10 TV Characters Who Vanished After the Pilot

Oftentimes on television, the pilot episode can be the make-or-break for a series. The executives watch, a paid audience gives feedback, and from there, it might make it to air as is or be retooled. Of course, with contracts, scheduling, and all of that TV business stuff, things can also aid in the change. But, have you ever noticed some drastic changes from pilot to series involving disappearing characters?

There is a common television trope known as the “Chuck Cunningham Syndrome.” While some characters may get “killed off” or move on to bigger and better things, those who fall into this trope simply disappear into oblivion. The concept was named after the eldest brother from Happy Days (Gavan O’Herlihy), who appeared in the first two seasons of the show. Not only did he no longer appear, but Howard (Tom Bosley) and Marion Cunningham (Marion Ross) literally don’t acknowledge him again, referencing only their TWO kids! While some TV characters disappear after some time, it’s those who suffer from Chuck Cunningham Syndrome in the pilot we’re here to talk about. These characters may have been set up to be big deals, but then vanished.

10

Fluffy the Cat

‘The Brady Bunch’

“Here’s the story of a lovely lady, who was bringing up three very lovely girls.” And a cat. The Brady Bunch will forever be an iconic television series and part of American pop culture. While there are certainly exceptional episodes throughout the series’ run, the pilot episode, called “The Honeymoon,” set the tone for the entire series. It set up our story about the blended family we all wished we could be a part of. Fluffy the cat was the girls’ pet.

She had a little cat house and had an infamous scene where she was chased around the wedding by the Brady boy’s pet dog, Tiger. Mike (Robert Reed) and Carol (Florence Henderson) had a spat about the pets as Cindy (Susan Olsen) was in tears. While Tiger was allowed to remain in the Brady home, Fluffy wasn’t afforded that privilege. In fact, she was never discussed ever again. Poor, Fluffy!

9

Roxanne Majidi

‘Madam Secretary’

In 2014, CBS brought fictional United States Secretary of State Elizabeth McCord (Téa Leoni) to life on Madam Secretary. In the pilot episode, she is appointed Secretary of State after the tragic death of the current Secretary in a plane crash. Upon taking the position, she was given a stylist and image consultant named Roxanne Majidim, played by Mozhan Marno.

As the newest member of the Secretary’s staff, it seemed as if Roxanne would be crucial in keeping up Madame Secretary’s appearance throughout the series. She even had her own office in the State Department building! But when episode 2 rolled around, she was gone. As it turned out, Roxanne did randomly appear during the Season 6 premiere. She’s back to being the stylist, as if we all pretended she never went away.

8

Tracy Young

‘ER’

Like many of our favorite medical dramas, we are privy to learning about the world of a hospital through the lens of the individuals who work inside. From doctors to nurses to interns, each role plays an important role in the dynamics of the world. In the pilot episode of ER, titled “24 Hours,” Holly Gagnier took on the role of Tracy Young, an intern at County General ER.

She was assigned to work with Dr. Doug Ross (George Clooney) as they diagnosed a young boy with a stomach ulcer that was due to the stress of his overbearing mother. With Dr. Ross being portrayed as a flirt, it appeared she might be a foil for that plot line, but she seemingly only lasted a day at County General ER.

7

Josh Wilson

‘Weeds’

The hit Jenji Kohan Showtime series Weeds may feel like a period piece to us today, but in 2005, the black comedy was a massive hit. Following the life of widowed mother Nancy Botwin (Mary-Louise Parker), who engaged in selling marijuana to keep her family afloat, the pilot introduced many of the important supporting characters and their families.

Doug (Kevin Nealon) had a son, Josh (Justin Chatwin), who quickly became entangled in Nancy’s world. Being a drug dealer himself, when it was discovered he was dealing to 10-year-olds, Josh was blackmailed by Nancy for being gay and having sex with older men. And just like that, he was gone. Though Doug did reveal he knew his son was gay during Season 4, Josh did make an appearance during part 2 of the series finale, where he reconnects with his father after he has him kidnapped.

6

Callie Cartwig

‘The 100’

It’s quite rare to be a billed actor in the credits and then get dropped after the pilot. Sadly, such was the case for Kelly Hu on The 100. Inspired by the young adult novel of the same name, the post-apocalyptic science fiction drama followed the survivors from The Ark who returned to Earth nearly a century after the devastating nuclear apocalypse.

The first group of individuals sent to Earth was a group of juvenile delinquents who encountered descendants of survivors of the nuclear disaster. Hu played Callie Cartwig, an officer born on The Ark. Her storyline in the pilot revolved around attempting to save Abby Griffin (Paige Turco) from execution. Despite being successful, and thus keeping the plot alive, Callie was removed from the story and “floated” at some point for undisclosed reasons. Hu’s departure from the series was solely due to budget constraints and inability to utilize her in the plot. Showrunner Jason Rothenberg wrote on Twitter in 2015, “Random #the100 fact: In the pilot, CECE wasn’t Kane’s wife.. @KellyHu was great, but there wasn’t enough for her in series so I cut the part.”

