MovieChat Forums > The Golden Girls (1985) Discussion > As much as I love this show...

As much as I love this show...


I will never understand what they were thinking with their choice of actors for so many roles on this show. What I mean is, one actor can NOTICEABLY play several different roles throughout the series, and then many central characters on the show may be played by two or three different actors. It's enough to make a guy with OCD explode.

Two actresses played Rose's daughter Kiersten.
Two actresses played Dorothy's daughter Kate.
AND two actors played her son in law Dennis.
Two guys played her son Michael.
Two actresses played Gloria, Dorothy's sister.
Two guys played Big Daddy.
Two actors played Glenn, Dorothy's married boyfriend.
Two COMPLETELY DIFFERENT actresses played Blanche's daughter Rebecca.

But then...

Harold Gould played TWO men who dated Rose.
The guy who died in Rose's bed was the same guy who hosted the murder mystery in S7.
Lou the plumber was also Mr. Haha the clown.
The therapist Blanche saw when hitting menopause played a DIFFERENT therapist when all the girls were fighting
The youngest guy the girls get shipwrecked with later hires Dorothy to teach a business class.
Rose's fictional boyfriend Isaac Newton also played the lead in what was originally going to be the Empty Nest spin off (SAME SEASON).
Terry Kiser played a gun toting Santa Claus and a Beatlemania performer.
The stage actor who dates all three girls later plays a gay hairdresser.
Geraldine Fitzgerald plays the woman Rose meets at the train station on Mother's day AND Sophia's friend who wants to commit suicide.
Enrique Mas is also Pepe the prizefighter.
Sophia's friend Lillian she helps escape the nursing home is a different patient in a different home later when Sophia is activities director (sort of).
Nan Martin played Frieda Claxton and the woman who think's she is Dorothy's real mother.
AND the man who thought he was her real father was the guy hired to "remodel" the garage.
The doctor who diagnosed Dorothy's CFS was also a student in a class she teaches later.
The doctor Rose sees during her HIV scare was a waiter at their restaurant a few times.
Sophia's husband Sal was also a waiter in a Medieval restaurant.

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Two guys played Big Daddy.


I remember many of the others you mentioned playing dual roles but I didn't remember that about Big Daddy. For some reason I was thinking it was the same person.

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This has been happening in TV show forever.

A lot has to do with who is available at the time when the episode is being filmed, if the person who played a past character isn't available, they have to recast and go on.

As for an actor playing more than one character, it may have to do with how that person interacted with the rest of the cast and the producers know that they will fit right in on set.

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"Two guys played her son Michael" - just one. He shaved the moustache.
"Two guys played Big Daddy" - unavoidable, the first died. I think the second did too shortly after!
"Lou the plumber was also Mr. Haha the clown." - does it really count, he was in heavy makeup.. maybe it was his day job anyway and it was the same guy XD
"Sophia's husband Sal was also a waiter in a Medieval restaurant." - I never noticed quite at first, but the makeup/costume helps hide it anyway.

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personally, i enjoy these inconsistencies because they're like easter eggs that pedantic nudniks like us can pick apart. you know, like how you're doing.

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This was very typical of TV before the 21st century. But keep in mind that many actors are simply not available
the next time they do a show. And the producers really had no idea how we'd be watching these shows decades
after the fact, on DVD yet, scrutinizing casting!

Today, producers are much more reluctant to use actors twice on a show in a different role.

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you meant to reply to the OP, right? because i know all this already :)

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its like on shows like law and order, the same person will play multiple characters or at least appear twice.

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