It was the news of last week: Henry Cavill leaves The Witcher after the third season , in his place comes Liam Hemsworth .
The reasons that led the actor to abandon the role, for which he had fought so much, of Geralt of Rivia are not yet clear but some theories immediately followed one another on the web.
One reason could be his announced return as Superman, within the DC cinematic universe.
Instead, there are many who speak of the actor’s dissatisfaction with the direction taken by the writers of the series, guilty of having given less and less importance to the literary material from which the show derives. Cavill, being a huge fan of the franchise since its inception, he would not have liked this stance and would have decided not to renew his contract further.
A week later, the reactions of fans on the web seem not to subside, between those who consider the actor’s choice unjust and disrespectful of the spectators and those who, on the other hand, totally support his decision. A petition has even been launched on the Change.org platform , asking Netflix to fire showrunners and reintegrate into Cavill ‘s project . How will it end?
Henry Cavill is not, however, the only actor to have abandoned a TV series before its actual conclusion, below we present some of the most famous cases.
Shannen Doherty
TV star of the 90s, Shannen Doherty became known to audiences around the world thanks to her role as Brenda Walsh in Beverly Hills 90210 , the first teen drama in history. Her character was immediately one of the most appreciated by fans of the series and still today she is remembered with much affection, this is above all thanks to the love story she had with Dylan (played by Luke Perry ). However , Doherty left Beverly Hills 90210at the end of the fourth season and never returned to the set, not even for the final episode. Over the years there have been many rumors regarding her departure from the series, the most plausible one concerns the diva attitudes that the actress would have had on the set and the contrasts with some cast members, such as Jennie Garth ( Kelly ‘s interpreter ). Aaron Spelling , former producer of Beverly Hills 90210 , gave Shannen Doherty a second chance by hiring her for the role of Prue Halliwell in the TV series Charmed , but even then things did not go well. The actress left the show at the end of the third season, also forbidding the production to use the image of her (in some flashbacks she is only seen from behind), the producers asked her to participate in the final episode of the series and her response. it was a sharp no. Right from the start she talked about alleged quarrels with co-star Alyssa Milano , the two have always glossed over this topic but in recent years they have opened up much more, confirming the veracity of these rumors. The Dohertytherefore he was not an easy character and this made it difficult to work together, but things seem to have changed. In fact, in 2015 the actress declared that she had breast cancer and this event would seem to have significantly changed her. She is currently on excellent terms with both cast of the shows that made her popular, in 2019 she also participated in the Beverly Hills 90210 reboot called BH9210 , where she played herself.
Misha Barton
Marissa Cooper is undoubtedly the most complex character in The OC and one of the most complicated on the small screen. Nobody knows better than her interpreter Di lei Misha Barton , who left the series at the end of the third season, condemning it to an untimely end the following year. Misha Barton was, in fact, very young when she was chosen to play the turbulent role of her and all the popularity of her, arising from her series, inevitably led her to make hasty choices for her career. It was she who decided to have Marissa die in the poignant finale of the third season of The OC , the producers had in fact given her a choice: to make Marissa go away.or make her tragically die in Ryan ‘s ( Benjamin Mckenzie ) arms following a car accident. She chose the second hypothesis, but why did this come about? Also in this case there are many rumors that have followed over the years, some not exactly truthful such as those according to which Barton was an unprofessional actress. In 2021, however, it was she herself who clarified by declaring to E! Online: “My dream was to get leading roles. At that time I was getting offers for major films and would have to give them up. I made this decision because it felt like the right thing for me and my health. I didn’t feel protected by the cast and crew at the time “. Sincere words in which, however, a bit of controversy against the production of The OC is not hidden
Katherine Heigl
Since the beginning of Grey’s Anatomy , back in 2005, many have distinguished themselves for their brilliant acting skills; among these stands the interpreter of Izzie Stevens , Katherine Heigl . Thanks to this role, the actress in 2007 also won an Emmy Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama TV Series, everything seemed to be going well but from the following year a media earthquake hit the set of the series and had her as the protagonist. Katherine Heiglhe decided, in fact, not to send his name on the list of possible nominations for the 2008 Emmy, considering the screenplay of his character in the fourth season unsatisfactory. Her words that obviously did not please the creator of the series Shonda Rhimes and soon led to the relationship between the two at loggerheads. During the beginning of the sixth season, Heigl was launched in the cinema thanks to the very successful romantic comedies (such as Knocked Up ) and this, combined with the adoption of her first daughter, led her to ask the producers of the series for a commitment. reduced. The actress was satisfied, but in the middle of the sixth season her path definitively separated from that of Grey’s Anatomy. Shonda Rhimes from that moment has never spent nice words towards Katherine Heigl , while she the latter has instead said she deeply regretted what happened, also declaring herself changed and matured. Although she has repeatedly expressed a desire to return as a guest star on the show, it seems that this will never happen.
