List of television actors who died during production
The following is a list of television actors who died during production of the television show in which they were appearing. In many cases, a show will handle the death of an actor by killing off their character or otherwise writing them out of the show. In other cases, the show may recast the part with another actor. In extreme cases, the show may be cancelled outright.
List
| Actor | Character | TV show in production | Number of appearances | Date of death | Cause of death | Season in production | Effect on production |
| Robert Ripley | Presenter and participant | Ripley's Believe It or Not! | 13 | 1949-05-27 | Heart attack | 1 | Died three days after live broadcast of the 13th episode. Ripley's friends and associates filled in as presenters for the remainder of the first season. Robert St. John took over as host for the second season. The series' final episode was on October 5, 1950, more than a year-and-a-half following Ripley's death. |
| Don "Creesh" Hornsby | Presenter and star performer | Broadway Open House | 0 | 1950-05-22 | Polio | 1 | Scheduled to be the show's host, but died a week before the May 29, 1950 premiere. Replaced by Morey Amsterdam and Jerry Lester. |
| Richard Hart | Ellery Queen | The Adventures of Ellery Queen | 11 | 1951-01-02 | Heart attack | 1 | Character recast; taken over by Lee Bowman. |
| Barton Yarborough | Sgt. Ben Romero | Dragnet | 1 | 1951-12-17 | Heart attack | 1 | Romero was written out in the opening scene of the second episode of the series, shown in September 1952, with his character dying of the same cause as Yarbrough. After a few episodes, the character of Romero was replaced by Frank Smith; played by Ben Alexander. |
| Hattie McDaniel | Beulah, the maid | Beulah | 6 | 1952-10-26 | Breast cancer | 3 | Character recast; taken over by Louise Beavers. |
| Nana Bryant | Julia – Margaret Williams' mother | Make Room for Daddy | 1955-12-24 | Unknown | 3 | No on-screen explanation given; the character simply stopped appearing midway through the third season. | |
| Fred Allen | Panelist | What's My Line? | 92 | 1956-03-17 | Heart attack | 6 | Died Saturday night, March 17, 1956. His place on the Sunday, March 18 live broadcast was taken by Steve Allen and subsequently by guest panelists. |
| Charles King | Various extras | Gunsmoke | 28 | 1957-05-07 | Cirrhosis of the liver | 2 | While an urban legend states that he died on the set after playing a corpse; the final episode he appeared in that aired during his lifetime was "Cheap Labor", which aired May 4, 1957, the day before his death. Seven additional episodes featuring King were aired between May 11 and July 6, 1957. |
| George Cleveland | George "Gramps" Miller | Lassie | 116 | 1957-07-15 | Heart attack | 4 | Character killed off. |
| John Hamilton | Perry White | Adventures of Superman | 1958-10-15 | Heart attack | Character was planned to be away on a secret assignment, replaced as Daily Planet editor by his brother, portrayed by Pierre Watkin. No episodes with this were produced, due to the subsequent death of star George Reeves. | ||
| George Reeves | Superman | Adventures of Superman | 1959-06-16 | Ballistic trauma to the head | 6 | Series cancelled. | |
| Ward Bond | Major Seth Adams | Wagon Train | Approximately 130 | 1960-11-05 | Heart attack | 4 | No on-screen explanation given; the character simply stopped appearing midway through the fourth season and was replaced by John McIntire as the "new wagon master." |
| Joseph Kearns | George Wilson | Dennis the Menace | 100 | 1962-02-17 | Cerebral hemorrhage | 3 | Character written out. With Season 3 episodes still in production, the first two episodes filmed after Kearns' death do not feature Mr. Wilson nor any acknowledgement of why he is absent; the episodes simply focus on other characters. Starting with the last six episodes of Season 3, the character of John Wilson is introduced and will remain for the rest of the series' run; the initial explanation of George's absence is that he is "away" on business. George are officially written out in the fourth-season premiere as having moved, and after a few scattered mentions in a few subsequent episodes are not referred to again. |
