List of television show casting changes

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There are sometimes casting changes on television shows; either a character is replaced by another actor with a new character, or a new actor takes over an existing role when the original actor is dropped. Some cast changes have been significant enough to cause the show to "jump the shark" by detrimentally affecting the quality of the show.

Contents

[edit] Examples of shows to have very significant casting changes

Show casting changes listed here must have a discontinuation the same character after the actor has left. In fictional shows, the script typically allows others characters to be aware of the absence of the character—usually as a death, which has lead to the phrase "killing off a character". This sometimes also occurs when a character leaves the show (and usually the city) to appear in their own Spin-off

[edit] Sitcoms

Change to main character

[edit] Soap operas

Main article: List of soap opera recasts

On daytime soap operas, cast departures and recasts are extremely frequent, and examples are far too numerous to cite individual examples here. On primetime soaps, however, cast changes are less frequent.

[edit] Unclassified

Main character changes

Other recurring character changes

[edit] Disappearing Characters

Sometimes a character simply disappears and is never mentioned again. Can be a major cast change, as a major actor/ actress leaves the show, and is not referred to again. Most often, it occurs when a minor character is no longer deemed necessary to the television show's plot, and the actor/ actress playing the character is sacked.

[edit] Examples

  • One particularly noteworthy example of disappearing characters occured on The Doris Day Show at the beginning of the 1972 season. Day's character had been depicted as a widowed mother of two small children working as a secretary at a publishing firm. At the beginning of the show's fourth season, however, the character abruptly became a "swinging single" journalist, and the all the supporting characters disappeared (including her coworker, played by Rose Marie and boss, played by McLean Stevenson, as well as her children). No effort was ever made to explain this discrepancy.

[edit] Examples of shows with "Same Character, Different Actor"

In the television world, the act of same character, different actor indicates that an actor is playing a role that was previously played by another actor. When the actor changed plays a significant role, it is sometimes referred to as Darrin Syndrome after the Dick York/Dick Sargent switch in Bewitched.

Television series often have many reasons for replacing a character's actor such as: the original actor has died, the original actor was fired/did not settle dispute, the original actor quit, the original actor could not be contacted to fill the role again.

Same character, different actor can refer to main characters of the series or occasional guest characters.

One instance of same character, different actor occurred in the United States sitcom The Munsters. For the first few episodes, Beverley Owen played the cousin Marilyn Munster, however, not even making a full season, Owen left the series after getting married. Pat Priest was hired to fill the role. The only thing different about the character was the actor and the show continues as though nothing has changed. (The "Munster Go Home" movie had yet another actor as Marilyn.)

This was done explicitly in Roseanne when Lecy Goranson played the eldest daughter Becky until she left to go to college when she was replaced during season five by Sarah Chalke. Writers acknowledged this event by having the family watching a Bewitched episode and Chalke mentioning her preference to the replacement character.[1] Episode 816 "All About Rosey" poked fun at the "new Becky" by showing a future D.J. played by John Goodman rocking back and forth in the office of a psychiatrist repeatedly mumbling to himself, "She says she is the same but she isn't the same." Goranson came back two seasons later, but later left to be replaced by Chalke yet again during the final season. At least once, both actresses appeared together in the same episode.[2]

Daytime soap operas are known widely in the US for frequently "recasting" major characters. Although this has been done since the days of radio, one of the most memorable cases was in 1959 on the soap Love of Life. Actress Bonnie Bartlett (who, in turn, took over from Peggy McCay in 1955) played the character Vanessa Dale all the way up until her wedding to Bruce Sterling. She marched down the aisle at the end of a Friday episode and the next Monday, Bruce lifted her veil and the audience saw Audrey Peters as Vanessa for the first time.

As the World Turns holds the record for having the most actors play a single role. Tom Hughes was born onscreen in 1963 and has since been played by 13 different actors: James Madden, Jerry Schaffer, Frankie Michaels, Richard Thomas, Paul O'Keefe, Peter Link, Peter Galman, C. David Colson, Tom Tammi, Justin Deas, Jason Kincaid, Gregg Marx, and, currently, Scott Holmes, who's been in the role since 1987.

Show casting changes listed here must have a continuation of the same character, but other characters are generally not aware of the actor change. In some cases, other characters may acknowledge the change in the character's physical appearance, either in a joking manner or for use in a plot device.

