Popular TV Shows That Were Plagued By Feuding Co-Stars

On some shows, cast members seem to get along famously off-screen, but sadly, this isn’t always the case. There are other instances where cast members literally can’t stand each, which ends up causing a lot of tension off-set. Here are some popular TV shows that were disrupted by feuding co-stars:

16. Lethal Weapon

Few shows have seen quite as much drama as Fox’s Lethal Weapon. The cop comedy-drama based on the iconic film franchise had all the makings to be a television hit, but it couldn’t get out of its own way with massive behind the scenes drama, namely between the show’s two biggest stars Damon Wayans and Clayne Crawford as Roger Murtaugh and Martin Riggs. Season three of the show seemed to be in jeopardy in the spring of 2018 after reports that Crawford’s on-set behavior was causing problems, and the drama only mounted after Crawford was fired. Following his firing, Wayans spoke out for the first time revealing how much he hated working with Crawford and even blamed Crawford for injuries that were sustained on set.  The actor shared a video of himself in which he claimed he was injured by shrapnel and insinuated that Crawford was to blame for being the director of the episode. “Now that the fate of he show is solidified…I’d like to address the TWITTER outrage with this video and image to follow. #directedby @ClayneCrawford,” he began. He went on to blame Crawford and also claimed that the actor had struck another actor on set in the mouth with a bottle drink causing an injury. While the series went on to hire Seann William Scott as a replacement for season three, it was all too much for the show to overcome and season three became its last.

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15. The Vampire Diaries

While some feuds between costars make their way into the media quickly, some are kept discreetly under wraps and that is the case for The Vampire Diaries. No one ever knew it, but there was serious tension between leading stars Nina Dobrev and Paul Wesley during the filming of the first season. In June 2019, two years after the series had come to an end after eight successful season, Dobrev revealed that she and Wesley not only didn’t like each other, they “despised” each other. “Paul and I didn’t get along at the beginning of the show,” she said. “I respected Paul Wesley; I didn’t like Paul Wesley.” She continued, “I remember everyone would walk up to me after the show aired and they’d be like, ‘Are you and Paul dating in real life?’ because everyone thought that we had such good chemistry. I realize now that there’s a fine line between love and hate and we despised each other so much that it read as love. We really just didn’t get along the first maybe five months of shooting.” Luckily, the two stars were professional enough to overcome their feelings despite having to play romantic interests on-screen and the show never outwardly suffered from the feud.

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14. The X-Files

The X-Files is one of the most iconic sci-fi series in recent television history and luckily for fans its success was not hindered by the fact that the two leading stars Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny had a bit of a rift. It seems for the two stars who are iconic as Mulder and Scully, too much time together was not a good thing. “Familiarity breeds contempt. It’s nothing to do with the other person. All that fades away and you’re just left with the appreciation and love for the people you’ve worked with for so long. We used to argue about nothing. We couldn’t stand the sight of each other,” Duchovny said of their behind the scenes relationship. Despite some contempt, they admitted they also had a bond and had no problem reuniting for a revival in 2016 and 2018.

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13. 90210

90210 wasn’t exactly what fans were expecting in terms of a reboot for the iconic teen drama Beverly Hills, 90210, but it got off to a strong start when it premiered in 2008. During its five season run the longstanding feud between two of the show’s leading ladies Shenae Grimes and AnnaLynne McCord was widely reported and it didn’t help that the pair played rivals Annie Wilson and Naomi Clark onscreen. McCord eventually opened up about the feud, stating, “Shenae and I, who played Annie, we were at each other’s throats for five years and the day before we wrapped, Shenae calls me and was like, Hey… I can’t believe it’s over.’ I’m like, ‘Bitch?!’” Between the feuding stars and the new series not having as much of an impact on pop culture as the original, it only lasted five seasons.

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12. Grey’s Anatomy

Grey’s Anatomy has seen unprecedented success as one of TV’s biggest shows for over a decade, but it has seen more than its fair share of behind the scenes drama over those years as well. One of the most famous feuds off-screen was between actors Isaiah Washington who played Dr. Preston Burke and T.R. Knight who played Dr. George O’Malley. Washington was fired from the series after repeating homophobic slurs and continued to do so after Knight came out as gay. Reports also indicated there were issues between Washington and the show’s leading male Patrick Dempsey and the two even got in a physical fight but were able to become friends after the incident. In 2019, Ellen Pompeo then opened about the show’s “toxic work environment” of the first 10 years and referenced the exit of some particular people that led to the work environment improving.

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11. 24

By the late 2000’s former teen movie heartthrob Freddie Prinze Jr. had taken a big step back from the spotlight, and then he joined season eight of the hit cop drama 24 alongside Kiefer Sutherland. Although Freddie Prinze Jr. is one of the most down-to-earth and out of the spotlight actors in the industry, even he couldn’t hold back how horrible it was working with Sutherland. The actor said he “hated every moment of it” and said, “Kiefer was the most unprofessional dude in the world. That’s not me talking trash. I’d say it to his face. I think everyone that’s worked with him has said that.” Unsurprisingly, Prinze Jr. did not return to the series and said that it was such a bad experience on set that he almost considered quitting the business altogether.

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10. Bull

When Michael Weatherly left NCIS fans were disappointed but it wasn’t long before CBS offered him his own series with Bull. In late 2018, major drama around the series exploded when actress Eliza Dushku revealed that CBS had paid her more than $9 million because she was let go from the show after she was originally signed on to be a series regular. Dushku revealed she was let go after she came forward with her allegations of sexual harassment against Weatherly including sexual comments made towards her and a “rape joke” he made in front of the crew. Weatherly spoke out apologizing and saying he regretted his comments and the whole case went quiet again. Many were surprised when Bull was renewed after the scandal, however Steven Spielberg’s production company did pull out of working on the series after the renewal.

