Just like in any other work environment, sometimes the folks working on TV shows don’t always get along.
Perhaps it shouldn’t be surprising. Actors on a continuing series work long hours with sometimes erratic schedules.
The odds of creating a hit show and keeping it going are long and to make the stakes even higher, there can be millions of dollars on the line.
Throw in egos, sometimes difficult personalities, and power struggles and a once happy workplace can turn contentious almost over night.
When tensions mount on set, cast and crew usually attempt to keep things quiet but when hard feelings linger or tempers boil over, rumors tend to surface.
Unfortunately, what happens behind the scenes can sometimes affect what fans see on screen.
Below are 15 examples of behind the scenes feuds that left their mark on some of your favorite shows on TV.
Criminal Minds Actor Thomas Gibson has played Aaron Hotchner on the CBS long running hit, Criminal Minds, since it began in 2005, but no longer. After originally being suspended for supposedly kicking a writer during a disagreement on set, the studos that produce the show recently announced that the actor “has been dismissed from Criminal Minds. Creative details for how the character’s exit will be addressed in the show will be announced at a later date.” Apparently this was not Gibson’s first issue on set. He was allegedly forced to attend anger management classes after shoving an assistant director a few years back. As much as Gibson’s departure will be a big change for the show, it’s good to know that off-screen violence won’t be tolerated.
(CBS) Castle Much of the success of ABC’s Castle was based on the onscreen chemistry between stars Nathan Fillion and Stana Katic. But even though characters Rick Castle and Kate Beckett were very much in love, stories circulated that their portrayers were not. Although nothing was ever confirmed, rumors swirled about real life couples therapy for the actors and feuding behind the scenes. The gossip was was further fueled when ABC Studios told Katic her character was no longer needed if the show got picked up for a season 9. Fans were outraged and, thankfully, the show was cancelled, because we were promised Caskett for Always, no matter what the behind the scenes nonsense.
(ABC) Luck Luck ran out on this HBO drama about horse racing when not one, not two, but THREE horses died during filming. The tragedies caused the network to kill the Dustin Hoffman led series just two episodes into its second season.
Grey’s Anatomy Over the years the doctors on Grey’s Anatomy have had more than their share of drama, both on and off camera. Katherine Heigl was the center of behind the scenes tension when she broke her contract so that she could leave the show to star in films. Isaiah Washington was let go after using a gay slur during an argument on the set, and T.R. Knight was vocal about a “breakdown in communication” between him and show creator Shonda Rhimes leading to he and show parting ways.
(ABC) 7th Heaven The story of a minister, his wife and their seven children was a hit for The WB from 1996 until 2007 (its final season was on The CW). But syndicated episodes were pulled from the air in 2014, after audio tapes were uncovered of the show’s star Stephen Collins admitting to child molestation.
Desperate Housewives The ladies on Wisteria Lane were plagued by controversy. From supposed fighting between Teri Hatcher and Marcia Cross about who should be front and center at a Vanity Fair photo shoot, to actress Nicollette Sheridan reportedly suing show creator Marc Cherry for assault and wrongful termination after her character was killed off the show, it sounds like there was plenty of drama both in front of and behind the cameras on this show.
Glee High school type rivalries may have turned real on Glee. Rumors swirled that tensions between actresses Lea Michele and Naya Rivera eventually spiraled into an intense fight that lead to Rivera cutting back on her time on air in Season 5.
Community The behind the scenes disputes between Community star Chevy Chase and show creator Dan Harmon were well publicized. Harmon was vocal about Chase being difficult to work with, while Chevy retaliated with an enraged, curse-laden voicemail which was, of course, leaked to the media. Chase later walked off the set, causing havoc with filming. Harmon left the show after season 3. Chase left after season 4 and Harmon came back for season 5. NBC dropped the show after season 5 but a sixth, and seemingly final season was produced by Yahoo Screen.
Charmed Shannon Doherty and Holly Marie Combs were already good friends before Charmed began. Then rumors of fighting between Doherty and costar Alyssa Milano, the youngest Halliwell sister, plagued the production for years. Milano has said in interviews that the cliques were reminiscent of high school. In the end, Doherty’s character was killed off at the end of season 3, making way for Rose McGowan to join the sister trio. Hopefully she had the magic touch to make working on the set as charming as the show’s premise.
Beverly Hills, 90210 If regular high school has its own drama, can you imagine what it’s like behind the scenes when you combine teenage hormones, Hollywood egos, new found fame, and boat loads of money? Actress Jennie Garth has admitted that she and Shannon Doherty once had to be pulled apart by co-stars Jason Priestley and Luke Perry after a serious fight in the parking lot. Thankfully, high school ended and the two actresses now consider one another friends.
Sex and the City Whether they were “catfights” or just arguments depends upon the source but the co-stars of HBO’s Sex and the City have admitted to tensions and conflicts over who was paid more during the series. Although Sarah Jessica Parker and Cynthia Nixon have both admitted there were times when feelings got hurt on set, they also insist that the feuding wasn’t nearly as extreme as the rumors made it out to be.
(Unavailable) The Fresh Prince of Bel Air The Fresh Prince and Aunt Viv may have gotten along well on screen but off screen was a different story. Actress Janet Hubert was fired from the show and replaced by Daphne Maxwell-Reid going into season 4. The official story is that there were contractual issues prompted by Hubert’s pregnancy but the he said, she said between Hubert and actor Will Smith has never gone away.
The Good Wife Alicia Florrick and Kalinda Sharma started out as great friends on The Good Wife, but when the news broke that Kalinda once slept with Alicia’s philandering husband at the end of season 2, a rift formed that kept the two characters from sharing scenes. But after several seasons, fans began to wonder if it was more than simple story telling that kept these characters apart. Rumors that star Julianna Margulies and Archie Panjabi didn’t get along began to flourish and it all came to a head during Panjabi’s final episode. Alicia and Kalinda were to meet for a drink before Kalinda went on the run…but diehard fans felt the scene was a little off. Turned out they were right! The two actresses filmed the scene separately using body doubles. Although the show runners made plenty of excuses for filming the scene this way, none of it rang true, causing the separation saga to continue.
Two and a Half Men One and a half of the original Two and a Half Men have had very public falling outs with the show’s creator. Charlie Sheen’s wildly erratic behavior has been frequently blamed on everything from drugs to mental illness to an overly inflated ego. Eventually his character was written out of the show and replaced with Ashton Kutcher. When things finally seemed to be quieting down, actor Angus T. Jones, the “half” part of the series publicly called the show “filth” and encouraged audiences to tune out. Whether you enjoy the content of the series or not, many rolled their eyes at Jones for biting the hand that fed him a fortune over the years. In the end, we hope that the reliable and incredibly talented Jon Cryer got a raise for putting up with all of this nonsense.
(Unavailable) The X-Files The truth may be that the actors who played Mulder and Scully weren’t always as close as they were onscreen. David Duchovny once mentioned that, “familiarity breeds contempt” and that he and costar Gillian Anderson, “used to argue about nothing.” Anderson agreed that the two had periods of time where they hated one another. But fans of the show will be relieved to know that both actors say they are now closer than ever.
(FOX)