[edit] Soap operas

  • Dallas - Digger Barnes was played by David Wayne in the first season, then by Keenan Wynn in the later seasons. When Barbara Bel Geddes was forced to leave the show due to illness, Miss Ellie was played for one season by Donna Reed although Bel Geddes later did return to the role. While many other character's on the show were re-cast too. Kristin was originally played by Colleen Camp and was replaced by Mary Crosby, while another character for the final two seasons: Duke Carlilse was also recast too.
  • Dark Shadows had several instances:
    • Mitchell Ryan portrayed Burke Devlin from the first episode in 1966. He was fired in 1967 for not showing up for an episode due to alcoholism, and was replaced by Anthony George.
    • Mark Allen portrayed Maggie Evans's father Sam Evans. After two months he was replaced by David Ford, until the character was killed off two years later.
    • George Mitchell portrayed Matthew Morgan, the person who killed Bill Malloy in 1966, he was replaced by Thayer David two years later.
    • James Hall portrayed Willie Loomis in a few episodes in 1967, then he left and was replaced by John Karlen who stayed on the show playing different characters til the very end of the series.
    • Richard Woods portrayed Dr. Dave Woodard in two episodes in 1967, he was taken over by Robert Gerringer, and then Gerringer left the show because he refused to cross the picket line, he was replaced by Peter Turgeon that same year until the character was killed off.
    • Dana Elcar who portrayed Sheriff George Patterson in 1966, he missed one episode in 1967 and was replaced by Vince O'Brien, then Elcar resumed the role for one last time, then he was taken over by Angus Carnes in 1967, then back to Vince O'Brien in 1968, then replaced by Alfred Sandor for one episode, and back to Vince O'Brien.
    • Nancy Barrett who portrayed Carolyn Stoddard on the show missed one episode of the show in 1968 because she was ill, she was temporary replaced by Diana Walker.
    • Alexandra Moltke who portrayed Victoria Winters from the beginning in 1966 until she left the show in 1968 due to her pregnancy, she was replaced by Besty Durkin, and then Carolyn Groves.
    • Craig Slocum who portrayed Harry Johnson in 1968 miss one episode and was replaced by Edward Marshall in 1969.
  • Dynasty — All four of the Carrington children were recast at some point:
    • Steven Carrington was played by Al Corley from 1981 until 1983, and then by Jack Coleman from 1984 until 1988. In the latter case, his change in appearance was initially explained by an industrial accident requiring plastic surgery, but this was apparently forgotten by the script writers fairly quickly, as several weeks later he was easily recognized by an old college friend who hadn't seen him in years. In Dynasty: The Reunion Al Corley resumed the role with no scripted explanation for Steven's pre-surgery appearance returning.
    • The character of Fallon Carrington Colby was played by Pamela Sue Martin from 1981 until 1984, and then by Emma Samms from 1985 until 1989 in this show and its spinoff The Colbys. When a plotline brought back a former lover of Fallon's, scenes from the first season were reshot with Samms, to be used in flashback sequences. The British Samms had never attempted to portray an American before, and her accent fluctuated wildly, especially in her first season on the show.
    • Amanda Carrington was originally played by Catherine Oxenberg. When she demanded a higher salary, she was abruptly replaced with Karen Cellini. In the first episode of the 7th season, a clip was reshot using Cellini instead of Oxenberg. No explanation was given for the change in appearance. Like her sister Fallon, Amanda's recast resulted in an abrupt change of accent, this time changing from an English accent to an American one.
    • Adam Carrington was played by Gordon Thompson from the third season until the final episode. For the reunion movie Robin Sachs played Adam because Thompson was unavailable.
  • In Sons and Daughters Rowena Wallace, who played Patricia, decided to leave the show. Several months after Patricia's departure the character was reintroduced to the series, this time played by Belinda Giblin. In the story Patricia had had extensive plastic surgery in South America after sustaining severe facial injuries in a beating, and returned calling herself 'Alison Carr' to exact revenge on her enemies. Later Wallace agreed to return to Sons and Daughters, and a long-lost twin sister of Patricia's was invented.

