There are some movie and TV characters who are defined by just one actor, while others could be defined by two or even three. Of course, in an industry dominated by reboots and remakes these days, it is far from unusual to see the same role being handled by multiple performers, but we are specifically referring to roles from the same cinematic franchise or TV series — and in the same continuity, mostly — that had to be recast for one reason or another. Let’s explore this phenomenon by reviewing some of the most notable examples.
Vivian Banks (The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air)
For the sitcom's first three seasons, Janet Hubert starred in the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air cast as Will Smith's aunt, Vivian Banks. However, on-set drama between Hubert and Smith led to Daphne Maxwell Reid assuming the role, which Jazz (DJ Jazzy Jeff) would cleverly poke fun at on a couple of different occasions.
James "Rhodey" Rhodes (Marvel Cinematic Universe)
Near the end of 2008's Iron Man, Terrence Howard, as James Rhodes, gazes upon one of Tony Stark's (Robert Downey Jr.) unpainted armored suits and decides he will try it out "next time." However, there would not be a next time for Howard, who left due to contract disputes and was succeeded in Iron Man 2 by Don Cheadle, who has played the colonel otherwise known as “Rhodey” in the MCU ever since.
Catwoman (Batman)
Julie Newmar and Eartha Kitt portrayed two iconic iterations of Catwoman on Batman. Of course, the feline-esque foe was also played by Lee Meriwether in the cinematic spin-off of the Adam West-led, 1960s-era spin-off.
Emperor Palpatine (The Star Wars Movies)
Unless they got their hands on an unedited copy of 1980’s The Empire Strikes Back, most modern fans of the Star Wars franchise might not have realized that Emperor Palpatine was originally physically portrayed by Elaine Baker and voiced by Clive Revill. After Ian McDiarmid took over the role in Return of the Jedi in 1983, the actor was edited into the 2004 version of Empire.
Cleveland Brown (Family Guy)
It may come as a surprise to some more casual Family Guy viewers that one of the animated series' few Black characters was voiced by a white actor until 2020. Mike Henry — who also voices Herbert and Consuela — willfully stepped down from the role and was replaced by Arif Zahir, whose talent for portraying the character was discovered on YouTube.
Evelyn O'Connell (The Mummy Movies)
After playing Evelyn O'Connell (née Carnahan) in 1999's The Mummy and The Mummy Returns in 2001, Academy Award winner Rachel Weisz turned down the chance to play the brash librarian a third time. Thus, Maria Bello succeeded in the role for 2008's The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor.
Darrin Stephens (Bewitched)
When a back injury made working on Bewitched more challenging, Emmy nominee Dick York was forced to step down from the role of Samantha Stephens' (Elizabeth Montgomery) mortal husband, Darrin. The producers would then go to their original choice for the role, Dick Sargent, who was involved in a different show, but was able to play Darrin for the supernatural sitcom's final three seasons.
Jack Ryan (Jack Ryan Movies)
The first cinematic adaptation of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan novels, 1990’s The Hunt for Red October, cast Alec Baldwin as the CIA analyst, but, due to his commitment to a theatrical production of A Streetcar Named Desire, Harrison Ford took over as the lead of 1992’s Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger in 1994. In 2002, Ben Affleck led The Sum of All Fears, and, more than a decade later, Chris Pine took over the role in Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit before John Krasinski was named the lead of Amazon Prime’s Jack Ryan series.
Harriette Winslow (Family Matters)
Some of the Family Matters cast, reportedly, did not get along — namely Steve Urkel actor Jaleel White and JoMarie Payton, who played Harriette Winslow. This growing tension and certain disagreements with the direction of the long-running sitcom led Payton to cut ties in the middle of the ninth and final season and be replaced by Judyann Elder.
Albus Dumbledore (Harry Potter Movies)
Two-time Academy Award nominee Richard Harris originated the role of Albus Dumbledore in the first two Harry Potter movies until he passed away in 2002. The Hogwarts headmaster was succeeded by Michael Gambon, who officially joined the wildly popular fantasy franchise with 2004’s Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.
Newman (Seinfeld)
Jerry's nemesis and Kramer's buddy, known only as Newman, was originally conceived as a TV character you would never actually see, but only hear, with Seinfeld co-creator Larry David providing the voice. However, the United States postal worker would make his grand entrance in the long-running sitcom’s third season, as played by Wayne Knight.
Bruce Wayne (Batman Movies)
Michael Keaton starred as the Dark Knight in two live-action Batman movies helmed by Tim Burton — 1989’s Batman and Batman Returns from 1992. When director Joel Schumacher took over the franchise, Keaton left and was succeeded by Val Kilmer in Batman Forever, only to be replaced by George Clooney as Bruce Wayne in Batman & Robin.
Rick Sanchez And Morty Smith (Rick And Morty)
Justin Roiland co-created one of the all-time best animated TV series with Rick and Morty, for which he also voiced both members of the titular grandfather and grandson duo. Assault allegations against the actor led to his forced exit, paving the way for Ian Cardoni to voice the disgruntled scientist with Harry Belden portraying the anxious teen.
Sabretooth (X-Men Movies)
When Marvel’s X-Men comics were first adapted for live-action films, the animalistic, ageless mutant known as Sabretooth was played by professional wrestler Tyler Mane. Despite its intentions of being a direct prequel, X-Men Origins: Wolverine enlisted Liev Schreiber to take over the role alongside Hugh Jackman’s reprisal of his brother, Logan.
Gregor “The Mountain” Clegane (Game Of Thrones)
It had never been unusual for Game of Thrones cast members to be killed off, nor was it out of the ordinary for their roles to be recast. One of the most notable examples of this was when “The Mountain” actor Craig Stevens was replaced after one season by Ian Whyte in Season 2 and again by Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson for the remainder of the series.
