saying goodbye to beloved TV characters
is hard enough
saying goodbye to beloved actors is even
harder
welcome to watchmojo.com and today we’re
counting down our picks for the top 10
actors who died during their TV shows I
really loved how he made me laugh
for this list we’ll be looking at the
actors who tragically passed away while
their TV shows were still running their
co-workers not only mourn their loss but
also had to get back to shooting the
show without them that means making the
character disappear killing them off
replacing the actor or in some
unfortunate cases canceling the series
altogether since this list we’ll be
talking about many TV deaths a spoiler
alert is in order I need your help what
is it now mrs. Wolowitz it’s this dress
when I put my front in my back pops out
number 10 Freddie Prinze Chico and the
man
oh no not for Chico oh this is terrible
let me take a last look at the remains
Freddie Prinze jr. is a well-known film
and television actor whose father
Freddie Prinze was the star of the hit
sitcom Chico and the man playing Chico
come on flies let’s go however at the
age of 22 and only ten months after his
son was born he put a gun to his head
and shot himself in front of his
business manager and I don’t mind being
a mechanic it’s an honorable profession
there’s never been a Watergate in the
field of tire rotation
Prince had been dealing with depression
for some time which was worsened by his
drug use and by his wife filing for
divorce the show continued for another
season after his death with a 12 year
old character named Raoul introduced to
fill the void left by Prince’s death
eventually Chico’s passing was addressed
in an emotional two-part episode and the
show left the air after its fourth
season he made me want to become a
comedian and you know that and I’ve told
you how much I father meant to me number
nine
Cory Monteith Glee Oh eating really hard
it still feels like yesterday that the
world collectively mourned the loss of
this young actor who in 2013 was found
dead from a drug overdose in a Vancouver
hotel room if we’re up to me we wouldn’t
have mandatory bi-weekly afternoon
Locker chat I’ve never seen that
performance issue I swear it’s not my
fans not only cried over Cory’s death
they cried for his co-star Lea Michele
who was also his real-life girlfriend
production was delayed for several
months until it was agreed that his
character Finn Hudson would have to be
killed off the show though his
characters cause of death was never
revealed an episode titled the
quarterback aired as a tribute to him
Finn was constantly remembered
throughout the final two seasons
including the glee series finale in
which the school’s auditorium was
renamed in his honor to Finn Hudson
auditorium number 8 John Spencer the
West Wing
everything all right
yeah John Spencer had been a series
regular on this political drama since
its pilot episode
he played Leo McGarry who starts out as
the White House chief of staff and ends
up eventually running for vice president
the Republican Congress’s attitude is if
it ain’t broke don’t fix up his broker
however after Spencer died of a heart
attack in 2005 it was written that his
character suffered the same fate before
he could assume office the Emmy
award-winning actor was loved and
certainly missed by the actors he worked
with fellow cast member Kristin
Chenoweth even sang at his funeral and
series star Martin Sheen read a special
tribute at the start of episode ten in
the show’s final season Johnny it seems
we hardly knew you we love you and we
miss you
number seven Mary Kay Bergman South Park
Sunday Shelley I’m gonna be bigger than
you and you’re gonna wish you’d never
done any of this to me you never be
bigger than me Stan besides the obvious
what do the female characters on this
controversial adult animated sitcom have
in common not allowing our kids to watch
this show is not enough we need to
boycott the entire network well many
were originally voiced by Mary Kay
Bergman initially she was credited as
Shannon Cassidy in order to avoid
causing any problems with her other job
as the voice of Snow White for Disney
however Bergman unfortunately suffered
from depression and bipolar disorder you
saw him didn’t she you saw my boy things
got so bad for her that in 1999 after
attending an event celebrating the 45th
anniversary of Disneyland she returned
home and shot herself other voice
actresses were found to replace
Bergman’s characters but we’ll never
