ThomasC
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The only real thing they can't explain easily would be Lisa Gay Hamilton's exit. The rest could be explained as Todd just said.Rebecca sticks by Bobby no matter what. That has been shown before many times throughout the series. She could of left with him, due to not liking Eugenes leadership abilities, to start up a new firm.
Rebecca sticks by Bobby no matter what. That has been shown before many times throughout the series. She could of left with him, due to not liking Eugenes leadership abilities, to start up a new firmBut he said he was going to leave to start up his own private practice. Bringing her along kinda destroys the point of him making a new firm by himself. Bringing Marla along makes sense because he'll need a secretary, but I don't think his intent was to bring any lawyers with him.
But he said he was going to leave to start up his own private practice. Bringing her along kinda destroys the point of him making a new firm by himself.To a degree, yes. But I was fully expecting Rebecca to go with him, no matter what. The last episode really hinted at her possibly leaving to go with Bobby, so I think it's not out of the question.
She could even leave to start a practice by herself.
I'd like to see them do something credible and perhaps over 2-3 episodes to explain why Helen leaves. She's been so integral to the series that an abrupt exit will not work.
The Practice may not have been perfect, but few expected producer David E. Kelley to fire most of the drama's cast, including star Dylan McDermott (news), after its seventh season.
Now, ABC's legal drama is readying its eighth season with a core cast joined by film actor James Spader (news), newcomer Rhona Mitra (news) and a three-episode appearance by Sharon Stone (news) in an attempt to rejuvenate the show after a steady decline in ratings and a disastrous move to Mondays last winter.
Spader will play Alan Shore, a brash, flamboyant attorney caught embezzling from his white-shoe firm who comes knocking on The Practice's door. Mitra plays a tough paralegal and assistant. And Stone will appear in October in a guest role that could be expanded.
Deciding to cut Kelli Williams, Lara Flynn Boyle (news) and other actors was ''creatively driven,'' Kelley said. ''The characters I found myself gravitating toward with meatier stories'' were those who remained, played by Camryn Manheim (news), Michael Badalucco (news), Steve Harris (news) and Jessica Capshaw (news).
And McDermott was simply too expensive for the show's new economics: Thanks to a last-minute renewal by ABC that halved the $6.5-million-an-episode price tag of the network's most expensive series, some changes were clearly in order.
McDermott and others were fired last May in what Kelley calls ''probably the toughest day for me careerwise.'' (McDermott agreed to return for four episodes but it's unclear when he'll resurface.)
Yet ''there's an upside to the extent that it rejuvenates you creatively,'' Kelley says. ''I think it will give a new energy to the series,'' although he admits ''we can't necessarily count on the viewing constituency that's been there (before) because many of them have left.'' (An average of 9.8 million viewers tuned in last season, little more than half the show's late 1990s peak.)
Kelley shoulders some of the blame: After a few seasons of increasingly outrageous plots, he now seems ready to re-embrace the show's earlier focus on moral and ethical quandaries while adding some humor as the show returns to Sundays.
''Gradually over time it became a show about big murder cases, and it was heavily plot-driven. I think there's room for mixing those plots with the interaction of characters.''
Holy Crap. That's a major overhaul. Not sure how that's going to play out. Takes some balls to get rid of your major star and a few others and start fresh. Let's see if it works.
Sounds like the show came very close to being cancelled.
Anyone looking forward to the changes?