Actors Who Had To Be Replaced After They Got Arrested

Sometimes, even the most well-planned film or television shoot can be thrown into disaster by a sudden dramatic shift in an actor's personal life. Good news can and does happen — but when bad news strikes, studios can find themselves wading into PR disasters which can only be remedied by removing the actor involved and replacing them with someone less troubled. Sometimes an exit like this can be quiet; sometimes it can be messy. And when the police are involved, things can turn complicated awfully quickly. 

Here are a series of actors who have dealt with being arrested smack-dab in the middle of a production. All of them were removed from their projects and replaced — in one way or another — by another performer. Whether a whole new character stepped into the void they left behind or the role was recast, here's how the productions fared — as well as the actors themselves — after their brushes with the law.

James Remar's arrest for drug posession could not have happened at a worse time for the producers of "Aliens." The actor had already been in England, playing Corporal Dwayne Hicks, when his apartment was raided. Remar had apparently decided this was a good time to try hash and heroin, and the local authorities figured out something funny was up due to the known character of the people coming in and out of his place. He was busted, arrested, and summarily removed from the film. 

With "Aliens" already filming for more than a month and the heads of the studio not pleased, director James Cameron called up his "The Terminator" co-lead Michael Biehn. The actor jetted over to London to complete the shoot, refilming some of what Remar had shot, though a number of larger set pieces where Hicks is seen from behind were not restaged for logistical reasons. That meant both men technically play Hicks in the film, though you never see Remar's face — just one more bizarre thing that happened on the set of an "Alien" movie.  

Remar himself was retroactively disgusted with his own behavior — after all, this was a casting replacement which destroyed his career, however temporarily. "I didn't just screw myself. I screwed other people," he said on the Netflix series "The Movies That Made Us," reflecting on the fact that director Walter Hill, who had discovered him for "The Warriors," got him the audition with Cameron for Hicks. Remar subsequently got clean and has gone on to have a wide-ranging career as a character actor. 

Charlie Sheen's removal from "Two and a Half Men" is a cardinal example of what can happen when an arrest snowballs into something world-shaking. On December 25, 2009, the actor was taken into custody for second-degree assault, menacing, and criminal mischief in a domestic violence incident involving his then-wife, Brooke Mueller. Sheen went to rehab in early 2010, but was arrested again in October 2010. It was only a few episodes into the sixth season of "Two and a Half Men," and by the time the ninth episode rolled around, Sheen was gone.

The sitcom went on hiatus in early 2011, coinciding with another rehab trip for Sheen. The show was temporarily canceled after Sheen attacked creator Chuck Lorre during a radio appearance and demanded a 50% raise after being banned from the Warner Brothers studio lot. Instead, Sheen was fired from "Two and a Half Men" in March 2011. He sued Lorre and CBS for $100 million, with the lawsuit settled out of court that September. Lorre responded by killing Sheen's character, Charlie Harper, offscreen and replacing him with millionaire Walden Schmidt (Ashton Kutcher). After four more seasons of Walden living in Charlie's house with his brother Alan (Jon Cryer), the show was canceled for good. 

After spilling gallons of bad blood, Sheen and Lorre have since reconciled. Sheen has nearly 10 years of sobriety under his belt as of this writing, and currently co-stars in "Bookie," another Lorre production. He also appeared with his ex-wife, Denise Richards, and their adult daughters Sami and Lola on Richards' reality show, "Denise Richards and Her Wild Things."

Youthful rebellion often leads child actors to unique places, and Jamie Waylett was no exception to that rule. He had made a name for himself playing bully Vincent Crabbe throughout the "Harry Potter" film series. But then Waylett was arrested in 2009 and charged with possession of cannabis and possession of a knife, and his career changed shape immediately. 

He was subsequently sentenced to do 20 hours of community service, but was next arrested and convicted for his role in the London riots in 2012. Though he was cleared of bomb-making charges, security camera footage captured him swigging champagne stolen from a supermarket by Harry Potter fans and holding a gasoline bomb. He was sentenced to 12 months in prison for handling stolen goods and violent disorder.

Waylett was removed from the last two "Harry Potter" sequels, with Blaise Zabini (Louis Cordice) moved front and center in "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows — Part 2" to perform many of the tasks and engage in the battles that Crabbe does in the book. It was a rare case of a secondary character getting promoted to a role of greater significance instead of recasting the original character.

