Why does it seem like shows are scared to recast characters?

[Rhapscallion Démone]

Sometimes things may happen like creative differences, somebody gets sick or dies, somebody just gets tired of the role, an actor gets into trouble etc. It just seems like show creators nowadays just refuse to recast a character even when it would make things simpler. The actor that played Carl on the walking dead wanted to pursue other interests so they kill off Carl instead of recasting him. Jussie Smollet became the first black man to fake his own lynching so they give his character on Empire the Judy Winslow treatment. I haven’t watched the Chi yet but from my understanding they killed off two key characters because of behind the scenes issues and now fans say the show is not what it use to be. It seems like old shows had no issues in that regard. “the role of _ will now be played by _”.

 

[Jello Biafra]

Sometimes things may happen like creative differences, somebody gets sick or dies, somebody just gets tired of the role, an actor gets into trouble etc. It just seems like show creators nowadays just refuse to recast a character even when it would make things simpler. The actor that played Carl on the walking dead wanted to pursue other interests so they kill off Carl instead of recasting him. Jussie Smollet became the first black man to fake his own lynching so they give his character on Empire the Judy Winslow treatment. I haven’t watched the Chi yet but from my understanding they killed off two key characters because of behind the scenes issues and now fans say the show is not what it use to be. It seems like old shows had no issues in that regard. “the role of _ will now be played by _”.

I don't get it either.

Daytime soap operas been recasting characters on a regular basis for about 100 years.
And some of these actors that could've been recast aren't al that impressive anyway. The character is almost always more integral than the actor.

Like the dumb shyt with the Batwoman TV show where instead of just recasting Ruby Rose they are bushing the character and will have to start over from scratch with an entirely new character.

 

[Rhapscallion Démone]

I don't get it either.

Daytime soap operas been recasting characters on a regular basis for about 100 years.
And some of these actors that could've been recast aren't al that impressive anyway. The character is almost always more integral than the actor.

Like the dumb shyt with the Batwoman TV show where instead of just recasting Ruby Rose they are bushing the character and will have to start over from scratch with an entirely new character.

its so weird and I wonder if it’s a contract thing. Like maybe there’s something in the fine print that says this character can only be portrayed by this actor on this project

 

[Jello Biafra]

its so weird and I wonder if it’s a contract thing. Like maybe there’s something in the fine print that says this character can only be portrayed by this actor on this project

I doubt that would be the case. I just think prime-time TV show folks think it would confuse or turn off the viewers to see someone new in an established role.

Like with the Carl situation on The Walking Dead I coudl see them thinking their fans wouldn't like seeing someone else as Carl yet they don't think about how viewers will react if they kill off the character.
And in Carl's case the way they killed the character seemed to piss off fans more than any recast ever would.

 

[Rhapscallion Démone]

I doubt that would be the case. I just think prime-time TV show folks think it would confuse or turn off the viewers to see someone new in an established role.

Like with the Carl situation on The Walking Dead I coudl see them thinking their fans wouldn't like seeing someone else as Carl yet they don't think about how viewers will react if they kill off the character.
And in Carl's case the way they killed the character seemed to piss off fans more than any recast ever would.

Yeah because once they killed him I stopped watching lol

 

[NZA]

TWD has a good reason to kill major characters - adds credibility to the zombie apocalypse

i think the official reason is that audiences today are "too sophisticated" for it. the era of "prestige tv" probably caused this

 

[Poetical Poltergeist]

Today's tv audience are snobs.

 

[SunZoo]

LOL fans don't like that shyt, I know I don't, especially if the actor is actually dope and has done their job of connecting with the audience.

Prime example, Boardwalk Empire... guy is a douche bag on set, but he's a brilliant actor. Recasting him would have been an even worse look than how they handled that. Recasting should be avoided at all costs, especially for a character like Carl Grimes. It would be wayyyyyyyy more awkward with Corrallll #2 walking around.

 

[hex]

The last 20ish years have been the era of highly serialized prestige dramas....just swapping out actors isn't really possible.

I mean, it obviously is possible but it breaks the immersion. Which kinda defeats the purpose of what most of these series are trying to do, IE tell a seamless story.

Fred.

 

[R.E.N. Spells Ren]

I never thought I’d ever read “Well, soap operas do it” in support of anything in The Film Room

 

[MidniteJay]

I don't like it either but I'd like it less if a dope story got canceled over an actor leaving or passing away IRL. A lot of folks didn't like Andy's replacement on Spartacus but we got an extra season and a GOAT tribute to the actor cause it got to continue and finish.

 

[Rhapscallion Démone]

LOL fans don't like that shyt, I know I don't, especially if the actor is actually dope and has done their job of connecting with the audience.

Prime example, Jimmy from Boardwalk Empire...he's a douche bag on set, but he's a brilliant actor. Recasting him would have been an even worse look than how they handled that. Recasting should be avoided at all costs, especially for a character like Carl Grimes. It would be wayyyyyyyy more awkward with Corrallll #2 walking around.

The last 20ish years have been the era of highly serialized prestige dramas....just swapping out actors isn't really possible.

I mean, it obviously is possible but it breaks the immersion. Which kinda defeats the purpose of what most of these series are trying to do, IE tell a seamless story.

Fred.

But killing off or dropping the characters completely will ruin the immersion also and throw off the already established dynamic that fans tune in for. They try to replace Carl with an aged up Judith but it ain't the same.

 

[hex]

But killing off or dropping the characters completely will ruin the immersion also and throw off the already established dynamic that fans tune in for. They try to replace Carl with an aged up Judith but it ain't the same.

Depends.

A well written show isn't just gonna randomly kill off characters. I realize things happen beyond the control of the writers (on set conflicts, actors dying, etc.) but again....a well written show with competent writers can work around that. It's not really the same as just throwing in an entirely new actor. The best writing in the world can't really fix that.

Fred.

 

[Devilinurear]

A lot of American shows are actor driven.

 

[Jello Biafra]

The last 20ish years have been the era of highly serialized prestige dramas....just swapping out actors isn't really possible.

I mean, it obviously is possible but it breaks the immersion. Which kinda defeats the purpose of what most of these series are trying to do, IE tell a seamless story.

Fred.

Have there been any instances where a prestige TV show lost an actor and would have even contemplated a recast?

The only one I can think of is when Nancy Marchand died during filming of The Sopranos second season. I could totally understand if the discussion was had about recasting Livia just because that character was so integral to Tony's story and Marchand's death caused the show to have to re-work the main thrust of the entire show.

But usually the shows that face the recast dilemma are pulp shows that don't fall in the prestige category.