forget who gave life to the original
Sharon and Shelley Marsh mrs. McCormick
wendy testaburger mrs. Cartman and
Sheila Broflovski
you
number six John Eric hexam cover-up I am
here for my lesson there’s a lot of
downtime for actors on set when they’re
not filming free time is often spent
rehearsing or taking much-needed naps
but sometimes there is nothing to do but
sit and wait unfortunately young model
and actor John Eric hexam found a deadly
way to relieve his boredom during a lull
in filming you expect me to walk through
the hotel with our rope and a grappling
hook man he decided to play around with
a gun being used for a scene that
contained a blank assuming it was
harmless
it wasn’t he shot himself in the head
with the blank causing significant brain
damage and resulting in his death
hexam’s character was the male lead of
the show so a new character and actor
were brought in to replace him
but the series was canceled later in the
season number 5
Nicolas Colasanto cheers are you always
this funny uh I got it on cheers call Oh
Santa played coach Ernie Pantuso a
bartender and the former baseball coach
of lead characters Sam Malone listen we
don’t mean to intrude here you girls
waiting for your husband’s no neither of
us is merited Oh
well I’ll see what I can do about that
coach was always around to lend Sam a
sympathetic ear and offers some
well-meaning though often addled advice
look when you were a drunk and nobody
told ya I told you you were a drunk good
night I told you over and over and over
again well you really were a drunk son
when Carlos Santo died of a heart attack
at age 61 no one wanted to recast coach
so they decided to send the character
off to that great baseball diamond in
the sky now is that an inspirational
story unarmed
that’s when woody harrelson joined the
cast as the new bartender and coaches
pen pal in the show’s fourth season who
arrives in town only to find out that
his friend has passed away
coach Connick can hardly believe it
number 4 Andy Whitfield Spartacus
Whitfield portrayed the title character
Spartacus the badass gladiator on the
show’s first season did I hurt you
champion
but when he discovered that he’d been
diagnosed with non-hodgkin lymphoma
production for season 2 came to a halt
and II was eventually told he was
cancer-free
so filming began anew however he later
found out that his cancer had resurfaced
where’s your what where is the wound in
order to be fair to the show and II
graciously gave them permission to
recast his role and Liam McIntyre took
over ah you lost mine since Andy
Whitfield died the following year in
2011 he was technically no longer
involved with Spartacus but his illness
did impact the show and his absence was
felt among his castmates heal wound
scratch Farrow suffered worse number 3
Jim Henson Sesame Street okay fine fine
I’ll go out and get ready it’ll take me
a minute to get ready mr. Hoover’s death
in 1982 was a sad moment for Sesame
Street Big Bird when people die they
don’t come back
but an even bigger blow was saying
goodbye to the voice of Kermit the Frog
let’s hear you sing the alphabet abcdefg
could you love Jim Henson who was known
for creating and bringing to life
everyone’s favorite amphibian worked on
Sesame Street for 20 years Henson also
came up with and voiced an array of
other characters like Ernie good deal
Bert the third two of us you and me did
you ever think of that you and me that
makes two in the spring of 1990 he
started experiencing flu-like symptoms
but delayed going to a hospital for
several days ultimately by the time he
did go it was too late
Henson died from toxic shock syndrome oh
well listen I’m good at Ryan’s I do a
rhyme all the time Henson’s sudden death
inspired many memorable tributes and
while other voice actors took over his
characters Henson’s Kermit was unique
and has never been forgotten obvious for
victory and for very confused and now
this is this is an i tilted or it could
be the number one but whatever it is it
is not what it was a couple of minutes
ago number two John Ritter 8 simple
rules for dating my teenage daughter
but my case where you may have known him
from the hit 70 sitcom Three’s Company
but at the time of his death he was
starring in another funny show no no no
no no no no no no no no no no no no in 8
simple rules for dating my teenage
daughter Ritter played an overprotective
father of three teenagers you lost
interest in soccer like that yeah in the
third grade the coach wouldn’t let me
play you were too little I was afraid to
send you in viewers were saddened to
hear that Ritter had passed away during
surgery for heart complications he
suffered while on set his character Paul
in turn died suddenly and two episodes
were devoted to the aftermath of his
death oh my god it says hi hi dad the
kids grandpa and cousin CJ we’re
characters brought in to fill the void
but Paul’s absence was always felt and
often brought up in future episodes
Mimi James loved all around me you know
what else is awesome love okay just stop
it all right
before we reveal our number one pick
here are some honorable mentions
nobody could roll over you accident
four-wheel drive I suppose I should have
just kept my mouth shut like a mute
number-one bill Hartman The Simpsons and
news radio
I’m your host Troy McClure you may
remember me from such films as the
erotic adventures of Hercules and dial M
for murderous news you may remember Phil
from such shows as The Simpsons and
Newsradio now this isn’t a scheme we’re
really sinking in right you got me his
bill McNeal on the ladder was a
hilarious portrait of an egomaniac
while his work on The Simpsons is also
treasured by fans as he voiced
characters like Troy McClure and Lionel
Hutz with all due respect mrs. Simpson
you’re not a doctor
the boys not a doctor I’m not a doctor
the only person in this room who even
comes close is this man ah
there were even discussions about a
live-action film about Troy McClure but
those discussions were ended by the
events of the night of May 27 1998 two
creatures every creature even stink
beetles especially stink beetle
that’s when Hartman’s wife shot him in
his sleep after an argument later
killing herself as well his characters
on The Simpsons were retired in the wake
of his death bill McNeal was killed off
of News Radio with a heart attack and
Phil Hartman went down in history as one
of the comedy greats well you need to
invest more
together all of us pulling as a team we
can do it do you agree with our list
which actors death hit you the hardest
sesame seed
they only grow in certain micro climates
for more sentimental top 10s published
every day be sure to subscribe to
watchmojo.com how would they know I’m
not family unless they do DNA test
you
is hard enough
saying goodbye to beloved actors is even
harder
welcome to watchmojo.com and today we’re
counting down our picks for the top 10
actors who died during their TV shows I
really loved how he made me laugh
for this list we’ll be looking at the
actors who tragically passed away while
their TV shows were still running their
co-workers not only mourn their loss but
also had to get back to shooting the
show without them that means making the
character disappear killing them off
replacing the actor or in some
unfortunate cases canceling the series
altogether since this list we’ll be
talking about many TV deaths a spoiler
alert is in order I need your help what
is it now mrs. Wolowitz it’s this dress
when I put my front in my back pops out
number 10 Freddie Prinze Chico and the
man
oh no not for Chico oh this is terrible
let me take a last look at the remains
Freddie Prinze jr. is a well-known film
and television actor whose father
Freddie Prinze was the star of the hit
sitcom Chico and the man playing Chico
come on flies let’s go however at the
age of 22 and only ten months after his
son was born he put a gun to his head
and shot himself in front of his
business manager and I don’t mind being
a mechanic it’s an honorable profession
there’s never been a Watergate in the
field of tire rotation
Prince had been dealing with depression
for some time which was worsened by his
drug use and by his wife filing for
divorce the show continued for another
season after his death with a 12 year
old character named Raoul introduced to
fill the void left by Prince’s death
eventually Chico’s passing was addressed
in an emotional two-part episode and the
show left the air after its fourth
season he made me want to become a
comedian and you know that and I’ve told
you how much I father meant to me number
nine
Cory Monteith Glee Oh eating really hard
it still feels like yesterday that the
world collectively mourned the loss of
this young actor who in 2013 was found
dead from a drug overdose in a Vancouver
hotel room if we’re up to me we wouldn’t
have mandatory bi-weekly afternoon
Locker chat I’ve never seen that
performance issue I swear it’s not my
fans not only cried over Cory’s death
they cried for his co-star Lea Michele
who was also his real-life girlfriend
production was delayed for several
months until it was agreed that his
character Finn Hudson would have to be
killed off the show though his
characters cause of death was never
revealed an episode titled the
quarterback aired as a tribute to him
Finn was constantly remembered
throughout the final two seasons
including the glee series finale in
which the school’s auditorium was
renamed in his honor to Finn Hudson
auditorium number 8 John Spencer the
West Wing
everything all right
yeah John Spencer had been a series
regular on this political drama since
its pilot episode
he played Leo McGarry who starts out as
the White House chief of staff and ends
up eventually running for vice president
the Republican Congress’s attitude is if
it ain’t broke don’t fix up his broker
however after Spencer died of a heart
attack in 2005 it was written that his
character suffered the same fate before
he could assume office the Emmy
award-winning actor was loved and
certainly missed by the actors he worked
with fellow cast member Kristin
Chenoweth even sang at his funeral and
series star Martin Sheen read a special
tribute at the start of episode ten in
the show’s final season Johnny it seems
we hardly knew you we love you and we
miss you
number seven Mary Kay Bergman South Park
Sunday Shelley I’m gonna be bigger than
you and you’re gonna wish you’d never
done any of this to me you never be
bigger than me Stan besides the obvious
what do the female characters on this
controversial adult animated sitcom have
in common not allowing our kids to watch
this show is not enough we need to
boycott the entire network well many
were originally voiced by Mary Kay
Bergman initially she was credited as
Shannon Cassidy in order to avoid
causing any problems with her other job
as the voice of Snow White for Disney
however Bergman unfortunately suffered
from depression and bipolar disorder you
saw him didn’t she you saw my boy things
got so bad for her that in 1999 after
attending an event celebrating the 45th
anniversary of Disneyland she returned
home and shot herself other voice
actresses were found to replace
Bergman’s characters but we’ll never
forget who gave life to the original
Sharon and Shelley Marsh mrs. McCormick
wendy testaburger mrs. Cartman and
Sheila Broflovski
you
number six John Eric hexam cover-up I am
here for my lesson there’s a lot of
downtime for actors on set when they’re
not filming free time is often spent
rehearsing or taking much-needed naps
but sometimes there is nothing to do but
sit and wait unfortunately young model
and actor John Eric hexam found a deadly
way to relieve his boredom during a lull
in filming you expect me to walk through
the hotel with our rope and a grappling
hook man he decided to play around with
a gun being used for a scene that
contained a blank assuming it was
harmless
it wasn’t he shot himself in the head
with the blank causing significant brain
damage and resulting in his death
hexam’s character was the male lead of
the show so a new character and actor
were brought in to replace him
but the series was canceled later in the
season number 5
Nicolas Colasanto cheers are you always
this funny uh I got it on cheers call Oh
Santa played coach Ernie Pantuso a
bartender and the former baseball coach
of lead characters Sam Malone listen we
don’t mean to intrude here you girls
waiting for your husband’s no neither of
us is merited Oh
well I’ll see what I can do about that
coach was always around to lend Sam a
sympathetic ear and offers some
well-meaning though often addled advice
look when you were a drunk and nobody
told ya I told you you were a drunk good
night I told you over and over and over
again well you really were a drunk son
when Carlos Santo died of a heart attack
at age 61 no one wanted to recast coach
so they decided to send the character
off to that great baseball diamond in
the sky now is that an inspirational
story unarmed
that’s when woody harrelson joined the
cast as the new bartender and coaches
pen pal in the show’s fourth season who
arrives in town only to find out that
his friend has passed away
coach Connick can hardly believe it
number 4 Andy Whitfield Spartacus
Whitfield portrayed the title character
Spartacus the badass gladiator on the
show’s first season did I hurt you
champion
but when he discovered that he’d been
diagnosed with non-hodgkin lymphoma
production for season 2 came to a halt
and II was eventually told he was
cancer-free
so filming began anew however he later
found out that his cancer had resurfaced
where’s your what where is the wound in
order to be fair to the show and II
graciously gave them permission to
recast his role and Liam McIntyre took
over ah you lost mine since Andy
Whitfield died the following year in
2011 he was technically no longer
involved with Spartacus but his illness
did impact the show and his absence was
felt among his castmates heal wound
scratch Farrow suffered worse number 3
Jim Henson Sesame Street okay fine fine
I’ll go out and get ready it’ll take me
a minute to get ready mr. Hoover’s death
in 1982 was a sad moment for Sesame
Street Big Bird when people die they
don’t come back
but an even bigger blow was saying
goodbye to the voice of Kermit the Frog
let’s hear you sing the alphabet abcdefg
could you love Jim Henson who was known
for creating and bringing to life
everyone’s favorite amphibian worked on
Sesame Street for 20 years Henson also
came up with and voiced an array of
other characters like Ernie good deal
Bert the third two of us you and me did
you ever think of that you and me that
makes two in the spring of 1990 he
started experiencing flu-like symptoms
but delayed going to a hospital for
several days ultimately by the time he
did go it was too late
Henson died from toxic shock syndrome oh
well listen I’m good at Ryan’s I do a
rhyme all the time Henson’s sudden death
inspired many memorable tributes and
while other voice actors took over his
characters Henson’s Kermit was unique
and has never been forgotten obvious for
victory and for very confused and now
this is this is an i tilted or it could
be the number one but whatever it is it
is not what it was a couple of minutes
ago number two John Ritter 8 simple
rules for dating my teenage daughter
but my case where you may have known him
from the hit 70 sitcom Three’s Company
but at the time of his death he was
starring in another funny show no no no
no no no no no no no no no no no no in 8
simple rules for dating my teenage
daughter Ritter played an overprotective
father of three teenagers you lost
interest in soccer like that yeah in the
third grade the coach wouldn’t let me
play you were too little I was afraid to
send you in viewers were saddened to
hear that Ritter had passed away during
surgery for heart complications he
suffered while on set his character Paul
in turn died suddenly and two episodes
were devoted to the aftermath of his
death oh my god it says hi hi dad the
kids grandpa and cousin CJ we’re
characters brought in to fill the void
but Paul’s absence was always felt and
often brought up in future episodes
Mimi James loved all around me you know
what else is awesome love okay just stop
it all right
before we reveal our number one pick
here are some honorable mentions
nobody could roll over you accident
four-wheel drive I suppose I should have
just kept my mouth shut like a mute
number-one bill Hartman The Simpsons and
news radio
I’m your host Troy McClure you may
remember me from such films as the
erotic adventures of Hercules and dial M
for murderous news you may remember Phil
from such shows as The Simpsons and
Newsradio now this isn’t a scheme we’re
really sinking in right you got me his
bill McNeal on the ladder was a
hilarious portrait of an egomaniac
while his work on The Simpsons is also
treasured by fans as he voiced
characters like Troy McClure and Lionel
Hutz with all due respect mrs. Simpson
you’re not a doctor
the boys not a doctor I’m not a doctor
the only person in this room who even
comes close is this man ah
there were even discussions about a
live-action film about Troy McClure but
those discussions were ended by the
events of the night of May 27 1998 two
creatures every creature even stink
beetles especially stink beetle
that’s when Hartman’s wife shot him in
his sleep after an argument later
killing herself as well his characters
on The Simpsons were retired in the wake
of his death bill McNeal was killed off
of News Radio with a heart attack and
Phil Hartman went down in history as one
of the comedy greats well you need to
invest more
together all of us pulling as a team we
can do it do you agree with our list
which actors death hit you the hardest
sesame seed
they only grow in certain micro climates
for more sentimental top 10s published
every day be sure to subscribe to
watchmojo.com how would they know I’m
not family unless they do DNA test
you
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