# Can one cast member ruin a TV show for you? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 25, 2016, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079 "2016-03-25T01:21:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![well\_he\_s\_back](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/3ab097/32.png) [@well\_he\_s\_back](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/well_he_s_back)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079/1 "2016-03-25T01:21:31Z")
Because one certainly can for me. Case in point: “The Mentalist” while not great was a show I could have enjoyed. However I found the lead actress so grating I simply couldn’t watch anymore, no matter how much I liked the other actors & the show generally. Has this sort of thing ever happened to any of you? ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079/2 "2016-03-25T01:34:26Z")
Upon watching the X-Files re-boot, I hated the Scully character (and Jillian Anderson) and I stopped watching. Too much whining. I stopped watching Cheers in the later years because of the Kirstie Alley. Same Reason. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079/3 "2016-03-25T01:39:27Z")
I’d heard good things about **Dexter**. I made it through about an episode and a half before I shut it off - never to return - because of the title character’s sister. mmm ---
**Author:** ![Nonsuch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nonsuch/32/2922_2.png) [@Nonsuch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nonsuch)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079/4 "2016-03-25T01:46:22Z")
I stopped watching the original Law & Order because of Elizabeth Röhm. Just awful. Dianne Wiest was actually pretty bad too. ---
**Author:** ![Goofus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7feea3/32.png) [@Goofus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Goofus)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079/5 "2016-03-25T01:50:27Z")
Yes, if that cast member is Andy Dick. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079/6 "2016-03-25T01:56:43Z")
\*\*Can one cast member ruin a TV show for you? \*\*Absolutely. I tried getting into Mr. Selfridge but couldn’t take Jeremy Piven’s overacting. Ruined the whole friggin thing, he did. ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079/7 "2016-03-25T02:12:45Z")
Yes. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079/8 "2016-03-25T02:18:35Z")
Lori from The Walking Dead (the blonde lawyer). She was utterly useless to the group and her character was poorly written. Why other far better characters died before her is a mystery to me. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079/9 "2016-03-25T02:24:44Z")
I liked the TV show _Crossing Jordan_ until Arija Bareikis joined the cast. Then I stopped watching it cold. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079/10 "2016-03-25T02:27:28Z")
> [@madsircool](#): > > Lori from The Walking Dead (the blonde lawyer). She was utterly useless to the group and her character was poorly written. Why other far better characters died before her is a mystery to me. Do seem nuisance, but: Lori (Sarah Wayne Callies) was the sheriff’s (Rick) wife. You’re thinking of ANDREA (Laurie Holden), and you’re right–bad character and everything else you said. She was consistent, though: every guy she hooked up with was a bad choice. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Controvert](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dec6dc/32.png) [@The\_Controvert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Controvert)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079/11 "2016-03-25T02:28:15Z")
> [@madsircool](#): > > Lori from The Walking Dead (the blonde lawyer). She was utterly useless to the group and her character was poorly written. Why other far better characters died before her is a mystery to me. I think you are conflating Lori Grimes (Rick’s wife) with Andrea the blonde lawyer, played by Laurie Holden. ---
**Author:** ![Laggard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de053/32.png) [@Laggard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laggard)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079/12 "2016-03-25T02:35:25Z")
Billy Eichner on Parks And Rec. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079/13 "2016-03-25T02:56:29Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > Do seem nuisance, but: Lori (Sarah Wayne Callies) was the sheriff’s (Rick) wife. You’re thinking of ANDREA (Laurie Holden), and you’re right–bad character and everything else you said. She was consistent, though: every guy she hooked up with was a bad choice. Thank you for the correction 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079/14 "2016-03-25T03:02:05Z")
Yeah, I kinda liked Criminal Minds especially when it first started with Mandy Patinkin, who was great. They replaced him with Joe Mantegna, who is pretty much the worst actor I’ve ever seen. I also loved Paget Brewster on the same show (and had a huge crush on her), then they replaced her with Jeanne Tripplehorn and later Jennifer Love Hewitt. Sigh. At least JLH is still kinda cute but not nearly as good in the role. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079/15 "2016-03-25T03:07:57Z")
What immediately comes to mind is **Dollhouse** , a cleverly-written Joss Whedon series about people who have their minds wiped and personalities replaced with made-to-order personalities as playthings for the very wealthy. It’s a fun premise, with a lot of potential, and a plum job for any actor worth her salt–you get to play a new character each episode, with new mannerisms, accents, speech patterns, etc.! Except Eliza Dushku was cast as the lead, and Dushku plays the tough jaded city babe really well but can’t play another part to save her life. The backup actors were all so much better than her. I stopped watching just because I couldn’t suspend disbelief any more. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079/16 "2016-03-25T03:27:41Z")
I had never really thought of it like that, each actor being one component that makes up the whole. I have seen plenty of shows with a dud performer and just dismissed the whole enterprise without ever thinking that a cast change could have made the whole thing excellent. But now that I am aware of the possibility, recasting _The Shield_ to rid it of the nepotism induced roles filled by Cathy Ryan and Autumn Chiklis would have kept me watching it. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079/17 "2016-03-25T03:31:49Z")
Jason Alexander has a talent for ruining anything he’s in. He made me give up on _Seinfeld_ early on, and I cringe at him whenever I try to catch an episode. He also managed to ruin _The Music Man_ on TV. ---
**Author:** ![pool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pool/32/4152_2.png) [@pool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pool)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079/18 "2016-03-25T03:39:52Z")
**RealityChuck** if you don’t mind what was it specifically about Jason Alexander that ruined Seinfeld for you? I’ve never seen the other thing you mentioned. I’ve seen a lot of people criticize the character of George, but not usually the actor himself. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079/19 "2016-03-25T04:06:25Z")
The guy who plays Daredevil’s legal partner in the TV series simply takes me out of the show. He and his part are so awe Inspiringly terrible it defies belief. ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079/20 "2016-03-25T04:15:44Z")
If the lead character counts, the character of Richie Finestra ruined Vinyl. The rest of the characters were very interesting. Richie was horrible… so I don’t watch Vinyl after 3 eps. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-one-cast-member-ruin-a-tv-show-for-you/750079.md?page=2)