TV Show Casts Who Couldn't Stand Their Co-Stars

Despite what LinkedIn "gurus" peddle, work colleagues aren't family — after all, families don't typically fire each other — and the same is applicable to TV show casts. While the actors portray the best of friends or happiest of families on screen, it doesn't mean it's all sunshine, rainbows, and fun-filled cookouts behind the scenes. Tensions often arise — and the animosity between castmates can become inescapable at times, and sometimes there are unique instances where one actor becomes disliked by everyone else around them, with the news inevitably spilling out into the public domain.

What are the reasons for such beef, though? It depends. In terms of "Star Trek" and William Shatner, his fellow crew members on the Starship Enterprise couldn't stand his alleged diva-like behavior. More recently, Clayne Crawford reportedly behaved far too aggressively on the "Lethal Weapon" set and the production felt rejuvenated after he departed the show. And, believe it or not, there are even stars who can't stand Ryan Reynolds.

Nonetheless, there are two — if not three — sides to every story, so let's take a look at some of the most famous TV show casts who couldn't stand their co-stars.

Space might have been the final frontier for the Starship Enterprise in 1966's "Star Trek," but it was only the beginning for the pop-culture franchise. The show turned its castmates into global household names. None more so than William Shatner, who plays Captain James T. Kirk. Shatner has become synonymous with the part, and his own legacy remains tied to that of Captain Kirk's.

While Shatner remains a beloved actor, his "Star Trek" co-star George Takei, who portrays Hikaru Sulu, hasn't shied away from discussing the experience of working with him. While speaking to The Guardian in 2022, Takei referred to Shatner as a "prima donna" and the odd one out, expressing how everyone on the show got on well — except for the Captain Kirk actor whom no one cared for. "He was self-involved," Takei said. "He enjoyed being the center of attention. He wanted everyone to kowtow to him." Takei wasn't alone, as Leonard Nimoy couldn't stand William Shatner either.

In an interview with The Times, Shatner bemoaned how Takei continues to talk about him and called it "a sickness." In a 2021 conversation with The Guardian, though, Shatner discussed the "loneliness" he felt during his time on "Star Trek," adding, "As a young actor, you're always balancing on the precipice of failure and you're about to fall all the time. And you stumble back and something comes along and it's successful, you're OK for a while and then you agonize over everything."

On "Desperate Housewives," drama roamed up and down Wisteria Lane; however, the ladies supported and uplifted each other through all the turmoil. According to reports, the same can't be said about the actors behind the scenes. In 2005, Vanity Fair published a story exposing tensions between the castmates at a photoshoot — namely the main female performers and Teri Hatcher, who plays lead character Susan Mayer. Reportedly, the other actors weren't happy if Hatcher went into the wardrobe trailer first. Additionally, Marcia Cross, who portrays Bree Van de Kamp, didn't like being placed next to Hatcher during the shoot.

After Nicollette Sheridan's character Edie Britt was removed from the show, "Desperate Housewives" creator Marc Cherry faced legal action and testified about events on the set (via The Hollywood Reporter). Cherry admitted there were issues between Sheridan and Hatcher, saying, "Nicollette pulled me aside and told me that Teri Hatcher was the meanest woman in the world because of how she was acting."

At a press event (via CTV News), Eva Longoria, who portrays Gabrielle Solis, disclosed how Hatcher wasn't as close to the other castmates as they are to each other, saying she was a "loner" but it's her nature. Hatcher's name was also left off a gift from the cast to the crew as the series wrapped up, while Hatcher told TV Guide that she "will never disclose the true and complicated journey of us all, but I wish everyone on this show well."

Hollywood loves reboots, but fans feared the worst when "Lethal Weapon" received the remake treatment in the form of a TV show. It didn't turn out too bad, though, as both critics and fans gave it an overall thumbs up. While it wasn't Danny Glover and Mel Gibson in the roles of Roger Murtaugh and Martin Riggs respectively, Damon Waynes and Clayne Crawford proved to be worthy substitutes.

In 2018, reports broke out about Crawford's aggressive reactions toward his co-workers on set. In an Instagram post, the actor apologized and confirmed he had been reprimanded twice for his actions. Crawford received the boot from the series soon thereafter as his character was killed off; however, an explosive story from Variety, which contained audio and details from the set, painted the picture of a highly fractured and toxic production. In the audio, Crawford can be heard telling Wayans: "You're the biggest crybaby p***y I've ever met in my life" and "How does it feel to only be in the game because your f****** brothers are in the game?"

