NEED TO KNOW
- Rob Lowe shared in a brand new video the shock he despatched to the solid of The West Wing when he was written out of the present
- Lowe finally left the sequence in its fourth season in 2003
- Lowe beforehand stated leaving the sequence was “the perfect factor I ever did”
When Rob Lowe had some onerous emotions about leaving The West Wing, he turned to humor.
In a TikTok posted July 24, Lowe, 61, spoke to the digital camera whereas in a storage room. “So quite a bit has been talked about my points, comparable to they had been, on The West Wing, which, I like that present and I like all people in it,” the actor stated.
“It is all good now, however there have been some difficulties,” he continued. “At one level, that they had type of written me off the present. I did not really feel like I had quite a bit to do.”
“And so I made these, and I despatched them to all people affiliated with the present. The community, the studio, producers, executives,” Lowe stated, holding up the merchandise — a milk carton with a missing-children type commercial for his character, Sam Seaborn.
“I despatched these to all people,” the Parks and Recreation alum stated. “Let’s have a look at what the stats are. Sam Seaborn, 170 kilos. Eyes blue. Lacking because the Christmas episode, 2002. Please name Bernie Brillstein, my supervisor, if you happen to’ve seen this man.”
Lowe started showing on The West Wing as Sam when the present premiered in 1999. On the time, Sam, Deputy White Home Communications Director, was meant to be the present’s foremost character, and Lowe was the highest-paid actor. However over time, creator Aaron Sorkin determined to shift the present’s focus to a full ensemble solid. The sequence additionally spent extra time than initially anticipated on storylines round President Josiah Bartlet, performed by Martin Sheen. Lowe acquired one Emmy nomination for his time on the sequence, which additionally starred Allison Janney, Bradley Whitford, Richard Schiff, the late John Spencer and Dulé Hill.
By the point season 4 started in 2022, Lowe was upset. The “Christmas episode” he referenced was the eleventh of that season, titled “Holy Night time.” He finally left the sequence, along with his final installment being season 4, episode 17, “Crimson Haven’s on Fireplace,” which aired in February 2003. Lowe did return for a number of episodes of the present’s seventh and ultimate season, which aired from 2005 to 2006. Sam Seaborn turned Deputy Chief of Workers to the brand new president portrayed by Jimmy Smits.
Lowe mirrored on why he left The West Wing in a 2023 episode of the podcast Podcrushed, hosted by Penn Badgley, Nava Kavelin and Sophie Ansari. He stated he “tried to make it work,” however “didn’t have an excellent expertise,” and in contrast it to the relationships he noticed his youngsters have once they started courting.
“My youngsters had been attending to a sure age the place I might see them having first girlfriends and being in a relationship that was abusive and taking it,” he stated. “ ‘She’s the favored lady, all people likes her, she’s lovely, it have to be nice’ — all of the issues that folks would say about making The West Wing to me. ‘It’s so common, it’s so wonderful, it have to be wonderful.’ However I do know what it’s like, and if I couldn’t stroll away from it, then how might I empower my youngsters to stroll away from it?”
“I walked away from the most well-liked lady in school, however I additionally knew that it was a super-unhealthy relationship, and it was the perfect factor I ever did,” he stated.
