In the TV landscape, the actors and production teams behind several shows always hope for multiple seasons but a long run is never guaranteed. And at times, the number of canceled shows tends to rival that of the renewed ones. Recently even critically acclaimed shows like Archive 81 and Lovecraft Country haven’t been spared.
Interestingly, some actors have found themselves in more discontinued shows than others over the years. To some, a good series is quickly followed by a bad one whereas others consistently get cast in projects that don’t please fans or studio executives, leading to termination. Nonetheless, these actors ought to be lauded for never giving up.
John Cho
Cho has had recurring roles in over 5 different shows that were canceled. His most recent notable role was that of the Martian bounty hunter Spike Spiegel in Cowboy Bepop. Unfortunately, the show faced the ax as soon as it was released. Cho also starred in Selfie, Difficult People, and The Exorcist, all of which were promising but didn’t last long.
By analyzing Cho’s career, it can be noted that the big screen has been kinder to him than the TV arena. Inside his cabinet of accolades is an Independent Spirit Award for Best Lead Actor, thanks to his incredible performance in Searching. He’s also had the honor of portraying one of the best Star Trek characters, Hikaru Sulu, in both movies and video games.
Jason O’Mara
From 1996 to 2016, O’Mara starred in 7 shows that never made it to Season 2. His luck changed in 2017 when he was cast in one of the best MCU TV shows as the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
While having to jump from show to show might cause O’Mara to sulk, he can take pride in the act that he is the actor who has portrayed Batman the most number of times. O’Mara has voiced the Caped Crusader in a whopping 10 different DC animated movies. The superhero world has treated him more favorably.
David Walton
Walton has appeared in over 10 canceled shows throughout his career. The key ones that studio executives opted not to proceed with were 9JKL, About A Boy, Council Of Dads, Cracking Up, 100 Questions, Masters Of Sex, Perfect Couples, and Bent.
That Walton keeps on finding new gigs is an indication that he is a brilliant actor. Ever since he made his debut in 2002, he has starred in 30 movies and TV shows. The actor’s unlucky streak could presumably stem from the fact that he mostly focuses on sitcoms., which is a brutal space where a few shows normally get all the praise and the rest become forgotten.
Kyle Bornheimer
Bornheimer is best known as Ken, the obnoxious stockbroker from the Breaking Bad universe. Regrettably, the ghost of cancellation has haunted him a dozen times.
History has proven that Bornheimer fairs better when he is a guest star rather than when he is in leading or recurring roles. Apart from dealing with Walter White and Saul Goodman, he has also appeared in shows such as The Office and How I Met Your Mother, all of which had a lengthy run. And with over 40 movie and TV credits to his name, Bornheimer’s resume looks good.
James Wolk
Wolk is yet to catch a break as his new show, Ordinary Joe, which only premiered in September 2021, wasn’t renewed. Other notable canceled shows include The Crazy Ones, Tell Me A Story, and Zoo.
Despite how unpredictable Wolk’s career has become, fans will always cherish his performance as one of the best Mad Men characters, Bob Benson. The role earned him a Best Supporting Actor nomination at the Satellite Awards and a win for the same award at the Gold Derby Awards. Hopefully, his luck will change soon.
Hayes MacArthur
MacArthur’s recent projects such as Schooled, Single Parents, and Mary Happy Whatever have all been axed. Angie Tribeca is the show he got to star in the longest (34 episodes) but unfortunately, it wasn’t renewed after Season 4.
An incredible comedic actor, MacArthur has never been singled out for being at fault for any of his failed TV shows. This explains why he has always landed roles in comedy movies too. Most of his projects can be considered guilty pleasure viewing. Since he hasn’t lost his ability to entertain, fans can always expect the actor to pop up somewhere.
Josh Cooke
Cooke’s short-lived shows include Committed, Big Day, and Four Kings. Better With You, and The Right Stuff. He has also had one-shot appearances in numerous other long-running series.
Cooke’s small-screen misfortunes are unlikely to bother him because he also found success in the music and theater scenes. Moreover, the lack of long-term commitments has allowed him to hop between several popular drama projects as well as a good number of the best procedural crime shows.
Erinn Hayes
Kevin Can Wait. Guys With Kids, Worst Week, The Hotwives, and The Dangerous Book for Boys are some of the booted series that Hayes has been a part of. Recently, the tides have changed for her, with the comedy Medical Police appearing healthy so far.
Whenever things have gone well, Erinn has always proven how good an actor she is. Among her accolades is an Emmy for “Outstanding Actress in a Short Form Comedy.” As is presumably the case with many other actors on the list, there is the possibility that her misfortunes have to do with matters beyond her control, such as poor scripts.
Summer Glau
Glau’s performance in Firefly (which lasted a single season) is still appreciated to this day bu her fortunes have somehow dimmed. Her last 3 shows have all been terminated and there’s still no news yet of her being cast elsewhere.
Glau will be hoping to recapture some of her 2000s magic as it’s the decade in which she found the most success. And it was all thanks to one show. Her performance in Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles earned her recognition 7 times across different award bodies. And even if nothing changes, she will forever be adored by sci-fi fans.
Kristoffer Polaha
FOX’s choosy nature means most of its shows get to last long but Polaha’s North Shore didn’t make it past a season. The actor has also been part of 6 other axed shows.
Despite the high number of discontinued shows, Polaha is hardly a struggling actor because blockbuster roles have kept on coming. DC fans will recognize him as Steve Trevor’s other face in Wonder Woman: 1984. He is also set to portray Wyatt Huntley in Jurassic World: Dominion. Even more impressive are the 7 Hallmark movies he has appeared in since 2017.