Speaking about the next season without Crawford's involvement (via The Hollywood Reporter), Wayans said: "We're only the first [episode] in but it's definitely a lot lighter in tone and we're having fun — on and off set." Appearing on the "Drinkin' Bros" podcast, Crawford claimed that he had apologized for his behavior, but he'd been "blackmailed" with the audio. He also alleged Wayans demonstrated unprofessional conduct on set.

Since the dawn of time — or the '90s — fans have heard the legend of the backstage drama between "Beverly Hills, 90210" co-stars Shannen Doherty and Jennie Garth. Appearing on "Celebrity Lie Detector" (via Entertainment Tonight), Tori Spelling, who plays Donna Martin on the show and is the daughter of the late Aaron Spelling, discussed an infamous incident between Doherty and Garth. "I remember I could hear the door fly open and everyone screaming and crying," she said. "That's when I was told the boys just had to break up Jennie and Shannen ... it was like a fist fight."

Spelling mentioned how this wasn't the only isolated incident between Doherty and her castmates, with several clashes taking place in the lead-up to this big one, so they banded together and Spelling phoned her father — the producer of "Beverly Hills, 90210" — to get Doherty off the show. For Spelling, it was difficult thing to do since Doherty was her friend, but ultimately the right choice in a professional setting.

On her podcast "Let's Be Real," Doherty reminisced with co-star Brian Austin Green and recapped how the big flare-up occurred because of a prank gone wrong, but said she wished the girls on the show had been as close as the boys were then. After Doherty passed away in July 2024, Garth paid tribute to her co-star on her Instagram account, calling her "one of the strongest people I have ever known."

Even though Heidi Swedberg established a decent filmography before she joined "Seinfeld," there's no disputing the sitcom turned her into an even more recognizable figure in show business. From 1992 to 1997, she appeared as Susan Ross — George Constanza's girlfriend then later fiancée. Eventually, Susan died in the storyline, and Swedberg departed "Seinfeld."

In 2015, Jason Alexander — who plays George on the show — appeared on "The Howard Stern Show," where he discussed his frustrations with Swedberg. He emphasized that he liked the person, but he lacked comedic chemistry with her. Alexander also wasn't pleased when "Seinfeld" co-creator Larry David told him that the plan was for George and Susan to be married eventually. The actor continued to complain about her to his co-stars, until Jerry Seinfeld and Julie Louis-Dreyfus agreed with his sentiments after sharing more screen time with her. "They go, 'You know what? It's f****** impossible. It's impossible,'" Alexander said. "And Julia actually said, 'Don't you want to just kill her?' And Larry went, 'Ka-bang!'"

Alexander's comments made the rounds on the internet, and he took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to apologize to Swedberg. Again, he stressed that she, as a person, wasn't the problem. When asked about Alexander's comments in 2019, Swedberg told Morristown Green: "I tend not to like to say unkind things about anyone. So I'll leave it at that. That's a good reason why [I] play ukulele instead of working in television."

"Glee" star Lea Michele developed a reputation as one of the actors who took things too far on set after several castmates spoke out against her in 2020. After Michele posted a message about George Floyd on her now-deleted X account, Samantha Marie Ware, who plays Jane Hayward on the musical show, lambasted her in a now-deleted post (via Variety). Ware wrote: "Remember when you made my first television gig a living hell?" She also alleged other bad behavior on the part of Michele, including a threat to defecate in her wig. Actor Dabier also chimed in, stating Michele reportedly didn't allow him to sit with the other actors.

Speaking to Variety, Ware explained how Michele's behavior appeared to be common knowledge among the people working on "Glee." She said: "I remember the first day I actually spoke up and unfortunately no one did anything. They just shrugged it off, like 'That's her.' No one was stopping these things, which is an issue because the environment was helping perpetuate this abuse."

Michele posted an apology on Instagram, though also mentioned how she didn't remember the events the way they had been described. This wasn't the first time that her behavior had been put under the spotlight after there were reports about her feuding with castmate Naya Rivera in 2014.

There's a reason as to why Chevy Chase was banned from hosting "SNL." The comedian butted heads with co-stars and built up a reputation as being notoriously difficult to work with throughout the years. When he joined the cast of "Community" as Pierce Hawthorne in 2009, one might have thought that he would have mellowed out and not been so abrasive. Turns out the flames of his combative spirit couldn't be extinguished, as Deadline reported a number of issues, including a profanity-fueled voicemail he left for showrunner Dan Harmon and heated incidents with other cast and crew members.

