Michael Fishman is trying to pull Roseanne fans out of a fight they never asked to be part of. Days after his long-running disagreement with former TV mom Roseanne Barr erupted publicly again, Fishman posted a video apologizing for the “chaos over the course of the past week.”
EW reported that Fishman said he had heard from viewers who felt as though their television family was fighting, prompting him to address the audience directly rather than continue trading insults with Barr.
Fishman, who played D.J. Conner from childhood through the 2018 revival and later returned for The Conners, told fans he intends to keep putting “love and light” into the world and protect a series many viewers still use as a comfort show.
Variety noted that he promised not to let the current fight “ruin” what the show means to its audience and closed his post with a message about finding a way “home and back together.”
Fishman Told Fans He Does Not Want the Feud to Ruin ‘Roseanne’
‘Roseanne’ actor Michael Fishman apologizes to fans of the sitcom for the ‘chaos’ of last week, after he and TV mom Roseanne Barr publicly feuded about the 2018 cancellation of the sitcom’s revival. https://t.co/zuLuWNKPno
— Entertainment Weekly (@EW) September 27, 2026
Fishman’s latest video was aimed directly at people who grew up watching the Conner family. He said he had the privilege of growing up alongside many of those viewers and understood why seeing two longtime cast members clash publicly could feel more personal than a normal celebrity disagreement.
“I’ve heard from a lot of you feel like your TV family is fighting,” Fishman said, according to Variety’s account of the video. He added that many fans are dealing with problems far more serious than a dispute between former costars and acknowledged that Roseanne has remained a source of comfort for people long after its original run ended.
Fishman said he would do what he could to uphold that legacy rather than let the current feud take over it. Beneath the video, he wrote, “Gentle reminder to shine,” before adding that people can find their way “home and back together.”
Barr Had Unloaded on Her Former TV Son Days Earlier
The new flare-up began with comments Fishman made in August while responding to renewed arguments over why ABC canceled the 2018 Roseanne revival. He said the network had been right to end the show after Barr’s tweet about former Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett and argued that there had been no joke to defend in that instance.
Barr strongly rejected his position during an appearance on the Can’t Be Censored podcast. TV Insider documented her calling Fishman a “brainwashed bigot” and a “little f—ing worm,” while accusing him of failing to understand what she says she intended with the 2018 post. Barr has repeatedly maintained that she did not intend the tweet as a racist comparison.
She also claimed that Fishman had only remained part of the revival because she fought for him to be there. Barr said producers had wanted to remove him and that she “made them take him back,” turning the disagreement over the canceled show into a much more personal argument about their history together.
Fishman’s First Response Was Much More Personal
Before Sunday’s attempt to calm the situation, Fishman answered Barr in a video of his own. He rejected what he described as lies and name-calling, but he also thanked Barr for publicly acknowledging that he had contacted her after the 2018 controversy instead of immediately abandoning her.
TMZ reported that Fishman said he had reached out to Barr that morning seeking clarity while still strongly disagreeing with what she had posted. He said he had kept parts of their private interaction to himself for years and argued that her latest comments gave viewers a glimpse of what he called the “darker side” of his childhood experience around the show.
Fishman also asked Barr for a retraction or apology and said he was setting healthier boundaries. At the same time, he emphasized that he remained grateful for the work they had done together and for the legacy of Roseanne, making his later appeal to fans less of a reversal than a decision to stop centering the argument itself.
The Dispute Still Goes Back to the 2018 Cancellation
ABC canceled the successful Roseanne revival in May 2018 after Barr posted a tweet about Jarrett that compared her to “Planet of the Apes.” ABC News reported at the time that network president Channing Dungey called the statement “abhorrent, repugnant and inconsistent with our values” when announcing the cancellation.
ABC subsequently continued the Conner family’s story without Barr in The Conners. Fishman reprised D.J. for the spinoff’s first four seasons before leaving ahead of Season 5 in 2022. He said at the time that he had been told he would not be returning, and EW reported that no specific reason for his departure was publicly given.