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9. NCIS

One costar feud that has taken a lot of fans by complete surprise is between NCIS stars Mark Harmon and Pauley Perrette. The pair who had amazing chemistry on-screen for fifteen seasons as Gibbs and Abby Sciutto seemingly had a major issue behind the scenes back in 2016. Reports indicate that Harmon brought his dog to set and a crew member was attacked which required stitches. Perrette claims because of Harmon’s power on set no one would speak up but she did and Harmon turned on her. It was around this time the pair stopped filming scenes together almost entirely and Perrette memorably didn’t say goodbye to Gibbs in her final episode. After her exit the actress spoke out more about her time on set saying she suffered “multiple physical assaults” and as fans continued to ask if she would ever return to reprise her beloved role she responded, “NO I AM NOT COMING BACK! EVER! (Please stop asking?)” she tweeted, adding, “I am terrified of Harmon and him attacking me. I have nightmares about it. I have a new show that is SAFE AND HAPPY! You’ll love it! #HappyPlace Love y’all!”

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8. Castle

The stars of Castle, Nathan Fillion and Stana Katic, reportedly hated each other so much that ABC forced them to attend couples counseling to deal with their feud. Things were so tense that the two wouldn’t talk to each other unless they were in character. When Katic announced that she was leaving at the end of the show’s eighth season, rumors that Fillion hadn’t been treating her well began surfacing, and rather than renew the show for a ninth season, ABC decided to pull the plug on its long-running show.

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7. Ugly Betty

Back in 2008, Lindsay Lohan was set to appear in six episodes of Ugly Betty, but due to clashes with America Ferrera, her guest-starring arc was cut from six episodes to just four, and the remaining episodes with her character were rewritten. Although Ferrera never addressed the rumors, one of Lohan’s friends did: “America was mean to Lindsay. Producers give her too much power. Lindsay didn’t do the last two episodes because America didn’t like her and got her kicked off.” A production assistant, however, disagreed with that assessment, claiming that Lohan wrecked her dressing room and showed up on set without underwear when filming a scene where Ferrera’s character had to de-pants Lohan’s. Yikes!

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6. Anger Management

Selma Blair and Charlie Sheen had a major feud going back in 2013 on the set of Anger Management. She was abruptly fired after she complained to producers about her co-star’s work ethic and constant tardiness, and Sheen didn’t take it so well. He reportedly told producers that if they didn’t fire Blair, he would quit. Later that year, the actress threatened both Sheen and Lionsgate Entertainment with a $1.2 million lawsuit for the money she would have earned had she not been fired from the show.

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5. Fresh Prince of Bel-Air

On the set of the ‘90s sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, there was a big feud between Will Smith and Janet Hubert, the actress who played his on-screen mother, and it’s still brewing (on her part at least) to this day. Back when they were working together, the two did not get along. She claims he was disrespectful and he has said that she was always bitter about him being the star the show. Smith only commented on the feud back in the ‘90s, claiming that she always had to out for him, but since then, he hasn’t commented – but she has. She slams Smith and the cast whenever she gets the opportunity.

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4. Charmed

On the set of Charmed, tension brewed behind the scenes. Shannen Doherty was reportedly jealous of all the attention her co-star Alyssa Milano was getting, so she went to producers and demanded to be let out of her contract. Later, when Entertainment Tonight asked her why she left the show, she claimed that it was the on set drama that prompted her to leave. “There was too much drama on the set and not enough passion for the work,” she said. “I’m 30 years old and I don’t have time for drama in my life anymore.” Milano was a lot more diplomatic when she was asked about the feud and Doherty being fired. She claimed that she had no idea what happened.

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3. Desperate Housewives

None of the other cast members on the set of Desperate Housewives got along with Teri Hatcher and one of the big reasons was that Hatcher acted as if she was the star of the show. She didn’t have much to do with the cast outside of filming, and during a Vanity Fair shoot in 2005, the tension between her and the rest of the cast was literally palpable. When the show finally ended in 2012, the cast bought a goodbye gift for the cast and crew, but didn’t even bother including Hatcher’s name on the card.

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2. Beverly Hills, 90210

On the set of Beverly Hills, 90210, Jennie Garth has admitted that there were times when she and Shannen Doherty wanted to claw each other’s eyes out. According to Garth, things almost came to blows on set: “We were shooting a scene and Doherty kept grabbing at the hem of my skirt, trying to slap me on the leg – anything to get me to react and break character. Finally, when she’d pulled up my skirt, and my bare ass was exposed for everyone on the set to see, I did snap and I yelled at her, something to the effect of, ‘Come on, b-tch! We’re taking this outside!’” Doherty wasn’t just fighting with Garth on set. She eventually fell out with the other cast members and the crew, which led to her being fired from the show.

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1. Glee

In 2014, there were rumors that Lea Michele and Naya Rivera were feuding on the set of Glee and, finally, in 2016 Rivera addressed the rumors, confirming that the two didn’t get along, mostly because Michele didn’t like sharing the spotlight and would choose to ignore her. “If I’d complained about anyone or anything, she’d assumed I was b*tching about her,” she wrote in her memoir Sorry, Not Sorry. “Soon, she started to ignore me, and eventually it got to the point where she didn’t say a word to me for all of season six.” According to the show’s creator, Ryan Murphy, Michele and Rivera weren’t the only ones who didn’t get along on set – there were also guys on the show who were feuding, but he didn’t name names.