‘Full House,’ ‘Game of Thrones,’ and More TV Shows Whose Lead Roles Were Recast

Reality TV

Feb 20, 2018 5:56 pm·

By Tiffany White

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Can you imagine Danny Tanner on Full House being played by anyone other than Bob Saget? What about shy Wicca-to-be Willow Rosenberg on Buffy the Vampire Slayer not being Alyson Hannigan? Does your mind boggle at the thought of Sheldon and Leonard living across the hall from anyone but Kaley Cuoco as Penny on The Big Bang Theory? Well in all of those instances another actor was originally cast in that particular role, but was recast and replaced after the pilot. And those are not the only examples of sitcom and TV dramas switcharoos. In fact, it happens a lot more than you'd think.

Typically, before a concept is given the green light to go to full series, a pilot is shot first to give the network or studio a feel for what the show itself will look like. While in the pilot stage, several elements about the proposed series might change, from actors who aren't quite gelling with other cast members to even major plot overhauls that will alter the original idea, sometimes beyond recognition.

If you're curious to see what other characters from some of your favorite sitcoms and dramas (some of which date back quite a number of years) were originally played by someone else, check out our gallery to see some of our favorite TV show switcharoos.

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Danny Tanner on Full House

A prior contractual commitment kept Bob Sagat from accepting the role of Danny originally, and so producers settled on John Posey. However, once Bob's schedule freed up, he came back to accept the role and John moved on to guest starring in other series and had small roles in a number of feature films.

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Penny on The Big Bang Theory

Before Kaley Cuoco was cast as Penny, Sheldon and Leonard’s across-the-hall neighbor was Katie, as played by Amanda Walsh. The casting change took place because Katie was coming across as too mean to our nerds, whereas Penny had a softer side that all involved found more suitable.

3 of 29

Rudy on The Cosby Show

Jaleel White, who's best known for playing Steve Urkel in Family Matters, was the first choice to play Rudy on The Cosby Show until casting decided to open the audition to girls. Producers preferred the dynamic Bill Cosby had with Keshia Knight Pulliam, and so they cast her instead.

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Willow on Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Prior to the WB (remember the WB?) giving the green light to Joss Whedon for the Buffy the Vampire Slayer series to go into production, Joss had shot a presentation reel for what the show could be. The entire cast carried over from presentation to series…except for the actress who played Willow Rosenberg. In the end, Alyson Hannigan played the part, but originally it was Riff Regan.

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Roz Doyle on Frasier

Phoebe, we came this close to losing you! Lisa Kudrow, of course, is famous as one of the cast members of Friends. A year earlier, she had been cast as Roz on Frasier, but in the end she was replaced for not being tough enough by Peri Gilpin. Sometimes the universe works the way it’s supposed to.

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Rob Petrie on The Dick Van Dyke Show

Originally, Dick Van Dyke wasn’t even a part of the show, so there’s no surprise in the fact that the show had a different title — Head of the Family. In the title role was writer/comedian Carl Reiner, but Reiner himself realized that it just wasn’t working. So he departed from in front of the camera, recast his part with Dick, and went on to play Rob Petrie’s boss, Alan Brady.

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Miranda on Sex and the City

Sandra Bernhard was offered the role of Miranda on Sex and the City, but she turned it down. She revealed in an interview on Howard Stern that she wasn't happy with the role and didn't think the pay was enough. The role went to Cynthia Nixon instead.

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Phoebe Halliwell on Charmed

We’re not sure of the circumstances surrounding the cast change, but in the original presentation for the series, actress Lori Rom (whose career has been made up of largely guest starring roles on TV shows and small roles in films) played Phoebe Halliwell, joining Shannen Doherty’s Prue and Holly Marie Combs’ Piper. But Lori quit and was ultimately replaced by Alyssa Milano in the role.

9 of 29

Sam Malone on Cheers

Ted Danson plays bartender Sam Malone, but originally cast in the role was Fred Dryer (who would go on to play the lead in the cop series Hunter). Interestingly, to better suit the actor, Sam’s original background was that he was a former football player, but it was changed to baseball. Dryer would actually appear in several episodes as sportscaster Dave Richards.

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Tommy Bradford on Eight is Enough

In 1976, the year before Star Wars was released, Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker) had played Tommy Bradford in the pilot for this series, but in the end was replaced by Willie Aames. We hate to say it, but the recasting supposedly came about as a result of a car accident Mark was involved in…uh, thank you?

11 of 29

Face on The A-Team

Tim Dunigan originally played Templeton Peck (aka "Face") in The A Team, but was replaced by Dirk Benedict. Producers didn't think it was believable for Tim to play a Vietnam vet since the actor was so young, so they recast the role after the pilot.

12 of 29

Mary Ann and Ginger on Gilligan's Island

Among those seven stranded castaways was Russell Johnson as the Professor, Dawn Wells as Mary Ann, and Tina Louise as Ginger. Well, originally the Professor was played by John Gabriel, Mary Ann was played by Nancy McCarthy and had the name Buffy, and Kit Smythe played Ginger, who, rather than being a movie star, was a secretary.

