Larry David's Departure From Seinfeld Marked A Change For George Constanza

From the start, the hit series "Seinfeld" gained more and more fans as the series pushed through its memorable nine seasons, making mainstays Jerry (Seinfeld), George Costanza (Jason Alexander), Elaine Benes (Julie Louise Dreyfus), and Cosmo Kramer (Michael Richards) household names. However, many fans may not know that one of the show's creators, Larry David, wasn't actually part of "Seinfeld's" production all the way through to the finale. In fact, David left the very series that many consider the best multi-camera sitcom ever after the show's seventh season. 

For a series that is rewatched by plenty of dedicated fans, it's no surprise that many see the differences in plotlines and tone of the show post-David's departure. But the character George Costanza's persona appears to be the most affected, as Alexander's role was actually based on David himself. "Larry was George, George was Larry," Alexander explained on a Seinfeld Extras clip. "And without him there to guide the George stories and George reactions, I anticipated that it wouldn't be quite the same character. And I think it wasn't the same character." 

When comparing how the character George is presented on "Seinfeld's" earlier seasons in contrast to the later ones without David, there is a noticeable difference. Sure, both ends of the spectrum still contain plenty of George's neurotic and self-serving behavior, but his sharp-edged persona seems to favor the first seven seasons when compared to the final two. This spot-on observation was presented by Nerdstalgic, pointing out that after the "Curb Your Enthusiasm" star left, George became more reactionary and borderline childlike. Depending on your taste, this change felt natural to George's character development, or it flat-out derailed the show.

There are plenty of fans that point to the final two seasons of "Seinfeld" as the show's weakest. This can directly be connected to the fact that the series' creator, Larry David, left right before this major quality shift. After some speculation on why he actually left, David explained to Charlie Rose that "seven years is a long time for someone to executive produce a show like that." And although it may be assumed that David was burned out, he explained that he felt that the end had come and he was ready to work on a new project. However, plenty of fans point out that a change for the worse in the series' tone, as well as the characters' ongoing development, had become very noticeable.

Producers and cast, including creator Jerry Seinfeld, wondered what the show would become after David left. "I was very concerned about not having Larry there," admitted Julia Louis-Dreyfus. Michael Richards felt the same worry saying, "I knew we were losing a great writer, a visionary." Most notably, of course, was Jason Alexander, who definitely topped the list of people who were feeling these nerves, as everyone knew George was a reflection of David. "I was concerned with what would happen to the show in general, what would certainly happen to George in specific." Well, what actually happened is still up for debate, as many fans saw a negative change in George, while others may have considered it simply a natural character progression.