Chewbacca (Star Wars Movies)
For Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Peter Mayhew returned to play Chewbacca, but also shared his iconic Star Wars character with Joonas Suotamo, who handled the more physically demanding scenes. When Mayhew passed, the Finnish actor took full responsibility of the Wookie, whom he would reprise again in Solo: A Star Wars Story and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
Becky Conner (Roseanne)
The role of Becky Conner was played by two different actors at almost sporadic times throughout the original run of Roseanne. Alicia Goranson, who originated the character, was on for the first five seasons, the eighth season, and the revival series, while Sarah Chalke was in the cast for the sixth, seventh, and ninth seasons, but also returned for The Conners in a different recurring role.
Bruce Banner (Marvel Cinematic Universe)
When Mark Ruffalo reprised his role as Bruce Banner in Disney+'s She-Hulk, he mentioned how, when he fought a "hulked-out" Emil Blonsky (Tim Roth), he was a "completely different person" then. He means this literally because the physicist-turned-superhero was played by Edward Norton in 2008's The Incredible Hulk.
Laurie Forman (That '70s Show)
The late Lisa Robin Kelly was best known for starring in the That '70s Show cast as Laurie Forman for the period sitcom's first five seasons. Before the character was effectively written off, Eric's older sister was portrayed by Christina Moore for the first half of Season 6.
Victoria (The Twilight Saga)
Before Rachelle Lefevre was cast as Victoria in 2008's Twilight and the first sequel, New Moon, one of the first actors approached was Bryce Dallas Howard, who felt the role was too minor. After Lefevre was dropped, reportedly due to scheduling conflicts, Howard accepted to take over as the villainous vamp in Eclipse.
Meg Griffin (Family Guy)
Everybody recognizes Meg Griffin's voice as that of Mila Kunis, but she would only join the Family Guy cast in Season 2 after Lacey Chabert left the role. The series has poked fun at the recasting numerous times, like when Stewie finds himself in a world where time goes in reverse and points out that his sister's voice sounds different.
Clarice Starling (Hannibal)
Jodie won an Academy Award in 1992 for playing FBI agent Clarice Starling in Jonathan Demme’s horrifying Best Picture Oscar winner, The Silence of the Lambs. Yet she was not available to reunite with Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal Lector for director Ridley Scott’s Hannibal from 2001, so Julianne Moore took over the role.
Daario Naharis (Game Of Thrones)
Ed Skrein first joined Game of Thrones as Daenerys Targaryen’s advisor and lover, Daario Naharis, in the epic fantasy drama's third season. When the English actor left the series the following season, Michiel Huisman would take over.
Thanos (Marvel Cinematic Universe)
The first time we met the MCU’s iteration of Thanos was in a brief mid-credits cameo from 2012’s The Avengers, in which he played in performance capture by Damion Poitier. For the mad, purple Titan’s second appearance in 2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy, the role was passed on to Oscar nominee Josh Brolin, who would continue to portray the character on the big screen until his defeat in 2019’s Avengers: Endgame.
Carol Willick (Friends)
When Friends first introduced Carol — Ross Gellar's (David Schwimmer) ex-wife and mother of his son, Ben — in the second episode of Season 1, she was played by Anita Barone. That would be the actor's only appearance in the role as she left soon after and was succeeded by Jane Sibbett, who played her for the rest of the remainder of the long-running sitcom.
Rachel Dawes (The Dark Knight Trilogy)
Bruce Wayne's childhood friend and crush, Rachel Dawes — a character invented specifically for 2005's Batman Begins — was originated by Katie Holmes. When she turned down the chance to star in 2008's The Dark Knight, Maggie Gyllenhaal was cast as the Gotham City attorney.
Greg Serrano (Crazy Ex-Girlfriend)
In the first two seasons of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Rebecca Bunch (Rachel Bloom) has a complicated on-and-off affair with Greg Serrano who was then played by Santino Fontana before the actor's one-year contract expired. So, when the character came back for Season 4, he was replaced by Pitch Perfect star Skyler Astin.
Jennifer Parker (Back To The Future Trilogy)
Some audiences may remember Elizabeth Shue as Jennifer Parker, but she only appeared in the second and third installments of the Back to the Future trilogy. Marty McFly’s girlfriend and eventual wife was first played in the original time travel movie classic from 1985 by Claudia Wells, who did not reprise the role after pausing her acting career for family reasons.
Ann Veal (Arrested Development)
Fans of Arrested Development know George Michael Bluth's (Michael Cera) utterly forgettable girlfriend, Ann, as Mae Whitman. However, they also might have forgotten that the role's original actor was Alessandra Torresani, for just one episode of the acclaimed comedy's first season.
Gellert Grindelwald (Fantastic Beasts)
The 2016 Harry Potter prequel, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, revealed that Percival Graves was a disguised Gellert Grindewald, played by Johnny Depp, who reprised the role in the 2018 sequel, The Crimes of Grindelwald. However, legal troubles led Warner Bros. to cut ties with the Oscar nominee and enlist Mads Mikkelsen to play the villainous wizard in The Secrets of Dumbledore in 2022.
Reggie Mantle (Riverdale)
Ross Butler was in the Riverdale cast for the first season of the dark Archie Comics adaptation in the recurring role of football player Reggie Mantle. However, the actor's commitment to 13 Reasons Why forced the series to cast Charles Melton when the character was expanded.
Marnie Piper (Halloweentown Movies)
Marnie Piper — who discovers she is a young witch in the 1998 Disney Channel Original Movie, Halloweentown — was portrayed by Kimberly J. Brown then and again in two of the not-so-scary witch movie’s sequels. However, for reasons even Brown does not know, Sara Paxton went brunette to succeed in the role in the fourth installment, Return to Halloweentown, from 2006.