13 of 29

Cousin Larry on Perfect Strangers

Louie Anderson was cast as Cousin Larry in Perfect Strangers but was replaced by Mark Linn-Baker. Producers just didn't think Louie was a good fit and preferred Mark's energy instead, and so the role was recast after the pilot.

14 of 29

Daenerys Targaryen on Game of Thrones

Can you even imagine GOT without Emiia Clarke's Daenerys Targaryen? Well, originally she was supposed to be played by Tamzin Merchant, who starred in the series Salem and a number of films, including last year’s Dragonheart: Battle for the Heartfire.

15 of 29

Al Borland on Home Improvement

Stephen Tobolowsky was originally cast as Al Borland on Home Improvement, but was replaced by Richard Karn. Due to a prior film commitment, Stephen had to pass on the role, which then went to Richard.

16 of 29

Andi on Man With a Plan

Playing Matt LeBlanc’s wife on the CBS series is Lisa Snyder as Andi, but in the original pilot, the character was played by The Office’s Jenna Fischer. By all reports, there wasn’t much in the way of chemistry between the two leads, resulting in the cast switch.

17 of 29

Tom Hanson on 21 Jump Street

Jeff Yagher played Tom Hanson in 21 Jump Street, but was fired after the pilot and replaced by Johnny Depp. Also, the show was originally titled Jump Street Chapel, but producers changed the show's title and the lead for a grittier feel.

18 of 29

The Hulk on Incredible Hulk

Nobody grunts and growls like Lou Ferrigno as the big green guy, but the pilot for the 1978 series was shot with Richard Kiel in that role. He ended up having an allergic reaction to the makeup though and was ultimately replaced. Kiel, of course, is best known as James Bond villain Jaws in the films The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) and Moonraker (1979).

19 of 29

Carol Seaver on Growing Pains

Elizabeth Ward played the original Carol Seaver in the pilot for the series, but when she didn't resonate with test audiences, producers called back Tracey Gold for the role. Elizabeth only did a few TV guest appearances before apparently dropping out of the business.

20 of 29

Jill Taylor on Home Improvement

Patricia Richardson was the one who had to put up with Tim Allen’s grunts and chauvinism on Home Improvement, but at the start Frances Fisher (Titanic) had been cast in the part. Reports are that the audience simply didn’t respond well to her.

21 of 29

D.J. Conner on Roseanne

Sal Barone played D.J. Conner on Roseanne for one episode before being replaced by Michael Fishman. Sal left the show after it was agreed that he was too old to play D.J. Michael then took over the role for the duration of the show, and will be a part of the cast when the show returns to ABC next month.

22 of 29

Wally on Leave It to Beaver

Gee, Wally, dad Ward Cleaver was originally played by Max Showalter rather than Hugh Beaumont (that’s just crazy!), and Wally himself was played by Paul Sullivan instead of Tony Dow.

23 of 29

Jim Walsh on Beverly Hills 90210

Jim was originally being played by Lyman Ward (Ferris' dad in Ferris Bueller's Day Off) before being replaced by James Eckhouse. Lyman was considered the wrong fit for the show and was fired after the pilot. James was hired soon after.

24 of 29

Sarah on Parenthood

This particular instance of recasting was tinged with sadness in that Maura Tierney (NewsRadio, ER) was originally cast as Sarah Braverman, but had to drop out to undergo breast cancer treatment. Replacing her was Lauren Graham.

25 of 29

Howard Cunningham on Happy Days

Not many people remember that the long-running sitcom that gave the world the Fonz began as a segment of the comedy anthology series Love American Style, titled “New Family in Town.” Tom Bosley, of course, was patriarch Howard Cunningham, but originally he was played by Harold Gould.

26 of 29

Inara on Firefly

There are few cult TV shows that are bigger than Joss Whedon’s short-lived sci-fi Western. We can only wonder how the show would have been affected if he had kept Rebecca Gayheart in the role of Inara rather than reshooting her scenes from the pilot with Morena Baccarin.

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Jenna on 30 Rock

The character of Jenna, who we all know was played by Jane Krakowski, was originally supposed to be played by former Saturday Night Live performer Rachel Dratch, until NBC exercised its corporate right and demanded a change.

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Lily on The Munsters

Did Herman Munster cheat with some vampiress named Phoebe? Nah, but his wife Lily originally had that name, and was played by Joan Marshall rather than Yvonne De Carlo. Joan’s longest-running gig prior to the pilot was the series Bold Venture (no, we never heard of it either).

29 of 29

Captain Kirk on Star Trek

C’mon, who can even imagine the original Star Trek not having William Shatner in the captain’s chair as James T. Kirk? But in the first pilot, “The Cage,” in command was Jesus Christ. Well, more accurately, Jeffrey Hunter who would go on to play Jesus Christ in King of Kings. On Trek, he played Captain Christopher Pike, but between the first and (then fairly unprecedented) second pilots, his wife convinced him that sci-fi was beneath him, so in came the Shat.

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