There are some actors who have been associated with so many cancelled television shows that they have been dubbed “show killers.” Do a search on any of these names with the phrase “show killer” and you’ll see how this works.
“Show Killers” are characterized by a large number of TV credits in successive years, and frequent mentions on Jump the Shark. Accomplished show killers can kill a long-running, successful show… although there is a certain amount of scapegoating involved!
Some notable Show Killers and their IMDB entries:
- My favorite, Paget Brewster, who was on the Andy Richter Contols The Universe and who can be seen in the online series of spy shorts Agent 15
- Jon Cryer who was “Duckie” the ambiguously gay friend from Pretty in Pink
- Ted McGinley who played trophy husband “Jefferson” in Married… With Children and the lead jock in Revenge of the Nerds
- Dennis Farina, who tends to play Mafia characters, was the rival loan shark in Get Shorty
You forgot one name that is poison to any show..Melinda McGraw. When she was cast on The Commish, it went off the air. Since then, she has been in about 7 failed TV series and is currently working on another. You would think someone would wake up to this curse.