- 2 months ago
Sometimes a single casting change is all it takes to breathe new life into a series. From sitcom dads to fan-favorite sidekicks, these recast roles didn’t just work—they saved entire shows from slipping into obscurity. Which actor swap do you think changed its show for the better? Let us know in the comments!
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00:00How are you doing, May Day?
00:01Good. How are you, Dave?
00:03Miserable.
00:05Brenda, nice split.
00:06Welcome to Ms. Mojo.
00:08And today, we're looking at TV roles that were thankfully recast.
00:12Otherwise, these shows just wouldn't have worked.
00:15Let's go eat.
00:17Great.
00:18I'm Leonard. This is Sheldon.
00:21Of course you are.
00:23Number 10.
00:24John Posey, Full House.
00:27Replaced by Bob Saget.
00:28Come on, Mom.
00:30Bags are in the cab. The meter's running.
00:32The baby is sleeping like a baby.
00:36Bob Saget might have seemed like an unusual choice to play Danny Tanner.
00:41Saget was a risque stand-up, but as the clean-cut Danny, he'd have to keep things G-rated.
00:47Mom, this isn't how we rehearsed this last night.
00:50Let's take a little walk, okay?
00:52Nevertheless, he played the role with comedic sincerity for eight seasons,
00:57followed by a sequel series.
00:58Kimmy, why are you here, and why did I never fix a lock on that door?
01:03Dad, be nice.
01:05Kimmy's helping me throw your going away party.
01:07Despite being the top casting pick,
01:09Saget couldn't shoot the original pilot,
01:12as he was busy working on CBS's The Morning Program.
01:15Thus, the producers turned to John Posey,
01:18who filmed a pilot that went unaired.
01:20With The Morning Program ending that same year,
01:24Saget's schedule cleared up.
01:25There wasn't anything wrong with Posey's performance.
01:28He even got along well with his young co-stars.
01:31Yet, he lacked the huggable America's Dad energy
01:34that Saget ultimately brought to the iconic character.
01:37Let's drive with the family down the street
01:40Through the courtesy of Frenchie Feet
01:43When you're with the Flintstones
01:45Calm it down, guys.
01:46We'll have a yabba dabba doo time
01:50A dabba doo time
01:52We'll have a gay old time
01:56Number 9
01:58Lisa Kudrow
02:00Frasier
02:00Replaced by Perry Gilpin
02:02How was I today?
02:04Let's see.
02:06You dropped two commercials.
02:08You left a total of 28 seconds of dead air.
02:10You scrambled the station's call letters.
02:12You spilled yogurt on the control board.
02:13And you kept referring to Jerry
02:14with the identity crisis as Jeff.
02:17One of Lisa Kudrow's earlier gigs
02:19was a guest spot on Cheers.
02:21George and Emily are two innocent kids
02:23playing around with love.
02:24They're consumed by the fire of their passion.
02:28Don't you think?
02:28She landed a more substantial role
02:30on that sitcom's spinoff Frasier.
02:33Kudrow was cast as Roz Doyle,
02:35the producer of Frasier's radio show.
02:37What if I had taken that job at Merrill Lynch?
02:40This big break gave Kudrow the confidence
02:43to quit her job at her father's office.
02:46When rehearsals started, though,
02:47it was clear that Kudrow wasn't right for Roz.
02:50Although the producers liked her quirky humor,
02:53they realized that Roz needed to be more forceful.
02:56This didn't fit Kudrow,
02:58who wasn't surprised when she was let go over the phone.
03:01Hang on.
03:03Hang on.
03:06Go.
03:06The role went to Perry Gilpin,
03:08which freed up Kudrow to play Phoebe Buffay
03:11in Friends shortly after.
03:13Was it my work?
03:14Were they mad?
03:14Was it Jack?
03:15Did he yell?
03:15No, just relax.
03:17Nobody yelled.
03:18Jack just was calling to make sure you were getting better.
03:21Thank God.
03:21In that sense,
03:23this recasting saved not one,
03:25but two shows.
03:27All she wanted was to be remembered.
03:29Will you ever forget that story?
03:32Number eight.
03:33Jordan Reed,
03:35It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia,
03:37replaced by Caitlin Olsen.
03:39This is crazy.
03:41I know.
03:41I told you.
03:42Terrell's the best.
03:43I know.
03:43I'm going to have to start bartending full time.
03:46Look at this.
03:47Why are you making more money than me?
03:50Rob Mac McElhenney was an out-of-work actor
03:54when he shot the proof of concept
03:55for what would become
03:56It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.
03:59The cast included his friends,
04:00Glenn Howerton and Charlie Day,
04:03but Sweet D was played by McElhenney's
04:05then-girlfriend, Jordan Reed.
04:07Please, I am exhausted.
04:09I don't want to talk about this.