| Dick Powell | Host/Occasional star | The Dick Powell Show | 41 | 1963-01-02 | Lung cancer | 2 | Replaced by several other actors who served as guest hosts, until the series was cancelled at the end of the season. |
| Larry Keating | Roger Addison | Mister Ed | 81 | 1963-08-26 | Leukemia | 4 | Character written out without explanation. |
| John Larkin | Major General Wiley Crowe | Twelve O'Clock High | 25 | 1965-01-29 | Heart attack | 1 | Character written out without explanation. |
| Henry Kulky | Chief Curly Jones | Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea | 22 | 1965-02-12 | Heart attack | 1 | Character written out and replaced during the second season by Chief Sharkey, portrayed by Terry Becker. |
| Dorothy Kilgallen | Panelist | What's My Line? | 784 | 1965-11-08 | Combined drug and alcohol overdose | 24 | Died on the day following the Sunday, November 7 broadcast; questionable circumstances surrounding the death have connected it to her claimed possession of sensational documentation relating to the JFK assassination. Her place on the following Sunday's live broadcast was taken by Kitty Carlisle, a panelist from To Tell the Truth and subsequently by guest panelists. |
| Alice Pearce | Gladys Kravitz | Bewitched | Approximately 60 | 1966-03-03 | Ovarian cancer | 2 | Character recast with Sandra Gould filling the role, starting with Season 3. With Season 2 production still continuing when Pearce died, an interim character – Harriet Kravitz, Gladys' sister-in-law – is introduced, with the explanation that Gladys is away visiting her mother, while Harriet visits with Abner to keep house. |
| Ann Sheridan | Henrietta Hanks | Pistols 'n' Petticoats | 21 | 1967-01-21 | Cancer | 1 | Character is absent in the last five episodes. Afterwards, the series was canceled. |
| Smiley Burnette | Charley Pratt | Petticoat Junction | 1967-02-16 | Leukemia | 4 | Character retired without explanation, and replaced by Floyd Smoot and later, Wendell Gibbs. | |
| Charles Bickford | John Grainger | The Virginian | 18 | 1967-11-09 | Pneumonia and blood infection | 6 | Character either written out or killed off and replaced by his brother, Clay Grainger, portrayed by John McIntire. |
| Marion Lorne | Aunt Clara | Bewitched | 27 | 1968-05-09 | Heart attack | 4 | Character written out without explanation and replaced during the sixth season by Esmeralda, portrayed by Alice Ghostley. |
| Bea Benaderet | Kate Bradley | Petticoat Junction | 163 | 1968-10-13 | Lung cancer | 5 | No on-screen acknowledgement or direct comment on her death is ever made. The character of Kate Bradley is said to be "out of town." Kate's absence is alluded to in passing in the season seven premiere episode when her daughters, Billie Jo and Bobbie Jo comment wistfully, "Mom taught us to swim in that very same water tower." And in another episode, a special hotel guest is said to be staying in the "Kate Bradley Memorial Suite." Benaderet's character was replaced by Dr. Janet Craig, played by June Lockhart. |
| Barton MacLane | General Martin Peterson | I Dream of Jeannie | 35 | 1969-01-01 | Double pneumonia | 4 | Character written out without explanation and replaced during the fifth season by General Winfield Schaeffer, portrayed by Vinton Hayworth. |
| Robert Taylor | Host | Death Valley Days | 1969-06-08 | Lung cancer | 17 | Replaced by Dale Robertson. | |
| Barbara Pepper | Doris Ziffel | Green Acres | 30 | 1969-07-18 | Coronary thrombosis | 4 | Character recast with Fran Ryan filling the role of Doris Ziffel. |
| Inger Stevens | Vanessa Smith | The Most Deadly Game | 1 | 1970-04-30 | acute barbiturate poisoning | 1 | Died more than five months before series premiere and her character was recast, with Yvette Mimieux taking over the part. The premiere was postponed from September to October and ultimately the series was canceled after production of 13 episodes. The pilot episode with Stevens was never broadcast. |
