The Main Character is Gone? How does that happen? (6)
When Anna Faris departed from the long-running series Mom just a few weeks ago, producers handled it gracefully — she’s off to further educate herself on a scholarship. Believable, maybe not, but a rather simple solution.
It’s been a while since a main character has left a sitcom, and the production staff has had to scramble to revise the show. There are three possible outcomes when this happens: 1) the new structure does just as well as the old; 2) the new situation fails; and 3) the revisions may or may not be good, but the show was on its last legs anyway.
When It works
When Shelley Long left a comedy show that was likely to make “best ever” lists — yes, I am referring to Cheers — it was a blow to the show. Her Diane Chambers was the perfect counterpoint to Ted Danson’s Sam Malone. The phrase ‘Sam and Diane’ even hit a cultural nerve, for quite some time it referenced an on-again, off-again relationship. However, in comes Kirstie Alley as Rebecca Howe, and it turns out she was on Cheers longer than Shelley Long.
When Charlie Sheen left Two and a Half Men, many believed the show was never quite the same. But it did run for four more seasons with Ashton Kutcher. By any standards, an additional four years is a success. Heck, a four-year run for a show by itself is win!
B.J. Honeycutt, a character portrayed by Mike Farrell in the fourth season of M*A*S*H followed the departure of Wayne Rogers as Trapper John. However, with Alan Alda as Hawkeye, the antics of the Korean War doctors continued to flourish. And the character of Trapper John got his own show.
Right now, the Conners has entered its third season — without Roseanne. Considering the show had to be renamed, that’s a huge loss, one would think. But maybe not. A continuation into the 4th season, if it happens, must mean that the ensemble is greater than the lead.
Sometimes It fails
John Ritter’s death put his show, 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter, in a tailspin. The show tried to continue with James Garner and David Spade in new roles, but it never made it big. It’s hard to say how the show would have fared had Ritter lived — it didn’t build enough traction before he died to know. It did however launch the career of Kaley Cuoco.
When Michael J. Fox left Spin City to deal with Parkinson’s Disease, Charlie Sheen came to the rescue, but his two seasons were far less successful, and Spin City spun no longer. Fox, who had built up an enormous fan base after Family Ties is a very difficult act to follow, so the demands on Sheen were great. Of course, many believe that this was the pathway that led him to Two and a Half Men.
Head of the Class lost Howard Hesseman and brought in Billy Connelly for only one season. This was not a successful replacement, although the network thought maybe the Billy character could make it on his own. He’s no Mary Tyler Moore — his spin off show is barely a blip on TV radar.
Time to go anyway
A lot of sitcoms lost a cast member, sometimes several, before the show was cancelled, but the writing was on the wall — the producers just didn’t read it. Scrubs and That 70s Show lost many of its cast. Steve Carrell, clearly the lead, left The Office which tried to soldier on without him, but probably shouldn’t have.
Often the actors and actresses want to branch out and can tell that the end is near — or should be. Networks believe that ratings can outlive cast members — and sometimes they can. But for many shows, it was time.
For drama shows, the revolving door of characters and cast is much more fluid, much more common — and perhaps even necessary. The longer a show runs, year after year, the more comings and goings there are — Grey’s Anatomy is the perfect example.
But for a sitcom, with its 30 minutes or less time slot, a character can make or break it and his or her departure can have serious consequences. It doesn’t happen all that often — with the exception of Anna Faris leaving Mom, the commentary above references shows from many years to many decades ago.
However, The Aspiring Critic heard that Alan Arkin will not be returning to The Kominskey Method. Let’s see what happens there.
