Clayne Crawford’s Friends & ‘Lethal Weapon’ Co-Stars Defend Him Amid Firing
Over the weekend, Lethal Weapon co-lead Clayne Crawford was officially fired from the Fox series and replaced with American Pie actor Seann William Scott. And while some of his former castmates have remained mum on the subject, others have jumped to his defense.
For his part, Crawford took the high road reacting to his exit, writing on social media, “To my cast and crew – CONGRATULATIONS on season 3! To the Fans – Thank you for the overwhelming support and love. Riggs was a dream role and the experience will live with me forever. My heart is full. Good Luck nxt season!!”
One of the most notable co-stars speaking out is actress Hilarie Burton, who played Martin Riggs’ love interest DEA agent Karen Palmer over six episodes. The One Tree Hill alum was asked by a fan for any “kind words” she could share about her former co-star, and she quickly responded.
“I have a multitude of kind words about @ClayneCrawford! That guy greeted me on my very first day and has been a friend ever since,” she wrote. “When I couldn’t find childcare while I was working, he had his wife and kids take care of Gus. He shows up early. He knows his lines. He pushes to make every scene its best. I’ve watched him fight on the behalf of other people. And a good leader isn’t afraid to be a bad guy.”
— Hilarie Burton (@HilarieBurton) May 12, 2018
Crawford made note of her nice message, writing, “It’s hard to stand up in this business, Thank You! #family #integrity.”
It’s hard to stand up in this business, Thank You! #family #integrity https://t.co/nzWrwOq2nR
— Clayne Crawford (@ClayneCrawford) May 12, 2018
Fellow Lethal Weapon star Kevin Rahm, who played Captain Avery, showed his support of the actor by retweeting Burton’s sentiments. Additionally, Crawford’s on-screen (almost) stepson Teo Briones (Ethan McFadden) gushed that “it was Clayne Crawford that made [Lethal Weapon] really special for me.”
One of the best experiences I have had was doing Lethal Weapon. Everyone in the cast and crew as awesome, but it was @ClayneCrawford that made it really special for me. I cant wait until we can work together again! pic.twitter.com/JtQ4dUMqW9
— Teo Briones (@TheTeoBriones) May 13, 2018
Outside of the cast, a number of Crawford’s former co-stars and fellow actors spoke out on Twitter. Bruce McKinnon, who played Crawford’s father on Rectify, and The Librarians star Christian Kane were enthusiastic in their defense of the star.
Clayne is a passionate, talented & caring artist. One of my fondest memories in my entire acting career is playing his father in the Sundance series @Rectify for 4 seasons as well as becoming friends. I look forward to hopefully work with @ClayneCrawford again…if I get lucky. https://t.co/fIFcRmFdrh
— Bruce McKinnon (@Bruce_McKinnon) May 12, 2018
Did I just hear this right? U fired my boy @ClayneCrawford on Lethal Weapon. I’m lost, Busy doing a charity event w/ him n Bama 4 veterans.
— Christian Kane (@ChristianKane01) May 9, 2018
As for the network, Fox spoke out via Chairman and CEO Dana Walden about the recasting this morning, saying, “This was not our choice. Ultimately, our partners at Warner Brothers came to us about three weeks ago to tell us that they could not deliver Lethal Weapon as we’ve known it before [and] that there were some real challenges in the cast.
“They thought long and hard about it. I know that was not [Warner Brothers’] first choice but that ultimately these were the circumstances that they could offer us the show. We thought about it a lot and we talked about a lot of different names and ultimately when they came back with Seann [William Scott] and a fantastic showrunner (Matt Miller, who created the show) and a big TV star in Damon (Wayans) and a great cast and a storytelling engine that works and a fanbase that’s very passionate about the show.
“I think we ultimately made the right choice and we are prepared to support it from a marketing point of view to educate viewers and fans of the show about a new dynamic but a good one and a lot of a show that people love that’s still intact,” she concluded.
Conversation14 Comments
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Well I won't be watching Lethal Weapon any loner without Marty Riggs. Damon Wayans is a good actor but nowhere near as captivating as Clayne Crawford. His portrayal of Riggs was so much like Mel Gibson's. Too bad.
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Hmm. Not many lead actors left who haven't shown support for Clayne. Process of elimination...
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I only watched show for #ClayneCrawford I'm All done watching now 😡😡
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Clayne Crawford replaced???
That does it for ME...FOX...
I'm going to Stomp my Foot...and POUT...
I'm NOT even going to TRY ONE episode of LW with that New Guy...
In fact...I'm NEVER going to watch ANY show on FOX again...EVER!!!
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Lol, sure you won’t watch Fox again. Sure...
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Judoon...you're among the 100's (1000's) of people who have told me...throughout the years...that my sarcasm is NOT astute.
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I'm glad the show isn't cancelled but there are some big shoes to fill. Claynes character is one of a kind and the dynamic between him and Damon is special.
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with crawford gone the show is done for me, he was the main character that kept us watching,minus well drop the show now.
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"...big TV star like Damon..." Really Fox? That's the best you could do? I could only watch Wayans portrayal of a childish, baffoonish Murtaugh because of Clayne Crawford's much more nuanced and layered Riggs. Without that balance, the show becomes a cartoon. Sean William Scott has never done anything to make me believe he can play anything but a cartoonish buffoon, so there will be two of them. No thanks. Love the rest of the cast, but that will be way too hard to stomach.
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I agree. Sean can't carry this role. I'm not going to watch anymore. I couldn't stomach watching it. Lethal Weapon has become a cartoon.
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oh I am so sorry to see Clayne leave...he was perfect for the role and I don't think the other guy can begin to fill his shoes... 🙁
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I am very sorry to hear that Clayne is leaving Lethal Weapon. So sorry in fact, I will no longer watch Lethal Weapon. You fired him, you lost the show. No way anyone can fill his shoes. Whatever the reason for firing him....he made amends. I saw Damons wound, he will survive. Probably an accident. I'm a faithful viewer from the beginning, and you lost me as viewer. He carried the show. You will have problems. Clayne has faithful followers. No one has the chops to pull that role off, except for Clayne.
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"a big TV star in Damon (Wayans)" wait...what? I had barely heard of him before he got on this show and he was just a comedian not an actor. He was NOT the star of Lethal weapon and your ratings will show that during season 3...mark my words.
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We need to be re-educated...like when North Vietnam invaded South Vietnam and re-educated the South. Where do I sign up?
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