| Frank Silvera | Don Sebastian Montoya | The High Chaparral | 14 | 1970-06-11 | Accidental electrocution | 3 | Character written out. |
| Arthur Leslie | Jack Walker | Coronation Street | 1970-06-30 | Heart attack | Character killed off with a heart attack. | ||
| Pete Duel | Hannibal Heyes | Alias Smith and Jones | 33 | 1971-12-31 | Suicide by ballistic trauma | 2 | Character recast with Roger Davis, the series' narrator. |
| Dan Blocker | Hoss Cartwright | Bonanza | 400-plus | 1972-05-13 | Pulmonary embolism following surgery | 13 | No on-screen acknowledgement was given, although Hoss' death is alluded to in at least two episodes. A previous character – Candy Canaday, played by David Canary – returns to the series to replace Hoss; however, Blocker's death was partially cited as a reason for the series' ratings going into decline in the fall of 1972 and eventual cancellation. |
| Roger Delgado | The Master | Doctor Who | 1973-06-18 | Traffic collision | 10 | Character regenerated. | |
| James Beck | Private Joe Walker | Dad's Army | 58 | 1973-08-06 | Pancreatitis | 6 | Character written out during the episode The Recruit with a letter saying he'd "gone to The Smoke". Character was never seen or referred to again. |
| Glenn Strange | Sam | Gunsmoke | 238 | 1973-09-20 | Lung cancer | 14 | Character killed off. |
| Patricia Cutts | Blanche Hunt | Coronation Street | 2 | 1974-09-06 | Suicide by barbiturate poisoning | Character recast, role taken over by Maggie Jones. | |
| Barbara Colby | Julie Erskine | Phyllis | 3 | 1975-07-24 | Ballistic trauma, inflicted during drive-by shooting | 1 | Character recast with Liz Torres taking over the role. |
| Graham Haberfield | Jerry Booth | Coronation Street | 1975-10-18 | Heart failure | Character killed off with a heart attack. | ||
| Meister Nadelöhr | Meister Nadelöhr erzählt | Over 1000 | 1976-06-07 | Diabetes | 22 | Character written out without explanation. Replaced by playing the role of a new character, Fabian. As a result, the Series renames to Zu Besuch im Märchenland for the remainder of its run. | |
| Freddie Prinze | Chico Rodriguez | Chico and the Man | 62 | 1977-01-29 | Ballistic trauma to the head, self-inflicted | 3 | Episodes completed prior to Prinze's death were aired on schedule. The first aired episode after Prinze's death included an on-air acknowledgement from James Komack thanking everyone for their kind words and outpouring of sympathy. Following the airing of Prinze's last completed episode, for the rest of season three, Chico's absence is explained as being "away", with completed scripts focusing on other characters and Chico's lines either removed or rewritten for other characters. Starting with Season 4, Chico was replaced by a 12-year-old boy named Raul, while other characters initially continued to explain that Chico was away. Finally, in the very special episode "Raul Runs Away," aired January 20, 1978, it is explained that Chico had died but with no explanation of the circumstances. However, the ratings declined and, with Prinze's death a primary factor, the series was cancelled in the spring of 1978. |
| Diana Hyland | Joan Bradford | Eight is Enough | 4 | 1977-03-27 | Breast cancer | 1 | Character killed off before the beginning of the next season. Joan's death is addressed in the second-season premiere, and a new character, played by Betty Buckley, is introduced early in the second season. |
| Zara Cully | "Mother" Olivia Jefferson | The Jeffersons | 1978-02-28 | Lung cancer | 4 | Character killed off and addressed briefly in an early Season 5 episode. | |
| Will Geer | "Grandpa" Zeb Walton | The Waltons | 1978-04-22 | Respiratory failure | 6 | Character killed off, with his death addressed in the seventh-season premiere. | |