04:10It was around the time FX expressed interest
04:13that McElhenney and Reed's relationship fell apart.
04:17According to Reed, McElhenney said,
04:19quote,
04:20If I did not stay in the relationship,
04:22I would be off the show.
04:23Despite this alleged ultimatum,
04:25they broke up,
04:26the show never got picked up,
04:28and Reed was replaced with Caitlin Olsen,
04:30who later married McElhenney in real life.
04:33So I think I know how we can solve this whole gay mess.
04:36Great, how?
04:37Okay, first we gotta start with Dennis.
04:38Can you get him so drunk tonight on tequila,
04:41but like a lot of it,
04:42enough that maybe he might hurt himself.
04:44Yeah, sure, no problem.
04:45Whatever your thoughts on the behind-the-scenes drama,
04:48Olsen breathed new life into Dee,
04:50making her less sweet and more of a sociopath.
04:53You know what?
04:53This is so you.
04:55I tell you I need some help behind the bar.
04:56I finally find someone who's perfect
04:58and she'll practically work for free,
04:59and just because she doesn't have the right measurements
05:01or whatever, you freak out.
05:02You just want somebody to do all the grunt work for you.
05:05Shh, I'm gonna kill you.
05:06I don't care.
05:07Number seven, Riff Reagan, Buffy the Vampire Slayer,
05:11replaced by Allison Hannigan.
05:13I want to be strong, Willow,
05:15but then I think I may never get to be close to Oz again.
05:19It's like all the air just goes out of the room.
05:22Over several seasons,
05:23Allison Hannigan matured Willow Rosenberg
05:26from Buffy's adorkable best friend
05:28to a confident Wiccan to be reckoned with.
05:30I'm sorry, but if I want to make things right with Oz,
05:35my hands, my, all my stuff has to be for him only.
05:41Willow changed in more ways than one,
05:44as Riff Reagan played her in the original,
05:46roughly half-hour pilot.
05:48Most of the Buffy mainstays like Sarah Michelle Gellar
05:51and Nicholas Brendon were there,
05:52but Regan's presence makes this feel like a parallel universe.
05:56While Regan conveyed Willow's awkward insecurity,
05:59the character's optimism and comedic side
06:01didn't quite shine through.
06:04I'm having a good time though.
06:06Where did you say you went to school?
06:09Crossroads.
06:15So, time for some kissing, huh?
06:19The network requested a change,
06:21with Melanie Linsky being considered at one point.
06:24When Hannigan read for the part,
06:26she tried to make Willow endearing
06:28rather than someone you feel sorry for.
06:30Well, look at us,
06:32running into each other
06:34as two people who go to the same school
06:36are so likely to do now and then.
06:38As Hannigan cast a spell on the producers,
06:40they cast her.
06:42It's gonna be slow for you.
06:46That's right, puppy.
06:48Willow's gonna make you bark.
06:50Number six, Amanda Walsh,
06:53The Big Bang Theory,
06:55replaced by Kaylee Cuoco.
06:57I'm also writing a screenplay.
06:58It's about this sensitive girl
06:59who comes to LA from Lincoln, Nebraska
07:01to be an actress
07:02and winds up a waitress
07:03at the Cheesecake Factory.
07:05As Penny,
07:06Kaylee Cuoco played the quintessential girl next door
07:09who can be firm with her nerdy neighbors,
07:11but also understanding and upbeat.
07:13We don't mean to interrupt.
07:14We live across the hall.
07:16Oh, that's nice.
07:18Oh, no, we don't live together.
07:20I mean, we live together,
07:22but in separate heterosexual bedrooms.
07:26Oh, okay.
07:27Well, guess I'm your new neighbor, Penny.
07:30Penny wasn't like this in the original pilot.
07:32In fact, there was no Penny.
07:34The female lead was named Katie,
07:36played by Amanda Walsh.
07:38What the hell is wrong with you?
07:39Leonard, I'm no expert,
07:42but in the context of a dinner invitation,
07:44it's probably best to skip
07:44the discussion of bowel movements.
07:48You're asking me to dinner?
07:51Yes.
07:55Why?
07:56Katie has a rough exterior,
07:58eventually showing her softer side.
08:00For test audiences,
08:02Katie still came off as too mean,
08:04making it hard to believe
08:05she'd ever be friends with Leonard
08:07and a more sexual Sheldon.
08:09Hey, I cannot impose on you guys.
08:11So right up front,
08:12we'll just say it's for three days,
08:13a week tops.
08:14CBS felt the premise showed promise,
08:16but Katie had to go along with Walsh.
08:19Tara Reid, Elizabeth Berkley,
08:21and even Marissa Tomei had auditioned.
08:23Kuoko was seen as too young to play Katie,
08:26but with the character becoming Penny,
08:28she was perfect.
08:29Why don't you put some clothes on?
08:31I'll get my purse and dinner is on me, okay?
08:33Really? Great.
08:34Okay.
08:34Number five, Harold Gould,
08:37Happy Days,
08:38replaced by Tom Bosley.
08:40Well, being a parent is a lot different
08:42than being a big brother.
08:44It's more than just going to ball games
08:46and more than just watching cartoons together.
08:49Hey, I know that.
08:50For the last six years,
08:51I've been watching the King of Dads.
08:54Well, thank you.
08:55The network initially passed on the pilot,
08:58New Family in Town,
08:59which later became Happy Days.
09:01Hello, everybody.
09:03Sorry I'm late.
09:04The buses were jammed.
09:05Hey, Jeff.
09:06Hi.
09:07Sure could use a car, Pop.
09:09The grades you're getting are lucky
09:10they let you on the bus.
09:11The most notable difference
09:13between the original pilot
09:14and subsequent series
09:16is that Harold Gould played Howard Cunningham
09:18rather than Tom Bosley.
09:20One face you'll surely recognize
09:22is Ron Howard as Richie.
09:24And Richard,
09:25don't worry about this guy, Pansy.
09:28His name's Patsy.
09:30Whatever.
09:31He's really your best friend.
09:33He'll be back.
09:34While Howard had been a successful child star,
09:37it was unclear if he'd cut it
09:38as an adult actor
09:39until American Graffiti became a hit.
09:42With Grease increasing the demand
09:44for 50s nostalgia,
09:45ABC revisited the pilot,
09:47which did air as part of
09:48the Love American Style anthology.
09:51When Happy Days moved forward,
09:53Gould was committed to doing a play.
09:55He didn't want to lose his beard either,
09:57paving the way for a clean-shaven Bosley.
09:59I know that when Chachi sees you
10:01wearing that dress,
10:02he's gonna know how lucky he really is.
10:04That's the way I felt when your mother wore it.
10:07Number 4.
10:08Tamsyn Merchant, Game of Thrones
10:10Replaced by Emilia Clarke
10:12Game of Thrones had a few
10:13alternative casting choices.
10:16Jennifer Ailey played Catelyn Stark
10:18in the original pilot
10:19before being replaced with Michelle Fairley.
10:21While Kat doesn't make it past
10:23the Red Wedding,
10:24Daenerys Targaryen plays
10:25an integral role for eight seasons.
10:28So tell me, sweet sister,
10:29how do we go home?
10:33I don't know.
10:35It's hard to imagine anyone
10:36other than Emilia Clarke
10:38as the Mother of Dragons,
10:39but Tamsyn Merchant of the Tudors
10:41was the first choice.
10:42My mother died when I was little.
10:45My father remarried,
10:46but I didn't know his wife, really.
10:49I was sent to live in the household
10:51of the Dowager Duchess.
10:52That initial pilot had numerous issues,
10:55Merchant being one of them.
10:56While executive producer Brian Cogman
10:59felt, quote,
11:00Tamsyn did a really good job,
11:01fellow executive Michael Lombardo said,
11:04quote,
11:04her scenes with Jason Momoa
11:06just didn't work.
11:07Elizabeth Olsen was also considered,
11:21but Clarke emerged victorious.
11:23You sold slaves.
11:27Aye.
11:30Why?
11:32I had no money.
11:33An inexpensive wife.
11:36Where is she now?
11:37In another place?
11:39With another man.
11:42Tamsyn wasn't too disappointed,
11:44as she wasn't very comfortable
11:45in Daenerys' exposed skin anyway.
11:48I really want people to be horrified.
11:50Well, because you are, innit?
11:51Yeah, you are.
11:52Exactly.
11:53Number three,
11:54Fred Dreyer, Cheers,
11:56replaced by Ted Danson.
11:58And remember,
11:59the world is full of winners and losers.
12:02Here's hoping you're one of them.
12:03Sam Malone was a ball player
12:05before tending bar,
12:06so we get why the Cheers creators
12:08considered casting a real-life athlete.
12:11They drafted football star Fred Dreyer,
12:13who played for the New York Giants
12:15and Los Angeles Rams.
12:17Dreyer had much in common with Sam,
12:19who was initially written
12:20as a retired football player
12:21before switching to baseball.
12:23Look, you're going to find someone
12:24a lot better for yourself
12:25than that goofy professor.
12:30Goofy?
12:31Are you talking about Sumner?
12:33I'm talking about Sumner.
12:35You don't like Sumner?
12:36I don't like Sumner.
12:37Yet, he was relatively new to acting,
12:40which was apparent in his scenes
12:41with Shelley Long.
12:42It was decided that they needed somebody
12:44who came from an acting background
12:45and possessed a younger look.
12:47William Devane and Danson
12:49were also tested,
12:50with the latter securing the role.