Patrick Dempsey
One of the heaviest farewells of Grey’s Anatomy is undoubtedly that of Patrick Dempsey , interpreter of the male protagonist of the show: the unforgettable Dr. Derek Shepherd . One of the most tragicomic aspects of his departure from the scene concerns the payment of a penalty by him, this is because the actor would not have respected the contractual obligations that required his presence for seasons 11 and 12. But because Patrick Dempsey decided to leave Grey’s Anatomy? The rumors about his alleged farewell to the series began to chase each other as early as 2012, but were immediately silenced. In recent years, the actor had repeatedly expressed the need to want to do something else and above all to give vent to his other passions: car racing. In the eleventh season of Grey’s Anatomy , Derek is present but not as in the past and in the twenty-first episode he is tragically killed, following a car accident. A decision certainly painful, but in fact inevitable, for Shonda Rhimes and Patrick Dempsey himself. However, between 2020 and 2021 the actor returned as a guest star in many episodes of the seventeenth season, through a dream beach a Covid-19 sick Meredith met many of the dead characters in the series. Furthermore, this year the actor broke his silence about the reasons for his farewell by declaring: “I think that after a certain period of time it doesn’t matter how much money you make, what you want is to be in control of your time” .
Nina Dobrev
Another very strong farewell in the world of TV series is undoubtedly that of Nina Dobrev in The vampire diaries , which took place at the end of the sixth season. There is no denying it, from that moment on the series has never been the same again especially because Dobrev over the seasons had played not only the show’s protagonist, Elena Gilbert, but also all its doppelgänger. The actress with a long social post in April 2015 announced her departure from the series, explaining how she had given everything within it and declaring herself excited about the new projects she would take part in. A plausible explanation but immediately many fans were not convinced, the reasons according to the latter would concern the presence on the set of her ex-boyfriend Di her Ian Somerhalder , interpreter of Damon Salvatore . Although the actor was engaged and close to his wedding with actress Nikki Reed , it is rumored that between him and his co-star there may have been a flashback in the months preceding his farewell. Nina Dobrev also appeared in the ending ofThe vampire diaries but the fans, who dreamed of a sweet reunion between Elena and Damon , said they were deeply disappointed by the kiss on the chin exchanged by the two actors. We may never know the truth, but Dobrev in recent months has returned to the story by reiterating her purely professional motivations.
Regé-Jean Page
Before Henry Cavill , it was another Netflix star who decided to leave his starring role in a hugely successful TV series: Regé-Jean Page , who plays the Duke of Hastings in the popular Bridgerton.. The actor, who became famous for the sexy role of the duke, almost immediately froze the fans of the series by declaring that he would not be returning for a second season, as his contract had an expected duration of only one year. An insider, however, would have declared the real reasons for his farewell to the series, the actor would not have liked to be overshadowed (as foreseen by the same books from which the series is based) in his role as male protagonist, preferring then leave the show for new professional adventures. This would certainly seem to be a more credible version, especially if you think about his refusal to participate even as a guest star in the second season (which was instead done by his female co-star Phoebe Dynevor , interpreter ofDaphne ). The actor has also indicated his intention to pursue a film career and was recently seen in The Gray Man , a Netflix movie . In recent months , Regé-Jean Page has given Bridgerton producers the freedom to do a recast for his character. The series is produced by Shondaland, the production company of Shonda Rhimes , so it is legitimate to wonder if with Page we are facing a new Katherine Heigl case .