Question: What TV shows were ruined when a great actor was replaced by a bad actor?
A strong argument could be made that the following series were ruined when a good actor was replaced a bad one:
- Alice - Polly Holliday who became the series breakout character Flo, apparently threatened the ego of series lead Linda Lavin’s and so she departed for her own program Flo, which lasted one season. Her replacement waitresses were just not up to the task and the series went downhill from there.
- Law & Order (The original series) - The series was seriously damaged when actor Dennis Farina (Who wasn’t a fan favorite, despite being an exceptional performer) was replaced by actor Milena Govich in a move that seems to have been meant to introduce female detective to the role. Govich, while attractive, is a terrible actor and it began the slide that led to the series cancellation. Even her dismissal at the end of her first and only season didn’t help as the series lasted another two seasons both of which, ironically, were better than Govich’s one.
- NewsRadio - Unfortunately, the murder of actor Phil Hartman by his wife required that a new character be brought in to replace him. Even more unfortunately, it turned out to be Jon Lovitz. While Lovitz has some talent, he was woefully inferior to Hartman and the series went downhill fast.
- Step by Step - Yeah, I know…nobody remembers this one. However it was pretty funny until actor Sasha Mitchell decided to batter his wife and get arrested off screen. Mitchell was dropped by the program and replaced by actor Bronson Pinchot. Pinchot and the series lasted a single season before it was cancelled. The program moved from ABC to CBS after its cancellation; but it only lasted one season on it’s new network.
NOTE: If you have a “good” answer, don’t put it in the comments section.
Sasha Mitchell from Step by Step.