Bunheads stars Broadway actress Sutton Foster as a former ballerina who became a showgirl, only to move to a small suburban town where she winds up teaching at a dance academy.
© ABC
© Rex Features
Rhimes, who currently produces the ABC dramas Scandal, Grey's Anatomy, and Private Practice, tweeted while watching the new programme last week: "Hey @abcfbunheads: really? You couldn't cast even ONE young dancer of colour so I could feel good about my kid watching this show? NOT ONE?"
Creator Amy Sherman-Palladino, perhaps best known for her drama Gilmore Girls, has now responded to Rhimes's comment in an interview with Media Mayhem.
She said: "Look, I'm not going to get into a p*ssing match with Shonda Rhimes because she has 15,000 shows on the air, and she's doing just fine for herself.
"[But] I've always felt that women, in a general sense, have never supported other women the way they should... I think it's a shame, but to me, it is what it is."
Though she expressed her disappointment in Rhimes's comment, Sherman-Palladino did not directly comment on the issue of race on the show.
Bunheads airs on Mondays at 9/8c on ABC Family.
Watch the full interview below:
