Random Actors Whose Deaths Became Storylines (15 items)

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  (#2) Cory Monteith

  • Dec. at 31 (1982-2013)

  Cory Monteith died in 2013 at the age of 31 from a drug overdose. He passed before the start of Season 5 of Glee. Initially, producers opted to delay shooting the new season so they could figure out how to handle Finn Hudson's storyline. They opted to not mention Finn's death until the third episode of the season, after the two-part Beatles premiere episode. In the end, producers ultimately decided not to reveal exactly how Finn died.

  In a move that mirrored real life, Rachel Berry (Lea Michele) sang the tear-filled "Make You Feel My Love." Finn's stepbrother Kurt said during the show's opening scene, "Everyone wants to talk about how he died, but who cares? It's one moment in his whole life." The show's lack of closure regarding Finn's death was met with some fan outrage. Glee's co-creator Ryan Murphy explained the producer's tough decision on how to deal with Finn's death: "How somebody died is interesting and maybe morbid, but we say very early on in the episode, 'This is about a celebration of that character's life.' That might be weird for some people, but it felt really exploitative to do it any other way."
  
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  (#7) John Spencer

  • Dec. at 59 (1946-2005)

  John Spencer died in 2005 at the age of 59 from a heart attack. At the time of his death, Spencer played Chief of Staff Leo McGarry on the political drama The West Wing. During Season 6 of the show, McGarry suffered a heart attack, a move by the writers that echoed Spencer's real-life heart issues.

  McGarry recovers from his heart attack and runs as a vice-presidential running mate with Congressman Matt Santos on the presidential ticket. In real life, John Spencer passed away on December 16, 2005, and West Wing writers decided to change the planned narrative. On the night of the election, McGarry dies in his hotel room of a heart attack. Originally, Vinick/Sullivan was supposed to win the election, but the writers opted for the Santos/McGarry victory by a slim 30,000 vote margin in Nevada. It made McGarry the posthumous Vice President.
  
   
  
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  (#4) Redd Foxx

  • Dec. at 69 (1922-1991)

  Redd Foxx died of a heart attack at the age of 69 while filming his comeback series The Royal Family. The sitcom was only seven episodes into its premiere season when Foxx collapsed on the set during rehearsal. Jackée Harry was brought in as a replacement for Foxx (who played the character Al), as the younger sister to Al's wife, Victoria. Harry's character was there to help her sister deal with the loss of her husband, and his passing became a storyline in the show.

  The retooling of the show was unsuccessful, however, and was cancelled later that same season.

   
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  (#8) Larry Hagman

  • Dec. at 81 (1931-2012)

  Larry Hagman died in 2012 at the age 81 from acute myeloid leukemia. At the time of his death, Hagman was once again playing oil tycoon J.R. Ewing in the revival drama Dallas. Ewing, this time around, is killed by two gunshot wounds.

  J.R.'s funeral takes place during the eighth episode of the second season, and several of the show's original cast members attended. Following Hagman's death, the writers reworked the rest of the show's second season to focus on who shot J.R., a homage to the famous cliffhanger from the original series.

  
   
  
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  (#1) Phil Hartman

  • Dec. at 50 (1948-1998)

  Phil Hartman died in 1998 after being shot by his wife, Brynn Hartman. At the time of his death, Hartman played news anchor Bill McNeal on the comedy NewsRadio. His death was addressed during the premiere of Season 5 in an episode called "Bill Moves On," where it's revealed that McNeal died from a heart attack.

  After McNeil's funeral, each character reads personal notes left for them by the news anchor. The producers opted to replace Hartman's character with fellow SNL alum Jon Lovitz, who played an old friend of McNeal's. NewsRadio wrapped after its fifth season.
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  (#15) River Phoenix

  • Dec. at 23 (1970-1993)

  River Phoenix died from a drug overdose outside of Hollywood's famed Viper Room in 1993 at the age of 23. The talented young actor was in the middle of filming Dark Blood at the time of his death. The movie gave Phoenix the opportunity to play a villain for the first time in his career. The film was scrapped after Phoenix's death because it was only about 80% complete and several important scenes still needed to be shot.

  The film's director George Sluizer, however, finished the film 19 years later by narrating descriptions of what was missing from the scenes. The film was screened at a few film festivals in 2013 and 2014 but never received a wide release.

   

   

   

   

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