Mackenzie Phillips has had it tough in Hollywood despite being the child of music royalty (her father was John Phillips of The Mamas and the Papas). Though she launched a successful acting career as a teenager, first hitting the limelight as Carol in George Lucas's "American Graffiti," addiction issues plagued her for years. They definitely affected her role as Julie Cooper on "One Day at a Time," resulting in her double dismissal and replacement on the show.

Phillips, who first began using drugs at the age of 10, was arrested in November 1977 for disorderly conduct under the influence of drugs on a Hollywood street. That occurred during a break in filming for the show's third season, and by the time Season 5 rolled around, her lack of reliability resulted in a showdown between her representatives and CBS. Phillips was fired from the show in the winter of 1980 and Julie written off after marrying Max Horvath (Michael Lembeck). The show then introduced a business and potential romantic partner for mom Ann (Bonnie Franklin) in single dad Nick (Ron Rifkin), accompanied by his adolescent son, Alex (Glenn Scarpelli). After Nick was killed off at the start of Season 7, Alex moved in with Ann, supplying the rebellious teenage energy missing since Julie's departure.

Fresh out of rehab, Phillips — and a now-pregnant Julie — returned for a guest spot during Season 7 and stuck around for Season 8. But Phillips relapsed, resulting in a second termination. This time, the show simply kept Julie conveniently offscreen during its ninth and final season. Phillips has since worked hard to regain her sobriety, and continues to occasionally appear in movies or TV shows.  

Jonathan Majors' career was on a huge upswing when he was arrested for domestic assault on March 25, 2023 after allegedly injuring ex-girlfriend Grace Jabbari. Majors was eventually convicted of reckless assault and harassment on December 18, 2023 and ordered to attend a domestic violence treatment program; Jabbari would eventually drop a federal harassment and defamation lawsuit against the actor. Meanwhile, Marvel Studios cut ties with Majors, who was cast as supervillain Kang the Conqueror, on the same day his conviction was handed down, canceling the film "Avengers: The Kang Dynasty" in the process. 

Majors was not technically replaced as Kang within the MCU, although Robert Downey Jr.'s Doctor Doom took over as the main villain for the now-reconfigured "Avengers: Doomsday" and "Avengers: Secret Wars." But Colman Domingo revealed on the Happy Sad Confused podcast that he met with Marvel execs in the wake of rumors that he was ready to be selected as Major's replacement. 

"We talked openly about the landscape of Marvel and the Kang rumors. I am all about energy. I want to do things that make sense and bring gentle energy. I want a role to be mine, whatever I develop. Something didn't feel right to me about replacing someone. I want to build something from the ground up that is my own," he said. Majors, meanwhile, continues to act after a brief hiatus, with his long-delayed "Magazine Dreams" being released in 2025 and the horror film "Merciless" on his docket.

Robert Downey Jr. himself, of course, went through some tumultuous times with his own addiction issues. From 1996 to 2001, he was arrested multiple times on a variety of drug and weapons charges. After several trips to rehab, Downey finally seemed to have it together, but relapsed and was finally sentenced to a three-year prison term for parole violations in 1999. He was released early due to time served with the condition of posting a $5,000 bond, taking up the role of Larry Paul in "Ally McBeal" almost as soon as he was released from prison.

A popular character who gets tangled up romantically with the titular Boston lawyer (Calista Flockhart), Downey scored a Golden Globe win and an Emmy nod for his work. The show planned to marry Larry and Ally off, but Downey was arrested in Los Angeles on November 24, 2001 for possession of cocaine and valium. After wandering the streets barefoot in April 2001, he was arrested again for suspicion of being under the influence of drugs, but released. The show promptly fired the actor, with the Season 4 finale rewritten to get rid of Larry. 

During Season 5, Ally copes with memories of Larry while acting as a single mother to Maddie Harrington (Hayden Panettiere), the result of an egg donation she made years before. Jon Bon Jovi was brought on as Ally's sensitive new love interest, Victor Morrison, but the character never caught on with audiences and didn't last through the whole final season. Downey, meanwhile, finally attained sobriety, found superstardom as Iron Man, agreed to return to the MCU as Doctor Doom, and won an Oscar for best supporting actor in "Oppenheimer." 

Columbus Short's addictions ended up temporarily derailing his acting career. Short managed to turn a series of dance-centered parts in films like "Stomp the Yard" and "You Got Served" into a dramatic acting career that won him the role of Harrison Wright on "Scandal." But then he was arrested for felony battery with serious bodily injury after participating in a bar fight on March 26, 2014. Short's then-wife, Tanee McCall, filed for a restraining order in April 2014, accusing Short of threatening to commit murder-suicide with a knife. 

