Plenty of changes took place throughout the eight season seasons of Full House, which remains one of the best long, binge-worthy shows. For example, recurring characters like Rebecca Donaldson (later Katsopolis) and Kimmy Gibbler became regulars on the show, and more mature storylines were utilized as the Tanner kids got older. However, I had no idea that the TGIF sitcom’s producers were apparently “pissed” when Candace Cameron Bure made one big change to her character, DJ's, appearance.
Throughout the earlier seasons of the show, DJ Tanner was known for having very long hair. But, as mentioned during an episode of the How Rude, Tanneritos! rewatch podcast, Andrea Barber mentioned to Jodi Sweetin that the had entered DJ’s “short hair era.” This mention came as the pair outlined the Season 7 episode “The Perfect Couple”. From there, Barber presented one surprising fact about that hairdo shift:
We don't ever acknowledge it because Candace cut it without telling the producers.
Whoa, baby! That was certainly a bold move on Bure's part, especially given her character's signature style. In “The Perfect Couple,” DJ begins sporting a shoulder-length ‘do. Sure, the longer locks were what were more familiar to viewers, but I can understand Bure wanting to make a change at that time, given she'd been sporting the same look on the show for so long.
While the close-knit Full House cast were fully aware of Bure's new hair, she realistically couldn't hide her new look from the producers forever. According to Sweetin, they didn’t exactly take it well:
I feel like now that you mentioned it, I'm like, oh, wait, I do remember they were kind of pissed because she just did it. It was a whole thing.
This all may sound like no big deal, but when an actor playing an established role changes their hairstyle without notice, it can indeed cause a stir. For instance, Mariska Hargitay said she “almost got fired” when she rocked a pixie cut while filming Law & Order: SVU. Keri Russell’s super short haircut in Felicity was even famously theorized to be the reason why Season 2's ratings dropped.
Of course, the situation involving DJ's look happened decades ago, and it's something the cast can laugh about now. After all, Full House, which is over 30 years old, ended back in 1995. During the recent podcast episode, Barber went on to explain why Bure decided to chop off her locks without giving any on the creative team the heads up:
I mean, we laugh about it now, but she just was tired of long hair and wanted to cut it. But she knew if she asked, they would make her wait. They would say no or make her wait so they could write it into the right story. So she was like, ‘I’m not doing that.’ …. Her stylist cut it on a weekend, and she showed up Monday morning. I don’t think she got in trouble, but they did talk to her. Like they took her aside and they were like, ‘You really can’t do that.’
I can sympathize with Bure for not wanting to wait until her hair change was written into a story. Honestly, the notion of her hairstyle needing to be directly addressed on the show feels somewhat weird. However, I can also see where the producers are coming from, as the short hair could've not only clashed with their vision for the eldest Tanner child but also just been jarring for viewers.
After hearing how Full House's producers were upset over Candace Cameron Bure's change, I can't help but wonder if hair conversations came up at other points during the show's run. Regardless of that, I'm glad everything worked out for Bure in the end, and she ended keeping her hair short throughout the remainder of the show's run.
Check out Bure's performance as DJ by streaming Full House with either a Hulu subscription or a Disney+ subscription.