Appearing on Marc Maron's "WTF" podcast in September 2023, Chase addressed his time on "Community" before he departed in 2015. He said he "felt the show wasn't funny enough" and he "didn't want to be surrounded by that table, every day, with those people."

When asked by People about Chase's comments, "Community" co-star Joel McHale, who plays Jeff Winger in the sitcom, didn't hold back, saying, "I was like, 'Hey, no one was keeping you there.' I mean, we weren't sentenced to that show." McHale added how he had addressed working with Chevy before in his book, "Thanks for the Money: How to Use My Life Story to Become the Best Joel McHale You Can Be," especially in terms of how the legendary comedian rubbed everyone up the wrong way. McHale added: "I wrote about this in my book, but I was like, 'Hey, the feeling's mutual, bud.'"

In terms of celebrity feuds that got out of hand, it's remarkable "Sex and the City" completed its original six-season run and two feature films. Despite Carrie Bradshaw, Miranda Hobbes, Charlotte York, and Samantha Jones portraying the greatest pals on screen, the actors behind the roles weren't BFFs in real life — especially when it came to Kim Cattrall. Chatting to Piers Morgan in 2017 (via Entertainment Tonight), Cattrall said, "We've never been friends. We've been colleagues." Cattrall also expressed disappointment about how she had been painted as unreasonable for turning down a third movie, laying blame at Sarah Jessica Parker's door for the bad press.

Appearing on "Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen," Parker said she was "heartbroken" by Cattrall's comments because that wasn't how she remembered their past. When Cattrall's brother died later, Parker extended her condolences, but Cattrall slammed her on Instagram, writing: "You are not my friend."

Expectedly, when the "Sex and the City" revival "And Just Like That..." entered production, no one expected Cattrall to participate in the show — and she stayed away, except for a cameo in the second season. Yet, it appears as if none of her castmates were too sad about this. In an interview with Vanity Fair in June 2023, Cynthia Nixon discussed how positive the environment was, saying: "You're not walking around on eggshells with someone who's unhappy for reasons that are hard to even understand what they are."

Anyone who remembers "Family Matters" will recall the exasperation on the faces of the Winslow family whenever neighbor Steve Urkel shows up unannounced. Sure, Urkel is a menace to society as he refuses to go away, but his heart is in the right place. In fact, the Winslows realize it, too.

Actor Jaleel White claimed his adult co-stars held no love for him in the beginning. Urkel wasn't meant to be the star of the show, but he became a beloved fan-favorite character and received more screen time than the others. Speaking on "Uncensored" (via Entertainment Weekly), White mentioned how Reginald VelJohnson, Jo Marie Payton, and Telma Hopkins all believed this was their show — their opportunity to shine — so there was tension when he turned out to be the breakout star.

In a segment of the interview, White revealed how his father had to intervene after he received flak from VelJohnson and Payton for wearing a dress in one episode. "[T]hey let me know I was not doing our race a service by putting on that yellow dress," he said, before adding how the event affected him. Seeing what it did to his son, White's father spoke out and said, "[White] shouldn't have to carry the burden of some adults making a child feel bad for playing a girl just in fun." White explained how he doesn't harbor any animosity toward his co-stars, and that their relationships improved around Season 3.

Showtime's award-winning comedy drama "Shameless" ran for 11 seasons between 2011 and 2021. One of the stars of the show was Emmy Rossum, who portrays Fiona Gallagher for nine seasons. There had already been contractual disagreements between Rossum and Showtime in 2016, before she finally announced her departure to pursue other endeavors in 2018.

After Rossum waved goodbye to the series, her co-star Emma Kenney, who plays Debbie Gallagher on "Shameless," spoke about their time together as on-screen sisters in an October 2021 episode of "Call Her Daddy" podcast. Kenney opened up about starring alongside Rossum and how it wasn't always the best experience — not just for her but also everyone else involved in the production. She expressed how it was "weird" when Rossum left, "but also the set became a little bit of a more positive place."

Kenney delved further, stating: "I remember before [she left], I'd go to set some days and I'd be very anxious about having a scene with her because if she had a bad day, she made it a bad day for everybody." She added how they hadn't spoken in years, but she wished Rossum well on the next journey of her life.

Want to read more about classic TV shows and stars? Check out the disturbing behind-the-scenes details about "I Love Lucy."