| Arthur Brough | Mr. Ernest Grainger | Are You Being Served? | 34 | 1978-05-28 | 6 | Character written out without explanation and replaced by Mr. Tebbs, portrayed by James Hayter. | |
| Karl Swenson | Lars Hanson | Little House On the Prairie | 1978-10-08 | Heart attack | 4 | Character killed off, as having died from complications of a stroke he had suffered after the series' main setting, Walnut Grove, had fallen into an economic depression. The final episode that featured his character aired eight days after his death. | |
| Jack Soo | Detective Nick Yemana | Barney Miller | 1979-01-11 | Esophageal cancer | 5 | Character written out without explanation, though some episodes alludes having Yemana had passed on. His last appearance was season 5 episode 9 "The Vandal". The fourteenth episode from fifth season The Voice Analyzer was aired on the same day Jack Soo died. A special tribute episode, with Soo's castmates giving out-of-character tributes to him, was aired in the spring of 1979. | |
| Mary McCarty | Nurse Clara "Starch" Willoughby | Trapper John, M.D. | 22 | 1980-03-30 | Heart attack | 1 | Character retired; in the Season 2 premiere, it is explained Starch had gotten married, moved away and retired. Afterward, the character is replaced by Nurse Ernestine Shoop. |
| Jim Davis | Jock Ewing | Dallas | 75 | 1981-04-26 | Multiple myeloma | 4 | Character killed off with a helicopter crash after an extended absence. |
| Harold Bennett | Young Mr. Grace | Are You Being Served? | 50 | 1981-09-11 | Heart attack | 9 | Character never seen again, but continued to be referred to. The character was killed off in the first episode of the spinoff series Grace & Favour. |
| Johnny Jacobs | Announcer | Treasure Hunt | 25 | 1982-02-08 | 1 | Replaced by Tony McClay, who had served as Jacobs' fill-in. | |
| Michael Thoma | Greg Cranfield | Fame | 7 | 1982-09-03 | Cancer | 1 | Mr. Cranfield was due to be sacked but the pupils forced the school board to reconsider. His job was saved but the actor died shortly after the episode was filmed. In the episode "Tough Act to Follow", the character died of a heart attack; the episode was dedicated to Thoma. |
| Will Lee | Mr. Hooper | Sesame Street | 1982-12-07 | Heart attack | 15 | Character killed off, with his death addressed in a very special episode, aired almost a year after his death. Shows featuring Mr. Hooper that were taped prior to Lee's death were aired, with no acknowledgement of the reason for his absence from between his final aired appearance until the airing of the "Goodbye, Mr. Hooper" episode on November 24, 1983. | |
| Carolyn Jones | Myrna Clegg | Capitol | 108 | 1983-08-03 | Colon cancer | 2 | Temporary substitute Marla Adams played Myrna Clegg during periods when Jones was too ill to perform. At the time of Jones' death, Marla Adams was cast in The Young and the Restless and the role was assigned to Marj Dusay, who continued in the part for nearly four years, until Capitol's cancelation in March 1987. |
| Peter Dudley | Bert Tilsley | Coronation Street | 1983-10-20 | Heart attack | Character killed off with a heart attack. | ||
| Jessica Savitch | Host | Frontline | 1983-10-23 | Drowned in a car accident | 1 | Replaced during the second season by Judy Woodruff. | |
| Michael Conrad | Phil Esterhaus | Hill Street Blues | 1983-11-22 | Urethral cancer | 4 | Character killed off while having sex with Grace Gardner. Episodes completed prior to his death were aired, with the first episode completed after Conrad's death addressing Esterhaus' death. | |
| John Comer | Sid | Last of the Summer Wine | 47 | 1984-02-11 | Throat cancer | 7 | Character killed off, death mentioned on screen in following episodes. |
| Jack Howarth | Albert Tatlock | Coronation Street | 1984-03-31 | Liver complaint | Character killed off with a heart attack. | ||
| Jack Barry | Host | The Joker's Wild | 1984-05-02 | Cardiac arrest | Replaced by Bill Cullen. | ||
| Bernard Youens | Stan Ogden | Coronation Street | 1984-08-27 | Gangrene | Character killed off with gangrene. | ||