[edit] Sitcoms

  • 'Allo 'Allo!
    • Gavin Richards portrayed Captain Alberto Bertorelli for seasons 4-6 but was replaced by Roger Kitter for season 7. The character disappeared without explanation afterwards. Bertorelli himself was in fact more or less a replacement for Captain Hans Geering, played by Sam Kelly.
    • Ernest Leclerc was played by Derek Royle in season 6. In season 7-9, Robin Parkinson played the same role. Like in the case of Bertorelli, Ernest Leclerc was a replacement for another character as well, this time Roger LeClerc, played by Jack Haig.
    • In the final season, Richard Gibson had left and Otto Flick was played by David Janson.
  • Arrested Development - the actress that played Marta, Gob's girlfriend and Michael Bluth's love interest, was replaced mid-first season. As well, George Michael Bluth's love interest, Ann, was introduced in the first season finale as played by Alessandra Toreson. For the remainder of the series, she was played by Mae Whitman.
  • Batman - After the first season, Julie Newmar was unavailable to play Catwoman in a movie based on the series, so Lee Meriwether replaced her in the film. Newmar returned for the second season, but she was replaced by Eartha Kitt for the third and final season.
  • Bette, Bette Midler's daughter, Rose, was first played by Lindsay Lohan on the pilot episode. She was then replaced by Marina Malota from the 3rd episode on.
  • Bewitched:
    • Alice Pearce portrayed the nosy neighbor Gladys Kravitz for the first two seasons. However, Pearce died of cancer during the second season, causing some reshuffling of episodes. Sandra Gould stepped into the role for the third season until the series' end in the eighth season.
    • Irene Vernon portrayed the wife (Louise) of Darren's boss, Larry Tate, for the first few seasons. Vernon had a relationship with a writer Danny Arnold at the time and when he was fired from the series, Elizabeth Montgomery and William Asher asked her to resign. Kasey Rogers took over the role from that point on.
    • In what may be the most famous example of "same character, different actor", Dick York portrayed Darrin Stephens during the first five seasons, but left after experiencing back problems and could no longer work; Dick Sargent took over the role from the sixth to eighth season. (This was also spoofed in the 2005 film version.)
  • Cheers/Frasier - Frasier Crane's ex-wife Nanette Gooseman ("Nanny Gee") was played by Emma Thompson when she appeared on an episode of Cheers. The character later appeared in two separate episodes of Frasier, one in 2001 in which she was portrayed by Dina Spybey and the other in 2004 in which she was portrayed by Laurie Metcalf.
  • Clueless - Michael Lerner portrayed the role of Mel Horwitz during the series' first season. When the series moved from ABC to UPN, Doug Sheehan assumed the role of Mel, remaining until the end of the series.
  • Dennis the Menace, when actor Joseph Kearns died and his character, Mr. George Wilson, is replaced by his brother John, played by Gale Gordon.
  • Diff'rent Strokes replaced Dixie Carter with Mary Ann Mobley after one season with the character.
  • Eight Is Enough, Some of the children on the pilot episode were played by different actors than were shown in the remainder of the series. Mark Hamill played David in the pilot episode, but then was replaced by Grant Goodeve when Mark went on to play on Star Wars.
  • Family Matters - Jo Marie Payton-Noble portrayed Harriet Winslow for the first eight seasons. In the last few episodes of the final season, she was replaced by Judyann Elder.
  • Fresh Prince of Bel-Air - Janet Hubert-Whitten portrayed Aunt Vivian Banks for the first three seasons. However, after having some complications with Will Smith and the producers of the show, she was let go. Daphne Maxwell Reid took over the role for the fourth season onward; the character was never the same in any way. This was even acknowledged in the show itself: in Reid's first appearance Jazz comments "Mrs. Banks, ever since you had that baby, there's something different about you.".Later, in the next season's opening, Jazz asks Will "Who's playing the mother this year?"
  • Friends - Anita Barone plays Ross's ex-wife Carol Willick in her first appearance in the second episode, The One With the Sonogram at the End, but in all subsequent episodes Carol is played by Jane Sibbett.
  • Game On - Ben Chaplin played Matthew Malone in the first series, but was unavailable for the second due to film work. He was replaced by Neil Stuke for the second and third series. The change was referred to in the first episode of the second series where the three leading characters agreed that they did not like TV shows where the character remains but the actor changes.
  • Grace Under Fire - The part of the son Quentin changed hands mid-series.
  • Green Acres - the role of Doris Ziffel was played by Barbara Pepper until her death in 1969, at which point Fran Ryan assumed the role from then until the series' end two years later.
  • The Jeffersons, the role of Lionel Jefferson was portrayed by Mike Evans on both All in the Family and the early episodes of Jeffersons. But when he created the series Goodtimes he backed out of the role and was replaced by Damon Evans subsequently. In 1979, M. Evans returned to the role and continued to the end of the series.
  • Keeping Up Appearances - Shirley Stelfox played Hyacinth's promiscuous, miniskirted sister during the show's first season, but then left to pursue other projects. She was replaced by Mary Millar, who played the part for the remainder of the series.
  • Mad About You - Nancy Dussault and Paul Dooley played Theresa and Gus Stemple during the first season of the show. They were replaced by Penny Fuller and John Karlen, who, in turn, were replaced in the fifth and last season by Carol Burnett and Carroll O'Connor.
  • The Munsters-Beverley Owen portrayed Marilyn Munster in 1964. Pat Priest resumed the role within the same year to the end of the series.
  • That's My Mama:
    • Ed Bernard played mailman Earl Chambers in the first two episodes, he was replaced by Theodore Wilson beginning in the third episode.
    • Lynne Moody played Tracy Curtis Taylor in the first season, she was replaced by Joan Pringle in the second and final season of the series.
  • My Wife and Kids - Jazz Raycole played Claire Kyle in the first season, replaced by Jennifer Freeman from season two onwards.
  • M*A*S*H:
  • The Partridge Family, the drummer Chris Patridge was played by Jeremy Gelbwaks in the first season, but from season two to onwards was played by Brian Forster.
  • Roseanne - Lecy Goranson portrayed Becky Connor on Roseanne for the first several seasons. However, she decided to quit to attend college. Becky was written off to have eloped with her boyfriend Mark. Eventually, the producers decided to bring Becky back with Sarah Chalke in the role. Chalke was replaced again by Goranson in the eighth season when she became available for a full-time part. Goranson resigned once again at the end of the season. For the final season, Chalke assumed the role once more.
  • Seinfeld - Jerry's dad, Morty Seinfeld, is played by Philip Bruns and after the second season by Barney Martin.
  • That '70s Show - Eric's sister, Laurie Forman, was played by Lisa Robin Kelly until the third season but was fired. She came back in the fifth season, but was fired again for drug problems [3] and was replaced by Christina Moore

