7 Actors Who Achieved Stardom After Their TV Shows Were Cancelled

      Here are seven actors who became major stars after their appearances on cancelled TV shows — highlighting how setbacks can lead to greater successes in the long run.

      Naturally, nearly all TV shows eventually face cancellation — all good things must end, right? We're specifically looking at shows that didn’t last beyond one season.

      Are you ready? Let’s dive in.

      Michelle Pfeiffer

      Michelle Pfeiffer in Delta House. ABC – Source: C/O

      One of the more fascinating cancelled sitcoms in history is the Animal House spinoff, Delta House.

      It seemed promising. With Pfeiffer in the cast, alongside the original Animal House writers and future teen movie legend John Hughes on board, it had considerable potential. Moreover, several actors from Animal House, including those who portrayed Dean Wormer, Flounder, Hoover, and D-Day, reprised their roles.

      Although Delta House couldn't secure John Belushi, his character Bluto was substituted with his previously unknown brother Blotto, played by Josh Mostel.

      Pfeiffer has since risen to become one of the most prominent movie stars globally, achieving success in films like Scarface, Married to the Mob, The Fabulous Baker Boys, Batman Returns, Age of Innocence, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, and many more. She has received three Oscar nominations.

      Halle Berry

      Halle Berry in Living Dolls. ABC

      Halle Berry began her career competing in pageants and modeling, which equipped her with life experience for the role of Emily Franklin in Living Dolls (above), a Who’s the Boss spinoff that aired for 13 episodes in 1989.

      She didn’t dwell too much on the show's cancellation, breaking out as a film star in 1991’s Boomerang and enjoying a successful '90s decade, winning an Emmy and a Golden Globe for the TV film Introducing Dorothy Dandridge.

      The following decade proved even more fruitful: she won the Best Actress Oscar in 2001 for her performance as a struggling widow in Monster’s Ball.

      Recent projects include John Wick 3: Parabellum, and she made her directorial debut with 2020’s Bruised, in which she also starred.

      Dave Chappelle

      Dave Chappelle and Chris Gartin in Buddies. ABC

      Chappelle and Jim Breuer caught the attention of network executives when they guest starred in a 1995 episode of Home Improvement as two friends seeking relationship advice from Tim Taylor (Tim Allen) on Tool Time.

      This led to the creation of a spinoff series, Buddies. However, after rehearsals, Breuer was replaced by Christopher Gartin, disrupting the chemistry that Chappelle and Breuer, both real-life friends, shared. Buddies aired for just 13 episodes in 1996.

      Chappelle later reunited with Breuer, who was by then part of the Saturday Night Live cast, in the 1998 comedy Half-Baked, and Chappelle went on to achieve fame with Chappelle’s Show (co-created with Half Baked co-writer and close friend Neal Brennan) and establish himself as one of the top standup comedians of all time.

      Buddies ended up as one of those cancelled TV shows that perhaps overlooked a future superstar.

      Hilary Swank

      ABC

      Hilary Swank appeared in the sitcoms Evening Shade and Growing Pains before landing her own show, Camp Wilder, which aired 20 episodes on ABC during the 1992-93 season.

      She quickly moved on from the cancellation: in 1992, she made her film debut in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, followed by a lead role in 1994’s The Next Karate Kid and Beverly Hills, 90210.

      But that was just the beginning. She went on to win her first Best Actress Oscar for Boys Don’t Cry in 1999 and secured another Best Actress Oscar for Million Dollar Baby in 2004.

      Her recent films include Ordinary Angels.

      Camp Wilder had a keen eye for talent, featuring cast members like Jay Mohr and Jerry O’Connell, who have also found success.

      Margot Robbie

      Margot Robbie in a promotional image for Pan Am. ABC

      The 2011 season saw a surge of 1960s-themed TV shows, inspired by the success of Mad Men on AMC, as networks sought to emulate that smart, glamorous, and sophisticated style.

      ABC launched Pan Am, centered around a group of flight attendants. While the most notable name in the cast was Christina Ricci, a lesser-known Margot Robbie, already experienced in Australian television, also featured.

      Pan Am lasted for only 14 episodes, but Robbie soon became a film star and gained recognition for her performance in 2014’s The Wolf of Wall Street, resulting in three Academy Award nominations. She has achieved remarkable success as both an actor and producer, with her most significant triumph to date being the production and starring role in Barbie, the biggest