| Ève Gagnier | Cannelle | Passe-Partout | 125 | 1984-09-19 | Kidney Complications | 2 | Character recast; replaced by Lucie Beauvais. |
| Toke Townley | Sam Pearson | Emmerdale | 1984-09-27 | Heart attack | Character killed off in his sleep. | ||
| Charlotte Long | Eloise | The Tripods | 1984-10-06 | Car crash | 1 | Character briefly recast, with Cindy Shelley appearing as Eloise during a dream sequence. | |
| Jon-Erik Hexum | Mac Harper | Cover Up | 7 | 1984-10-18 | Ballistic trauma to the head, accidentally self-inflicted with a blank cartridge | 1 | Character killed off and replaced by Jack Striker, portrayed by Antony Hamilton. |
| Lennard Pearce | Grandad | Only Fools & Horses | 26 | 1984-12-15 | Heart attack | 4 | Character killed off. Pearce died while filming the series four episode "Hole in One". |
| Nicholas Colasanto | Coach Ernie Pantusso | Cheers | 71 | 1985-02-12 | Heart ailment | 3 | Character killed off at the beginning of the next season and replaced as bartender by Woody Boyd, portrayed by Woody Harrelson. |
| Dolph Sweet | Carl Kanisky | Gimme a Break! | 88 | 1985-05-08 | Cancer | 4 | Character killed off, and his character's death was addressed in the fifth-season premiere. |
| Selma Diamond | Selma Hacker | Night Court | 1985-05-13 | Lung cancer | 2 | Character killed off and addressed in the third-season premiere. | |
| Samantha Smith | Elizabeth Culver | Lime Street | 4 | 1985-08-25 | Crash of Bar Harbor Airlines Flight 1808 | 1 | Production initially continued, but series cancelled after airing only five out of eight episodes produced. |
| Sidney Clute | Detective Paul LaGuardia | Cagney & Lacey | 80 | 1985-10-02 | Cancer | 4 | Character written off, with an explanation onscreen that he retired and moved away. As a tribute, Clute's name was kept in the opening credits until the series finale. |
| Johnny Olson | Announcer | The Price is Right | 1985-10-12 | cerebral hemorrhage | 13 | Replaced in February 1986 by Rod Roddy. | |
| Bill Scott | Gruffi Gummi | Disney's Adventures of the Gummi Bears | 13 | 1985-11-29 | Heart attack | 1 | Character recast for the second season; taken over by Corey Burton. |
| Florence Halop | Florence Kleiner | Night Court | 1986-07-15 | Lung cancer | 3 | Character killed off and addressed in the fourth-season premiere. Her successor was played by 32-year-old Marsha Warfield, who remained for the rest of the series run. | |
| Ted Knight | Henry Rush | The Ted Knight Show | 1986-08-26 | Colorectal cancer | 6 | Series cancelled; production was to have resumed in September 1986, with Knight planning on returning to work. First-run episodes that were completed prior to his final illness were aired on schedule through the end of the 1986-1987 season. | |
| Roger C. Carmel | Cyclonus, Bruticus | The Transformers | 1986-11-11 | Congestive heart failure | 3 | Bruticus written out. Replaced as voice of Cyclonus during the fourth season by Jack Angel. | |
| Joe Gladwin | Wally Batty | Last of the Summer Wine | 45 | 1987-03-11 | 9 | Character killed off, death mentioned on screen in following episodes. | |
| Jack Clark | Announcer | Wheel of Fortune | 1988-07-21 | Bone cancer | 8 | Replaced by M.G. Kelly until Charlie O'Donnell took over. | |
| Jack Haig | Monsieur Roger LeClerc | Allo 'Allo! | 51 | 1989-07-04 | Cancer | 5 | Character written out as preferring to leave René's Café to go back to prison because the food was better there. Replaced by his brother Ernest LeClerc, portrayed by Derek Royle. |
| Derek Royle | Monsieur Ernest LeClerc | Allo 'Allo! | 8 | 1990-01-23 | Cancer | 6 | Character recast, role taken over by Robin Parkinson. |
| Jim Henson | various Muppets, most notably Ernie and Kermit the Frog | Sesame Street | 1990-05-16 | Streptococcal toxic shock syndrome | 21 | Some characters recast with other Muppet performers, most notably Steve Whitmire, who assumed the roles of Ernie and Kermit. A number of other characters, however, were retired outside of special occasions. | |
