Not all shows have stuck to their original premise over the years — in fact some changed their central story lines on purpose.
Family Matters is a great example since it shifted its cast. The sitcom, which aired from 1989 to 1998, was a spinoff of Perfect Strangers that followed a middle-class Black family living in Chicago. The hit sitcom starred Reginald VelJohnson, Jo Marie Payton, Darius McCrary, Kellie Williams, Jaimee Foxworth, Bryton McClure and Michelle Thomas.
Jaleel White joined Family Matters halfway through the first season.
“My performance was so well received during that initial episode that they began writing me into the next episode,” White recalled in his November 2024 memoir, Growing Up Urkel. “They even reshot new teasers for the season that featured me prominently, as if l’d been an original cast member all along.”
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Meanwhile, Westworld writers enjoyed not being confined to a specific story line. (The dystopian show initially pulled inspiration from the 1973 film of the same name before evolving the story.)
“One of the fun things about me for the show, when [producer] Lisa [Joy] and I were talking about it way back when, was the ability of this show to shift genres every season, and the invitation to do it,” creator Jonathan Nolan told The Hollywood Reporter in May 2020. “We felt we had an open invitation to play around, especially in this moment where TV is reinventing itself constantly, to have a show that reinvents itself season after season.”
At the time, Nolan highlighted that the genre changed from one season to the next. “You have a Western, you have a samurai movie, you have war movies, you have science-fiction. There are all of the different versions of the future you have seen over the years in movies,” he added. “We get to play around with all of that, and make text of all of that. So the idea that next season will feel different and distinct in genre from the previous seasons? Yes, that’s absolutely part of the structure of the show.”
Keep scrolling for more shows that changed their premise between seasons:
‘Twin Peaks’ (ABC)
The Original Vision: The series, which ran from 1990 to 1991, followed an investigation into the murder of homecoming queen Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee) in the fictional town of Twin Peaks, Washington. The series developed a cult following in part because of its campy storytelling — and creator David Lynch and Mark Frost‘s unique vision.
Where the Show Ended Up: According to Lynch, there was never any plan to reveal who killed Laura. But after the network forced the show to answer that mystery, Twin Peaks had to pivot to a larger conversation about good and evil.
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‘Westworld’ (HBO)
The Original Vision: The season started out in a futuristic theme park with androids that look like humans staging a rebellion.
Where the Show Ended Up: As the show continued to air, the hosts were brought into the outside world and became integrated within human society.
‘iZombie’ (The CW)
The Original Vision: Based on a DC comic book series of the same name, iZombie was a take on a supernatural police procedural that had Liv Moore (Rose McIver) eating brains from people who were murdered to help the authorities figure out what happened to them.
Where the Show Ended Up: The third season introduced a major change when a zombie-run private military organization forced everyone in Seattle into a zombie state. As a result, Liv traded working at the morgue into a job where she smuggled people in and helped them complete their transformation into zombies.
‘Mom’ (CBS)
The Original Vision: The Chuck Lorre-produced sitcom originally introduced three generations of mothers. Anna Faris played Christy, who found out her teenage daughter Violet (Sadie Calvano), was pregnant. While attending an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, Christy ran into her estranged mother Bonnie (Allison Janney), who also battled substance abuse problems.
Where the Show Ended Up: Christy’s attempts to raise her two kids with Bonnie’s help quickly fizzled out. Instead, the show pivoted to Christy, Bonnie and their group of friends from AA. This dynamic shifted again when Farris left the series during season 8.
‘Riverdale’ (The CW)
The Original Vision: Based on the iconic Archie Comics, the teen drama initially focused on a group of friends who came together to uncover the dark secrets that existed within their town.
Where the Show Ended Up: Riverdale didn’t wait long to push boundaries with their storylines, which ranged from cults to killer board games to time travel.
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‘Saved by the Bell’ (NBC)
The Original Vision: The first season of Saved by the Bell was actually titled Good Morning, Miss Bliss and starred Hayley Mills as a junior high school teacher navigating complicated situations with help from the students in her eighth grade class.
Where the Show Ended Up: Good Morning, Miss Bliss was ultimately retooled into Saved by the Bell, which changed the setting from Indianapolis to Los Angeles and recast many of the roles to focus on the students.
‘Scream Queens’ (Fox)
The Original Vision: The slasher series, which premiered in 2015, starred an ensemble cast that included Emma Roberts, Jamie Lee Curtis, Billie Lourd, Lea Michele, Abigail Breslin, Glen Powell and Keke Palmer. During the show’s first season, Scream Queens focused on members of the Kappa Kappa Tau sorority that were getting killed off by the mysterious Red Devil killer.
Where the Show Ended Up: Season 2 shook things up by having the satirical anthology introduce the Green Meanie that targeted a hospital and its staff — which included many of the cast members from the first season. Stars such as Kirstie Alley, Taylor Lautner, John Stamos and James Earl III rounded out the sophomore season.
‘Scrubs’ (NBC)
The Original Vision: Scrubs debuted in 2001 as a medical comedy focused on the lives of employees at the fictional Sacred Heart Hospital. More specifically, it was about J.D.’s (Zach Braff) journey from naive med school grad to confident physician.
Where the Show Ended Up: After season 8, ABC renewed the show for a surprise season, which took Scrubs from a hospital to medical school.
‘Cougar Town’ (ABC)
The Original Vision: Created by Bill Lawrence in 2009, Cougar Town introduced Courteney Cox as a single mother named Jules who decided to get back into dating by spending time with men younger than her.
Where the Show Ended Up: Before the first scene was even over, Jules found love with her neighbor Grayson (Josh Hopkins) — who happened to be her own age. Cougar Town then pivoted to a show about a friend group in the fictional town of Gulfhaven, Florida. Since Cougar Town couldn’t change its title, the opening credits would usually suggest other options as a joke.
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‘Family Matters’ (ABC)
The Original Vision: Family Matters was a spinoff of ABC’s Perfect Strangers with Carl (VelJohnson) and Harriette (Payton) at the helm for the first few episodes.
Where the Show Ended Up: White joined Family Matters in 1989 — halfway through the first season — as the Winslows’ nerdy neighbor, Steve Urkel. The role was only meant to last one episode, but Urkel became a breakout character that paved the way for White to join the main cast.
‘Kevin Can Wait’ (CBS)
The Original Vision: The sitcom, which premiered in 2016, initially followed a newly retired police officer Kevin (Kevin James), his wife Donna (Erinn Hayes) and their three kids. Kevin Can Wait showed Kevin and Donna navigating life after their daughter Kendra dropped out of college to support her new fiancé.
Where the Show Ended Up: Kevin Can Wait took a major risk when Hayes’ character was written off in between seasons. After killing Donna off, the show replaced Hayes with James’ former The King of Queens costar, Leah Remini, as the new female lead. While the first season centered on Kevin’s family life, the sophomore season had Kevin focusing on his new career, partnership with Vanessa (Remini) and life as a single parent.
Kevin Can Wait was canceled after two seasons and the outrage over Hayes’ shocking departure inspired AMC’s dramedy Kevin Can F**k Himself.
