10 Now-Unemployed TV Actors We Need Back on Screen Pronto
The recent spate of broadcast TV show cancellations was so brutal that even The CW, typically a renewal-happy network, axed nine of its series. (Amid those many cancellations, Legacies creator Julie Plec tweeted that it was “the Red Wedding at WBTV/CW,” referencing the infamous Game of Thrones bloodbath.)
With so many titles not returning for the 2022–2023 season, however, dozens of TV actors are suddenly free to take on a series-regular job. Here are 10 we’re hoping to see back on our screens as soon as possible.
Morena Baccarin
Baccarin makes for a compelling baddie, as we saw this season on NBC’s The Endgame and more than a decade ago on ABC’s V reboot, another series canned after its debut season. We’d be happy to see her back on TV—on either side of the law.
Morris Chestnut
Speaking of V alums who could use a break, this actor heated up the small screen in two gone-too-soon Fox series: 2015’s Rosewood and this season’s now-canceled Our Kind of People.
Kaci Walfall
This teen hooked viewers with roles on Army Wives, The Equalizer, and, of course, Naomi. The title character of that CW series has strength and speed as superpowers; Walfall has acting as hers.
Jay Hernandez
Despite CBS’ frustrating cancellation of Magnum P.I.—a crowd-pleaser with Top 25 ratings—something tells us the always charming Hernandez won’t be off TV for long.
Don Johnson
If there’s any silver lining to NBC’s giving the ax to Kenan, it’s that now USA might be able to lure Johnson for a full-on Nash Bridges revival series.
James Wolk
We’ve been singing Wolk’s praises ever since Fox’s 2010 one-season wonder Lone Star. NBC’s now-canceled Ordinary Joe didn’t have quite the same acclaim, but we’ll be eager to see where its lead actor lands next.
Jeanine Mason
After winning So You Think You Can Dance, Mason waltzed into acting with a recurring role on Grey’s Anatomy and a lead part on The CW’s now-canceled Roswell, New Mexico. Maybe now she could help reboot another Y2K-era series?
Bellamy Young
Our dreams of a Mellie-centric Scandal spinoff amounted to nothing, and now we can’t even see Young on ABC’s Promised Land. If it’s any consolation, though, she’s reprising her part as Olivia Walton in the upcoming CW movie The Waltons’ Thanksgiving.
Ser’Darius Blain
Now that Fox has grounded The Big Leap, this actor is a free agent…and he can’t even be resurrected on Charmed, since that CW series is canceled now, too. Fans will see Blain in the Hallmark TV movie Caribbean Summer next month, but he deserves another series.
Holly Hunter
It was a casting coup for NBC’s Mr. Mayor to land this recipient of an Oscar, a Golden Globe, and two Emmys. And Hunter will be the MVP of whatever TV cast she joins next.
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