a paycheck over those memories and of her more recent behavior/tweets.
A non racist person doesnt compare a POC to an ape. I cant believe hes defending her
but but but…she “though the b*tch was white!”
(Roseanne’s words, not mine, just to clarify)
SUUUUUUUURE you did, Ro, sure you did.
I think people just don’t get that when you engage in racist behaviour, you’re being a racist. Same with sexism. I don’t know what’s so difficult to understand about this concept. no one is saying that a person is 100% racist through and through and we all know that a person doesn’t have to be waving a swastika flag to be a racist, or saying a woman has to be barefoot and pregnant and in the kitchen to be a sexist. There is a spectrum here. It doesn’t mean Barr is not racist because she absolutely is.
John Goodman is the kind of guy I’d like to know. He is choosing to try to see the best in his old friend and Co-worker. JG, bless your heart, I think you’re wrong. Roseanne is a racist.
Roseanne is the kind of woman I don’t ever want to meet. She’s insane, vulgar, shouty, and rude. Worst of all, she’s a racist. To my mind there is no question about it, because we have her own words. We also have all her lying, screaming explanations. I don’t care what she says, and don’t want to hear anything else from her ever. She’s a racist
Unsurprising that he can’t see her racism. Better to say nothing.
Dear John Goodman,
True friendship means you have enough respect for someone to call them on their wrongdoing and then you help them make it right. Anything short of that makes you sympathetic, an apologist, or worse, a like-minded bigot.
Roseanne Barr has proven over and over again that she holds and supports racist views and ideologies – and that she’s proud to express them. She’s not being persecuted: she’s being held accountable.
I don’t care what you believe you know is “in her heart.” Enough with the deep down syndrome. Her bottom is her top.
She probably has his testicles in her pointed hat.😸
He had the right idea the first time he was asked about Rosie after her racist tweet rant. Just keep your mouth shut. I have lost respect for him and the whole cast to be honest. She is a racist because she says racist things. How is that hard to understand? And the fact that they are going on with the show without her is ridiculous. They could have ended it on a good note with the finale and bid it farewell for good. I’m not totally convinced that she won’t still get a cut of it.