They could as well cancel them right away.

There’s nothing better than the show that goes out on its high. However, that isn’t always the case, and, even if the writers want it to be the case, there are some situations when it doesn’t depend on them. If the backbone of the cast leaves, the show may as well be considered finished.

Right now we see not one, but at least three shows which are about to present some form of a comeback without their leads. Grey’s Anatomy will have to do without Ellen Pompeo, Yellowstone without Kevin Costner, and Witcher without Henry Cavill. Of course, fans want to be hopeful, but the cases of the past are too much of an argument against them.

Here are 5 shows who suffered the most after a cast member took a leave.

The X-Files

The show, which was originally created with the image of two agents, Scully and Mulder, working together to investigate the paranormal, could never work without one of them. Therefore, when David Duchovny left the show and Mulder left the picture, X-Files became dull and lacked chemistry.

Scrubs

JD has always been the heart and soul of Scrubs, as well as the central character to the story, which is why continuing the production without Zach Braff was the worst decision ever. It was obvious how much charm the sitcom lost with Braff, so the fans who love it to this day choose to ignore the existence of these episodes as a whole.

That 70’s Show

Eric Forman was not only the main protagonist of the show, but also the beloved character who was not supposed to leave. Bringing in Randy, who had zero to no personality and was basically called “the new guy” by everyone, was an even worse choice. The 70’s show became sad and unwatchable.

News Radio

The infamous Bill McNeal of News Radio would never have been so brilliantly portrayed by anyone other than Phil Hartman. Although the show was renewed for Season 5, Hartman was tragically murdered before production began. The wiser decision would have been to cancel the sitcom, but it went on for another season.

The Walking Dead

Killing off characters has always been a major criticism of the show, but the way Grimes went out was completely unexpected. The decision to keep him alive but missing didn’t sit well with the audience. The Walking Dead could never be the same without Rick, so it’s no surprise that many fans decided to stop watching in Andrew Lincoln’s absence.