| Kevin Peter Hall | Harry | Harry and the Hendersons | 16 | 1991-04-10 | AIDS-related pneumonia | 1 | Character recast with Dawan Scott taking over the role. |
| Arthur Pentelow | Henry Wilks | Emmerdale | 1991-08-06 | Heart attack | Character killed off with a heart attack. | ||
| Redd Foxx | Alphonso Royal | The Royal Family | 7 | 1991-10-11 | Heart attack | 1 | Character killed off. The show was retooled with Jackee Harry being brought in as Al and Victoria's other daughter, who moved in with the Royals to help them overcome Al's loss. Despite this move being well-received, the show was cancelled at the end of the season. |
| Richard Hunt | Various Muppets | Sesame Street | 1992-01-07 | AIDS complications | 23 | Hunt performed his characters in many episodes for season 23, filmed in fall 1991 and aired after his death in 1992. | |
| Larry Riley | Frank Williams | Knots Landing | 111 | 1992-06-06 | AIDS-related kidney failure | 13 | No on-screen explanation given. |
| Werner Stocker | Darius | ' | 5 | 1993-05-27 | Brain cancer | 1 | Character killed off in the episode that aired only a few days before his death. Was originally planned to appear in flashbacks in subsequent episodes, but had to be completely written out instead. |
| Robert Lansing | Capt. Paul Blaisdell | ' | 24 | 1994-10-23 | Cancer | 2 | Character written out. |
| Dominic Lucero | Himself | Roundhouse | 52 | 1994-07-01 | Lymphoma | 3 | His characters were written off the series |
| Hugh O'Connor | Lonnie Jamison | In the Heat of the Night | 1995-04-07 | Ballistic trauma, self-inflicted | 8 | Final TV movie, which had already completed production, was dedicated to O'Connor when it aired about a month after his death. | |
| Linda Gary | Aunt May | Spider-Man | 28 | 1995-10-05 | Brain cancer | 3 | Character recast for the fourth season; taken over by Julie Bennett. |
| Doris Grau | Lunchlady Doris | The Simpsons | 1995-12-30 | Respiratory failure | 7 | Character initially retired, but brought back years later with Tress MacNeille as the new voice actress. | |
| David Doyle | Lou Pickles | Rugrats | 1997-02-26 | Heart attack | 5 | Character recast; replaced by Joe Alaskey. | |
| Dermot Morgan | Father Ted Crilly | Father Ted | 1998-02-28 | Heart attack | 3 | Morgan had already completed filming on the final episode of the show. | |
| Phil Hartman | Bill McNeal | NewsRadio | 1998-05-28 | Ballistic trauma, inflicted by his wife, Brynn Hartman | 5 | Character killed off with a heart attack at the beginning of the season in a tribute episode. Replaced for the fifth season by long time friend Jon Lovitz as Max Louis. | |
| Phil Hartman | Troy McClure, Lionel Hutz, et al. | The Simpsons | 54 | 1998-05-28 | Ballistic trauma, inflicted by his wife, Brynn Hartman | Major recurring characters of Troy McClure and Lionel Hutz retired, occasionally being used in background shots. | |
| Phil Leeds | Judge Dennis 'Happy' Boyle | Ally McBeal | 5 | 1998-08-16 | Pneumonia | 2 | Character killed off. |
| Gene Siskel | Host | Siskel & Ebert | 1999-02-20 | Complications from brain surgery | Show renamed to Roger Ebert & the Movies, with Ebert accompanied by guest critics; Richard Roeper later joined Ebert as permanent co-host. | ||
| David Strickland | Todd Stities | Suddenly Susan | 1999-03-22 | Suicide by hanging | 3 | Character went missing and it is hinted that he died off-screen. | |
| Buster Merryfield | Uncle Albert | Only Fools & Horses | 1999-06-23 | Brain tumour | 7 | Merryfield died in 1999 and Albert's death was written into the next episode. | |
| Bill Owen | Compo Simmonite | Last of the Summer Wine | 186 | 1999-07-12 | Pancreatic cancer | 21 | Character killed off with a heart attack and addressed in a special episode. Bill Owen's son Tom Owen plays character's on screen son Tom Simmonite in following episodes. |
| Mary Kay Bergman | Liane Cartman, Sheila Broflovski, et al. | South Park | 44 | 1999-11-11 | Suicide by Gunshot | Recast with other voice actresses. | |
