Here’s Why These Actors Were Replaced In Their Famous Roles

When a main actor on a TV show is replaced, it doesn’t take an obsessive, meticulous fan to notice. Unexpectedly, this has happened more frequently than you might recall.

For a variety of reasons, including conflicts with other cast members and other personal issues, actors quit or get fired from TV shows. Here’s the explanation if you’ve ever wondered why your favorite celebrity left their popular show.

Laurie Forman – That ’70s Show

On That ’70s Show, Laurie Foreman played Eric’s older sister and Red’s preferred child. She was portrayed by the late Lisa Robin Kelly in seasons one through three, season five, and season six, and then by Christina Moore.

Sadly, Moore replaced Kelly because Kelly had some personal issues. About ten years after the show ended, Kelly tragically passed away at a rehab center after having several run-ins with the law.

Penny Hofstadter – The Big Bang Theory

The Big Bang Theory was a popular show that ran for twelve seasons and had actors and characters that fans adored. Fans might be shocked to learn that Kaley Cuoco, who played the bubbly Penny, wasn’t originally considered for the part. Cuoco gave an audition but the producers thought she was too young.

Originally named Katie and living with Leonard and Sheldon (rather than across the hall), the lead woman’s character in an unaired pilot was supposed to be played by Amanda Walsh. Cuoco was contacted by the casting team a year later to reapply for Penny. clever move

Carol Willick – Friends

Actress Anita Barone played Ross’ ex-wife Carol for just one episode of the sitcom Friends. She played a crucial part in the show’s plot because it was in that episode that Ross learned he was going to be the father of Ben, who hadn’t yet been born.

Barone decided against taking on the role in order to pursue more acting jobs that required full-time commitments, which may have been a mistake given the residual income the show continues to produce. She was replaced as the new Carol by Jane Sibbett.

Becky Conner – Roseanne

Conner, Rebecca “Becky” Healy, the sister of Darlene, DJ, and Jerry, is the eldest child of Dan and Roseanne Conner. The Conners, a recent reboot of the 1990s hit television program Roseanne, features most of the original cast members.

After the fifth season, Lecy Goranson, the original Becky, left Roseanne to attend college, and Sarah Chalke took her place. Goranson later made a comeback, was once more replaced by Chalke, and returned for the reboot.

Black Canary – Arrow

For the flashback scenes in the pilot episode of the comic book television series Arrow, Black Canary was originally portrayed by Jacqueline MacInnes Wood. The character’s real name, Sara Lance, is lost at sea and thought to have perished when the boat sinks in that episode.

When it was decided that more Black Canary was good for the show, Wood was ultimately recast due to scheduling issues and Lance’s expanded role within the Arrow universe. Caity Lotz was cast in the role.

Frank Costanza – Seinfeld

Sometimes it’s very obvious that casting a different actor to play a character on a show is the right choice. Unbelievably, Jerry Stiller didn’t always play George Costanza’s father Frank Costanza on the venerable sitcom Seinfeld.

The character first appears in “The Handicap Spot,” from the fourth season, played by actor John Randolph. The role was originally played by Randolph, but after it became clear that Stiller’s approach and chemistry with Estelle Harris were significantly funnier, the part was changed. It was possibly the greatest sitcom recasting in history.

Meg Griffin – Family Guy

Family Guy is an animated program, so it would be a little easier to spot a recasting since one actress sounds very different from another. This one is a little different. Meg’s original voice actress, Lacey Chabert, reportedly had too much on her plate with Party of Five and school to continue.

After the first season, which was back in 1999, she was replaced by current big-time star Mila Kunis. Amazingly, Family Guy is still producing fresh episodes, and Kunis is still the voice of the Griffin family’s scapegoat.

Darrin Stephens – Bewitched

Dick Sargent took over the husband’s role on Bewitched after Dick York initially played it for five seasons so that York could recover from back pain issues. Fans were not pleased with this.

Bewitched had a first-season rating of #2 in the nation, spent the first three seasons in the top ten, and finished eleventh in seasons four and five. After York left, it was never again given such a high rating.

Jackie Geary – The Goldbergs

After five seasons, the role of Jackie Geary, also known as Adam Goldberg’s love interest on the period comedy The Goldbergs, was recast, which infuriated many fans of the program. Fans were left wondering why Alexis G. Zall was brought in to replace Rowan Blanchard.

Initially, there were rumors that the producers had decided to recast the role, but Blanchard had declined the season. The show attempted to capitalize on the switch by saying Jackie went camping and returned a “new person.”

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Morty Seinfeld – Seinfeld

Not only did Jerry’s father have a different actor in Seinfeld, but George’s as well. One of the more adored supporting actors on the show is Morty Seinfeld. That can be credited to Barney Martin, who hilariously portrayed the Florida retiree in the role.

Phil Bruns played the role for a brief time in the first season. It was a brief appearance, though, as Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David quickly replaced him with a character who behaved more like an elderly crotchety man would.

Sarah Braverman – Parenthood

Parenthood is a popular television program, but Maura Tierney was never a regular. However, the News Radio and ER actress was actually intended to play Sarah Braverman in the pilot episode, which was never broadcast.

Due to health issues, Tierney ultimately had to withdraw, and Lauren Graham from Gilmore Girls took her place. In a sweet turn of events, Graham eventually found love in real life with Peter Krause, who on the show played her brother Adam Braverman.

Allison Stark – ‘Til Death

Amazingly, during the course of the sitcom ‘Til Death, the daughter of Eddie and Joy underwent three different casting changes. The show actually began acknowledging the change of actresses in the story after the first three swaps.

For the first two seasons, Allison was portrayed by Krysten Ritter, best known for her roles on Breaking Bad and Jessica Jones. Laura Clery filled in for Ritter in seasons three and four. Last but not least, in the fourth and final season, both Lindsey Broad and Kate Micucci took on the role.

Catwoman – Batman

In order to pursue a role in the movie Mackenna’s Gold, Julie Newmar made the difficult decision to leave her role as the evil Catwoman on the 1960s superhero classic Batman. In order to take over for the third and final season, Eartha Kitt was hired.

Given that Eartha Kitt was one of the first black women to succeed on mainstream television, her portrayal of the role is incredibly historic. Later, Kitt admitted that at the time, she required a lot of assistance and that she had to find a way to survive “like a starving cat.”

Read more: Here’s Why These Actors Were Replaced In Their Famous Roles

Kate Kane – Batwoman

When Ruby Rose revealed she wouldn’t be returning after just one season, the show’s creators were taken aback. The show frantically searched for Rose’s character’s replacement but instead created a brand-new character named Ryan Wilder. For the second season’s lead position, which debuted in early 2021, Javicia Leslie was cast.

Rumors circulated at first that Rose couldn’t handle the demanding schedule. However, Rose posted on Instagram in October 2021 about the difficult working conditions she claimed to experience as well as the numerous injuries she and others had sustained on set.

Myrcella Baratheon – Game of Thrones

Princess Myrcella Baratheon was assumed to be the child of King Robert Baratheon and Queen Cersei Lannister in the hit television series Game of Thrones. Her real father, Jaime Lannister, however, was revealed to be the same as with her brothers, Joffrey and Tommen, which is a significant running plot point in the series.

Nell Tiger Free took over the part from Aimee Richardson in the fifth season. According to reports, Richardson wasn’t even aware of the recasting until a panel discussion at San Diego Comic-Con in advance of the fifth season.