Top ABC brass may have acted too swiftly by pulling the plug on Roseanne - and they now fear the show's replacement spin-off will flop without its star.

Two senior executives at the network have told DailyMailTV that firing the actress was a 'knee-jerk' reaction by ABC's president and admitted that temporarily suspending Barr may have been a wiser decision.

'We didn't think it through properly. What Roseanne did was wrong but we shouldn't have rushed to fire her. It was almost a knee-jerk reaction by Ben [Sherwood] and Channing [Dungey] who should have launched an investigation,' one insider said.

'This would have given them more time to listen to the public, advertisers and cast members to determine the best decision.'

The highly-anticipated reboot of the popular 90s sitcom was axed in May, just three months into its return after Barr, 65, made a racist tweet about former Obama aide Valerie Jarrett.

The original Conners: ABC fears it may have jumped the gun by firing Roseanne Barr after the reboot's success was based largely on the audience's love for the family matriarch

Roseanne MIA: ABC is preparing for the debut of The Conners on October 16 which will determine whether the show can survive without the main star

Damage control: One source tells DailyMailTV that firing the actress was a 'knee-jerk reaction' by ABC President Channing Dungey (left) and ABC-Disney head Ben Sherwood (right)

Barr quickly came under fire by responding to a Twitter thread which mentioned Jarrett saying: 'muslim brotherhood & planet of the apes had a baby= vj.'

ABC canceled the show and fired the actress just hours later and released a statement calling her comments 'abhorrent' and 'repugnant.'

Although many applauded the network for taking swift action against the actress, the cancellation marked a premature and unfortunate end to the revival which had been considered an overall success.

Prior to Barr's tweet, however, the show had already received criticism for Roseanne's portrayal of a Trump supporter and its attempts to confront social issues involving race and politics.

According to one source, ABC was aware of what they 'were getting' when they hired the outspoken actress and rebooted her show, but the inappropriate tweet was the last straw for Dungey, despite Barr's desperate attempts to save face.

'They could've suspended her from the first few episodes without pay and had her return later on in the season. I mean the season finale saw Roseanne going to the hospital for knee surgery,' the source added.

'While they worked out her fate, her character could have faced serious complications and fought for her life, while simultaneously making Roseanne fight for her career with a national apology tour.

'The morning the racist tweet scandal blew up, Roseanne offered to publicly apologize and do the rounds of every show but Ben and Channing weren't having any of that and wanted her gone. Why not have her front a PSA for the network on racism and cyber bullying?

Controversy: Barr, 65, was fired from the show on May 29, after making what was perceived to be a racist remark on Twitter about former Obama aide Valerie Jarrett (right). She later apologized for the tweet

Barr quickly came under fire after responding to a Twitter thread which mentioned Jarrett saying: 'muslim brotherhood & planet of the apes had a baby= vj.'

Barr later apologized profusely for her words and admitted the joke was in 'bad taste'

Despite her attempts to save face, Barr was fired hours later and the ABC pulled the plug on her show

'Roseanne kept saying on the call before she was fired "What can I do? What can I do?" Fans of her show have watched her character confront prejudice and racism - we could've made this a storyline for her to save the show and redeem her publicly.'

ABC is now bracing for the premiere of The Conners on October 16 which will determine whether the show can survive without its main star.

The network fears they have upset viewers by firing Barr and that fans will not watch The Conners out of loyalty to the actress.

'When we greenlit The Conners we thought that the public would tune in to see the family return but what we've discovered is that people want Roseanne - they don't want the family by themselves,' a second source said.

'The marketing and publicity teams are horrified as no matter what promotional material is released - and let's be honest it's been limited for a show that launches next Tuesday - Roseanne's fans come out in force stating that they won't watch the show.

'The comments on social media tend to skew in favor of Roseanne and slam The Conners and the cast members who came back. Even dedicated fans of the Conner family feel conflicted about supporting a show that so swiftly eliminated the show's matriarch and creator.'

Reboot: The highly-anticipated reboot of the popular 90s sitcom (pictured) was axed in May, just three months into its return

The show's cancellation also caused conflict among cast members who were forced to publicly condemn their co-star's actions.

John Goodman admitted on Jimmy Kimmel on Tuesday that Barr is 'definitely' missed on set because the cast 'is like family.'

The source revealed that the actress is still 'looming large' over the new series despite her absence.

'What we're expecting is for there to be some tune in so fans can actually learn how Roseanne departs, but from there the worry is the ratings will freefall.

'In the end the ratings are all that matter - and there are many people at Disney and ABC who are worried that firing Roseanne will see their Tuesday night ratings drop substantially. And should The Conners flop, Channing and her team will have many questions to answer.

'The whisper across ABC is that they will not even be a quarter of what Roseanne achieved last season.'

The insider touched on the possibility of bringing her back - an idea that is not too far-fetched since Dan Conner was killed off in the original series two decades ago and is now the star of the show.

The source added: 'Heck who knows - maybe she'll end up as Tim Allen's new neighbor on Last Man Standing.'

A spokesperson for ABC has denied that the network is concerned about the success of The Connors and firing of Roseanne.