12:52The producers didn't forget
12:53about Dreyer, though,
12:54giving him a recurring role
12:56as Sam's former teammate
12:57turned sportscaster, Dave Richards.
12:59Hey, Sam, I was just wondering,
13:02how about you and me
13:03giving the females of Boston
13:0410 minutes head start
13:05and then go round them up,
13:07huh, like old days?
13:08Boy, we did have fun, didn't we?
13:10We were pretty good.
13:11Number two, Jeffrey Hunter, Star Trek,
13:14replaced by William Shatner.
13:16Kirk here.
13:17We found something.
13:19What is it?
13:20I'd rather not put it on the speaker.
13:25If you ask fans
13:26what the first episode of Star Trek was,
13:28you'd get multiple answers.
13:31Some might say The Man Trap,
13:32as it was the first to air.
13:34If we're going back
13:35to the very beginning,
13:36they'd say the original pilot,
13:38The Cage,
13:39which was later re-edited
13:40into the two-parter,
13:41The Menagerie.
13:42I'm tired of deciding
13:43which mission is too risky
13:45and which isn't
13:45and who's going on
13:46the landing party
13:47and who doesn't
13:47and who lives
13:49and who dies.
13:53While Leonard Nimoy's Spock
13:55is present,
13:56there's no Captain James T. Kirk.
13:57Christopher Pike
13:58helms the USS Enterprise
14:00with Jeffrey Hunter
14:01in the role.
14:02Sorry, number one.
14:04A little information
14:05on this planet.
14:05We'll have to leave
14:06the ship's most experienced
14:07officer here covering us.
14:09When another pilot
14:10moved ahead,
14:11Hunter wasn't interested
14:12in returning,
14:13wanting to focus on movies.
14:15William Shatner
14:15won the new lead role
14:16over Lloyd Bridges
14:18and Jack Lord.
14:19Christopher Pike
14:20remained part
14:20of the Star Trek universe,
14:22being reworked
14:23as Kirk's predecessor.
14:24Yet Hunter
14:25never played him again.
14:26This is the Captain speaking.
14:28The object we encountered
14:29is a ship's disaster recorder
14:31apparently ejected
14:32from the SS Valiant
14:33almost 200 years ago.
14:34Before we continue,
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14:481. Carl Reiner
14:52The Dick Van Dyke Show
14:53Replaced by Dick Van Dyke
14:55Now will you tell me
14:56what is the matter
14:57with ending the show
14:58with an epigram
14:59or an aphorism?
15:00A hooperism?
15:02We know what you're thinking.
15:03How could Dick Van Dyke
15:04not have been the original star
15:06of this classic sitcom?
15:07His name is in the title.
15:09Well, that wasn't
15:09the first title.
15:11Initially,
15:11it was called
15:12Head of the Family.
15:13Rob, or Robbie Petri,
15:15was to be played
15:15by the show's creator,
15:16Carl Reiner.
15:18Being based on his own life
15:19as a comedy writer,
15:21the role was literally
15:22tailor-made for Reiner.
15:23Oh, honey,
15:24I get paid
15:25to write bad jokes.
15:26That's why the show smells!
15:31What was that?
15:32You said a wrong thing.
15:35What wrong thing?
15:35Look, honey,
15:36it's almost 6 o'clock.
15:37He should be watching television.
15:38I should be eating dinner.
15:39Why is he locked in a closet?
15:41The pilot didn't go over well,
15:43although producer Sheldon Leonard
15:45liked Reiner's script.
15:46The Key was getting
15:47a new lead.
15:48Several other roles
15:49were recast,
15:50with Mary Tyler Moore
15:51replacing Barbara Britton
15:53as Laura Petri.
15:54Rob, why is going
15:55to this party
15:56so important to me?
15:57Well, Buddy and Sally
15:58will be there.
15:59Oh, come on.
16:00You see them
16:00eight hours every day.
16:02The network big shots
16:03and the sponsors
16:04will also be there.
16:05I am the head writer.
16:07However,
16:07it's safe to say
16:08that the Dick Van Dyke show
16:09wouldn't have been the same
16:11without Dick Van Dyke.
16:12Oh, Genevieve!
16:14Genevieve!
16:15Can you think of
16:17any other TV roles
16:19that were recast
16:19for the better?
16:20Let us know
16:21in the comments.
16:22about the tickets.
16:24Let us know
16:24how good the tickets
16:26will be the best
16:27for the who
16:28are.
16:28Any other
16:30moments?
16:31We can't
16:32have the best
16:32in the comments.
16:33We can do
16:34this.
16:35We can do
16:35this.
16:36We can do
16:37this.
16:37We can do
16:38it.
16:38We can do
16:39this.
16:39We can do
16:40this.
16:40We can do
16:41it,
16:41we can do
16:41this.
16:43And we can see
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