Aurora Starchild
Making it big in Hollywood takes an astounding amount of thick skin and dedication. But once you’re in, there are no guarantees. The film business has the power to change narratives and bring ideas into the public’s awareness through its nature of storytelling. And with that power comes a responsibility, which can translate into political correctness. This also means that big-name stars who are part of a Hollywood brand need to behave a certain way. Otherwise, the powers that be may wag their mighty fingers and cut them from the payroll. Here are eight actors who were fired from hit TV shows after they did something to rock the boat.
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Lori Loughlin
Lori Loughlin has been in the show biz since 1979 and became a household name on Full House in 1988. After 7 years of playing Aunt Becky Katsopolis in the original, she came back for the Fuller House spin-off in 2016. But Loughlin found herself in a heap of trouble when she was one of over 50 people indicted in a nationwide college admissions scandal in March of 2019. She was charged with paying for her daughters to get into college and skirt the exam system. Loughlin was fired from the 5th season of Fuller House and eventually served two months in prison, followed by community service. However, she wasn’t blacklisted from Hollywood. Loughlin continued to work as Abigail Stanton on When Calls the Heart and When Hope Calls. She most recently played Kelly in the TV movie Fall Into Winter.
Charlie Sheen
Charlie Sheen has made quite a reputation for himself as a bad boy. Sometimes he takes things a bit too far as his struggles with substance abuse and sexual escapades have unfortunately exposed some very dark realities. He has been known to go on odd tangents online. His ex-wife Denise Richards is often on the receiving end of them. Sheen insulted Chuck Lorre, the producer of Two and a Half Men, in a series of interviews, ultimately resulting in his termination in 2011. He was slated to continue through 2012 but Warner Bros had enough of his antics and fired him from the TV show.
Gina Carano
Gina Carano hit gold when she landed a recurring role as Cara Dune in The Mandalorian. But after making a series of comments on social media, she was axed. Carano had compared Republicans to Jews in the Holocaust, which came across as anti-Semitic. She’d previously mocked people wearing masks during COVID and Lucasfilm was already considering letting her go. Further, a spokesperson for Lucasfilm said, “Gina Carano is not currently employed by Lucasfilm and there are no plans for her to be in the future. Nevertheless, her social media posts denigrating people based on their cultural and religious identities are abhorrent and unacceptable.” She’s since claimed to have been canceled and has only been in two other published projects.
Suzanne Somers
Suzanne Somers hit a nerve with ABC when she asked for a raise on Three’s Company in 1980. After portraying Chrissy Snow for 100 episodes over 4 years, the actress realized she was being far less than her male coworkers. She claims that she was written out of the show as a form of retaliation. But Somers turned lemons into lemonade eventually. She moved to Las Vegas and became the Thighmaster queen, circling back to Hollywood later on Step by Step.
TJ Holmes and Amy Robach
When Good Morning America 3 hosts TJ Holmes and Amy Robach started playing metaphorical footsie under the table on-air, something needed to change. The two were caught by paparazzi while out on dates together for months. This was while they were both still married to their other partners. Things got out of hand when they started making sexual innuendos on live TV, which was contrary to ABC’s family values. The GMA 3 hosts were suspended in December 2022 when the news of their affair went viral. They were officially fired from the TV show in January 2023 due to the distraction and bad publicity. Despite being let go, they were reportedly given severance packages.
Columbus Short
Columbus Short was fired from Scandal when he found himself in a real-life scandal involving domestic abuse. He played Harrison Wright for 47 episodes until news broke in 2014 that he’d allegedly battered his wife and threatened her life. Short also was charged with getting in a violent altercation in a West LA restaurant around the same time after knocking another man out. He was facing four years in state prison and was eventually let go by the ABC show. Short later admitted that he was struggling with alcohol addiction and using cocaine during that time in his life.
Roseanne Barr
Roseanne was fired from her self-titled show after posting a series of racist tweets. She referred to Barack Obama’s former aide, Valerie Jarrett, as a part of the “Muslim Brotherhood & Planet of the Apes.” Calling Roseanne’s speech “abhorrent,” ABC fired her from the sitcom that had run from 1990 to 2018. The network didn’t mince words when explaining their decision. “Roseanne’s Twitter statement is abhorrent, repugnant and inconsistent with our values, and we have decided to cancel her show,” said ABC president Channing Dungey.