5

Coach*

‘New Girl’

Now, before we begin, let’s put a bit of an asterisk on this one. We all know that Damon Wayans Jr. eventually returned to New Girl, but we must discuss how it all happened. The beloved series centered around quirky and bubbly Jess (Zooey Deschanel), who moves into an LA loft with three men, Nick (Jake Johnson), Schmidt (Max Greenfield), and Winston (Lamorne Morris). But before there was Winston, there was Coach.

In the pilot, Coach was portrayed as a cocky and way-too-intense personal trainer. Wayans Jr. had excellent chemistry and played the role well, but by episode 2, Coach moved out, and in was Winston. Due to scheduling issues with the ABC series Happy Endings, which was picked up despite being predicted for cancellation, Wayans Jr. had to drop out of the hit series. When Happy Endings did eventually end, Coach did become a recurring character, where it was revealed that Coach had moved out to move in with his then-girlfriend. Despite never being a full-time character, Coach has remained a fan-favorite character.

4

Claire

‘Seinfeld’

While we all know Seinfeld for its brilliant quartet of characters, the pilot episode looked quite different. Firstly, Julia Louis-Dreyfus‘ Elaine did not appear in the pilot, “The Seinfeld Chronicles.” Instead, the female presence was occupied by a waitress named Claire, played by Lee Garlington. Of course, like Elaine, Monk’s Cafe wasn’t in the pilot either, as Claire worked at Pete’s Luncheonette. She was a friend of Jerry (Jerry Seinfeld) and George (Jason Alexander).

She picked on George in her scene and then was completely written out of the show, along with her workplace. Though a definitive reason for her subtraction from the show has never been confirmed, Jason Alexander joked with Kevin Pollak on Kevin Pollak’s Chat Show, “There was no Elaine in the pilot. It was Kramer, George, Jerry, and a waitress. A waitress at the coffee shop. A very fine actress who made the critical error of suggesting to Larry [David] that she, she’d looked at the scenes overnight and made a few tweaks that she wanted to share with him.”

3

Detective Daniels

‘Brooklyn Nine-Nine’

Sometimes, three is a crowd. Such was the case on Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Hitchcock (Dirk Blocker) and Scully (Joel McKinnon Miller) became a beloved dynamic duo on the series, but in the pilot, they had a third: Detective Daniels.

Described by Terry (Terry Crews) as someone who is better at deskwork and making coffee than her actual job, she was intended to be part of the motley crew, but she was written out. Co-creator Dan Goor had previously alluded to her reappearance during Season 6, but alas, it never happened. It’s hard to imagine the world of the 99th Precinct if Hitchcock and Scully had another counterpart.

2

Lucinda Barry

‘Psych’

For 8 seasons, Psych was a beloved detective dramedy starring James Roday as Shawn, a crime consultant for the Santa Barbara Police Department with a knack for having psychic skills, and Dulé Hill as Gus, his best friend and business partner. While we are all familiar with Shawn’s partner in crime, Jules (Maggie Lawson), she didn’t appear in the pilot. Instead, Shawn’s partner was portrayed by Anne Dudek as Lucinda Barry.

She was a junior detective who was having a secret relationship with Lassiter (Timothy Omundson). While she was never mentioned by name, there was a reference to her later in the series alluding to her death. While at the firing range, Shawn and Gus notice an award for the Lucinda Barry Memorial Tournament, which Lassiter coincidentally won. Part of the character swap was due in part to the character not testing well.

1

Coco

‘The Golden Girls’

Picture it: September 14, 1985. Blanche Devereaux, Rose Nyland, and Dorothy Zbornak, three women of a certain age, shared a Miami abode with a live-in gay housekeeper named Coco. Yes, that’s how the pilot of The Golden Girls began. Before Rue McClanahan, Betty White, and Bea Arthur welcomed Estelle Getty‘s Sophia Petrillo into their home, her spot was meant to be occupied by Coco, portrayed by Charles Levin. Despite his quick wit and strong dynamic with the other women, The Golden Girls wouldn’t be the same without Sophia, who was meant to be a recurring character.

While it’s hard to axe a strong character, it was ultimately the right direction. In Golden Girls Forever: An Unauthorized Look Behind the Lanai, Levin alluded to the AIDS crisis at the time and the lack of desire to see a gay character’s personal life being, perhaps, part of the cause of his character’s removal. Furthermore, Stan Zimmerman, author of The Girls: From Golden to Gilmore and writer on the series said, “As great as Coco was — and he was very funny, and I love that there was a gay character — it wasn’t really needed, and they were smart to let that go. I wish they had dealt with it, or had him back for a special episode…maybe he fell in love, went somewhere.

Maybe he opened a B&B in Key West. I don’t know. There’s so many possibilities.” It’s fitting that there was an openly gay character at the start, as the demographic who continues to champion the series is the LGBTQ+ community. Creator Susan Harris knew the series’ destiny all along!

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