Australia's Network Ten has removed the now-cancelled US television comedy Roseanne from its channels and condemned a racist tweet by star Roseanne Barr.

"Network Ten is appalled and disgusted with Ms Barr's racist tweet and has removed Roseanne from TEN and ELEVEN, effective immediately," Ten said in a statement.

America's ABC network has cancelled the new series of Roseanne after Ms Barr compared a former Obama administration official to an ape in remarks on Twitter.

The show, a revival of the 1990s hit Roseanne, was ABC's most widely watched show for the TV season that ended last week, drawing more than 18 million viewers on average each week.

"Roseanne's Twitter statement is abhorrent, repugnant and inconsistent with our values, and we have decided to cancel her show," ABC Entertainment president Channing Dungey said in a statement.

Disney chief executive Bob Iger added on Twitter: "There was only one thing to do here, and that was the right thing."

In a deleted tweet, Barr compared former Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett to an ape, saying it was like the "muslim brotherhood & planet of the apes had a baby."

Barr, 65, apologised "for making a bad joke" about Ms Jarrett, who is black and was born in Iran to American parents.

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Barr's fellow cast member Sara Gilbert wrote on Twitter that the cancellation was "incredibly sad and difficult".

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Emma Kenney, who plays Sara Gilbert's on-screen daughter in the show, said she was calling her manager to quit working on Roseanne when she was told it was cancelled.

Kenney said she felt "empowered" by anyone standing up for morals and abuse of power.

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Michael Fishman, who returned as character DJ Conner in the Roseanne revival, said today was "one of the hardest" in his life.

"I feel devastated, not for the end of the Roseanne show, but for all those who poured their hearts and souls into our jobs, and the audience that welcomed us into their homes," Fishman said.

"The words of one person do not exemplify the thinking of all involved."

One of Rosanne's consulting producers, Wanda Skyes, also said she would not be returning to the show.

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Ms Jarrett said ABC had made the right decision in cancelling the show.

"First of all, I think we have to turn it into a teaching moment," she said on MSNBC.

"I'm fine. I'm worried about all the people out there who don't have a circle of friends and followers coming to their defence."

Barr was also dumped by her talent agency, ICM Partners.

Roseanne was ABC's biggest hit of the 2017-2018 season.

The show drew an average of 18.7 million viewers, second only to CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory, according to Nielsen data through May 20.

Roseanne earned an estimated $US45 million ($60 million) in advertising revenue for ABC through its nine episodes that started airing in March, according to Kantar Media.

The firm estimates that the 13 episodes that had been ordered for next season would have brought in as much as $US60 million ($80 million), with more through repeat episodes.

The fallout from the show's cancellation also hit its lucrative syndication market as Viacom said it would pull reruns of the original 1990s episodes from its cable networks. Another cable network, Laff, also said it was removing reruns of the show.

The original Roseanne aired from 1988 to 1997. It featured a blue-collar family, the Conners, with overweight parents struggling to get by and was praised for its realistic portrayal of working-class life.

President Donald Trump has latched onto the show's huge viewership as evidence that his supporters, which include Barr, want shows that speak to their concerns.

Wires/ABC