[edit] Unclassified

This film, television, or video-related list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

[edit] From movies to TV

Some movies have been made into television series, in which case the majority of the cast was changed. Examples of this include:

[edit] Same Actor, Different Character

The converse situation - same actor, different character - has been occasionally remarked upon, usually where an actor who played a guest or minor recurring character later returns to the show as a series regular.

[edit] Examples

  • In M*A*S*H, Harry Morgan was cast as Colonel Potter after having made an Emmy-winning guest appearance as General Bartford Hamilton Steele.
  • In The Golden Girls, Harold Gould played Rose's love interest, Miles Webber, from 1989 on, having appeared in the 1985 premiere season as Arnie Peterson, another love interest of hers.
  • In The Cosby Show, Joseph C. Phillips-- later recurring character (and husband to Denise) Lt. Martin Kendall-- played Daryl, a suitor of Sondra's, in 1985.
  • In Knots Landing, Lisa Hartman played Ciji Dunne from 1982 to 1983. She returned the following season to play Ciji's lookalike Cathy Geary (with the initials CG, and the pronunciation of them, referencing her original character's name of Ciji) through 1986.
  • Hill Street Blues, in which Dennis Franz joined the series as Detective Norm Buntz after having played Detective Sal Benedetto in several episodes.
  • Numerous instances of this also exist within the Law & Order family, in which numerous actors have guest-starred and later introduced as a member of the main cast (as a different character). Many times, guest-stars have played several different roles within the series. Among fans of the show, these actors are referred to as "multiple offenders".
  • Long running police series The Bill has used guest-stars (who usually played criminals) to later play members of the main cast.
  • Many examples in the various Star Trek series, usually as members of different races.
  • In JAG, Catherine Bell played Lt. Diane Schonke in the season one finale (not shown in the US) before joining the cast as Mac in season two.
  • In Doctor Who, Colin Baker played Commander Maxil in the story Arc of Infinity before taking the role of the Doctor at the end of season 21.
  • In Bewitched, Paul Lynde and Alice Ghostley took on the recurring roles of Uncle Arthur and Esmeralda respectively after each making an earlier appearance on the show (as Harold the driving instructor and Naomi respectively).
  • In I Dream of Jeannie, Dr. Bellows' wife, despite being mentioned at least once in the first season, appears for the first time in the second season, played by Emmaline Henry, who had appeared in a different role in a first-season episode.
  • In I Love Lucy, Kathryn Card appeared in an episode before she got the role of Lucy's mother.
  • In Malcolm in the Middle, Merrin Dungey appeared as Malcolm's original teacher in the pilot before he changes classes, but from then on appears as Kitty Kernaban, Stevie's mother.
  • In Sliders, Jerry O'Connell's brother Charlie O'Connell played supporting roles in two episodes of Season 2 before playing the role of Colin Mallory in Season 4. This can easily be explained as a difference in family lineage due to the show's multiple parallel universes.
  • In The Rifleman there are many actors that play several different roles in various episodes. For example, Lee Van Cleef plays different characters in four separate episodes.
  • In Nero Wolfe you often see the same actors playing different roles.

[edit] External links

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