A few days after the accusations came out, Short confirmed his exit from the show. Harrison was killed off during the Season 3 finale of "Scandal," and his death is what draws Olivia Pope (Kerry Washington) back to Washington during the Season 4 premiere. Short was ultimately replaced by a cavalcade of actors during Season 5, including Scott Foley's Jake Ballard, who was introduced during Season 3 but became more central to the narrative after Wright's murder.

Short would eventually explain his departure on Shondaland Audio's "Unpacking the Toolbox" podcast in June 2024. "I was faulty as a human," he said, admitting that his drug-related lateness resulted in a lack of interesting storylines for Wright, which frustrated him. But in the end, it was worth it. "If I could have did it again, oh man, I would have did it different. But everything that I went through, everything that I did, all the mistakes, has led me to the man that I am today. And I'm proud of the man I am today." Short has had further brushes with the law since then, but continues to maintain a healthy acting career post-"Scandal."

Stoney Westmoreland's departure from "Andi Mack," a popular Disney Channel kid-com, was a jawdropper because of the nature of his alleged crimes. He was arrested for investigation of enticing a minor by Internet or text and four counts of dealing in materials harmful to a minor. Westmoreland was accused of specifically trying to meet with someone he thought was a 13-year-old boy for a sexual encounter on December 14, 2018. 

The actor allegedly tried to solicit nude pictures from said minor and sent nude pictures in return, then used a ridesharing service to meet with the (nonexistent) minor. As reps for the Disney Channel noted in a statement at the time, the characters on the show as well as the actors who play them were roughly the same age as the adolescent he was trying to solicit, leading to his immediate termination from the show.

Westmoreland had played the titular character's (Peyton Elizabeth Lee) grandfather, Henry or "Ham," since the show began. Ham was well known for his world travels and often acted as a sounding board for Andi. His role as confidant was filled by Andi's grandmother, Celia (Lauren Tom), after Ham was written off during the show's third and final season. Westmoreland, meanwhile, was jailed for violating the terms of his probation in 2020. He took a plea bargain, and charges were reduced to using interstate facilities to transmit information about a minor. He was sentenced to two years in a federal prison in 2022. 

TJ Miller was already dealing with sexual assault allegations when he went through a self-described "manic episode" on April 9, 2018, falsely reporting a fellow passenger on a Washington, D.C.-bound Amtrak train for carrying a bomb via a 911 call. Miller was arrested and subsequently released on $100,000 bond. The effect on his career was immediate: Ryan Reynolds revealed in May 2018 that Miller would not be asked to appear in any future "Deadpool" movies. His character Weasel was nowhere to be found in 2024's "Deadpool and Wolverine."

The charges against Miller were dropped by the state of Connecticut in July 2021, and he agreed to pay restitution to the state for the resources spent on the false call as well as attend a cognitive remediation program. He's stayed far afield of the law since then, but has remarked upon Ryan Reynolds' behavior. Miller accused Reynolds in October 2022 of behaving cruelly toward him on the set and said he'd never work with him again. Miller subsequently reported that Reynolds got in touch to apologize and admitted he'd love to work with the "Deadpool" star again.

Lori Loughlin gambled her reputation on getting her daughter into an Ivy League college, only to have it blow up in her face and jeopardize two steady gigs she'd been happily working away at. Part of a ring of 50 parents who tried to game the admission system by fudging their children's credentials, then bribing college officials to look the other way, she was charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering, wire and mail fraud. Loughlin took a plea deal and ended up serving two months in a federal prison. She also had to pay a $150,000 fine and complete 100 hours of community service.

Each series handled her lack of availability differently. "Fuller House" simply ignored the disappearance of Aunt Becky until the series finale, where it was explained she's in Nebraska taking care of her mom. "When Calls The Heart" wrote Abigail Stanton out, as she too "went east" to care for her mother. But the character was ultimately replaced in the narrative by Minnie Canfield (Natasha Burnett), who takes over her share of the cafe and begins to run it. But hope does spring eternal for Loughlin — quite literally, as she's since reprised Abigail for the show's spin-off, "When Hope Calls."

If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, or may be the victim of domestic abuse, child abuse, or sexual assault, contact the relevant resources below: 

• Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
• Call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.
• Contact the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child (1-800-422-4453) or contact their live chat services.
• Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).