| Madeline Kahn | Pauline Fox | Cosby | 60 | 1999-12-03 | Ovarian cancer | 4 | Character presumably killed off. A special tribute episode, with Kahn's castmates giving out-of-character tributes to her, was aired a few weeks after her death. |
| Nancy Marchand | Livia Soprano | The Sopranos | 2000-06-18 | Lung cancer and emphysema | 3 | Character killed off. | |
| Myles Ferguson | Scott Linton | Edgemont | 13 | 2000-09-29 | Car accident | 1 | Character written out without explanation. |
| Kenneth MacDonald | Mike | Only Fools and Horses | 30 | 2001-08-07 | Heart attack | 9 | Character written out with the explanation of being in prison for fraud. |
| Kathleen Freeman | Mrs. Gordon | As Told by Ginger | 2001-08-23 | Lung cancer | 2 | Character written out as having retired. Original ending of episode "No Hope For Courtney" was to have Mrs. Gordon come back to work as a teacher. | |
| Graeme Strachan | Host/Carpenter | Our House | 2001-08-29 | Helicopter crash | 9 | A tribute episode to Shirl was aired a couple of weeks after his death and the series was later cancelled. | |
| Gordon Wharmby | Wesley Pegden | Last of the Summer Wine | 139 | 2002-05-18 | Lung cancer | 23 | Character killed off, death implied on screen in following episodes. |
| Josh Ryan Evans | Timmy Lenox | Passions | 302 | 2002-08-05 | Complications of heart surgery | Character was killed off in the episode that aired the day of his death. The character was originally planned to be brought back in later episodes, but had to be written out instead. | |
| Lynne Thigpen | Ella Mae Farmer | The District | 2003-03-12 | Cerebral hemorrhage | 3 | Character killed off from the cancer she was in remission from. Third season finale included a tribute to her character. | |
| Lynne Thigpen | Luna the Moon | Bear in the Big Blue House | 2003-03-12 | Cerebral hemorrhage | 4 | Series ended and United States airings of the show were put on a three-year hiatus. Was later replaced with Breakfast with Bear. | |
| Thora Hird | Edie Pegden | Last of the Summer Wine | 152 | 2003-03-15 | Stroke | 24 | Character killed off, death implied on screen in following episodes. |
| Harry Goz | Captain Hazel "Hank" Murphy | Sealab 2021 | 2003-09-06 | Multiple myeloma | 3 | Character written out as having left Sealab to fight in "The Great Spice Wars". Replaced by his son Michael as Captain Bellerophon "Tornado" Shanks. | |
| Jaclyn Linetsky | Caillou | Caillou | 2003-09-08 | Traffic accident | Character recast; replaced by Annie Bovaird. | ||
| Jaclyn Linetsky | Megan O'Connor | 15/Love | 2003-09-08 | Traffic accident | Character killed in a plane crash, with Sébastien Dubé. | ||
| Vadim Schneider | Sébastien Dubé | 15/Love | 2003-09-08 | Traffic accident | Character dies in a plane crash, with Megan O'Connor. | ||
| John Ritter | Paul Hennessy | 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter | 2003-09-11 | Undiagnosed aortic dissection | 2 | Character dies of implied heart attack, with his death explained in a subsequent episode. A new character, portrayed by James Garner, was introduced to replace Ritter's character. | |
| John Ritter | Clifford | Clifford the Big Red Dog | 68 | 2003-09-11 | Undiagnosed aortic dissection | Series ended; replaced by prequel Clifford's Puppy Days, title character voiced by Lara Jill Miller In the prequel. | |
| Tony Capstick | Policeman | Last of the Summer Wine | 33 | 2003-10-23 | 25 | Character written out, and replaced by another policeman, portrayed by Louis Emerick. | |
| Rod Roddy | Announcer | The Price is Right | 2003-10-27 | Colon cancer Breast cancer | 19 | Replaced in April 2004 by Rich Fields. | |
| Richard Biggs | Milo Morton | Strong Medicine | 2004-05-22 | Aortic dissection | 5 | Character killed off. | |
| David Bailey | Alistair Crane | Passions | 2004-11-25 | Drowned in his pool | Character recast with John Reilly taking over the role. | ||
| Jerry Orbach | Lennie Briscoe | ' | 2 282 | 2004-12-28 | Prostate cancer | 1 | Character never seen again; character's off-screen death mentioned on other shows within the Law & Order franchise. |
| Stan Richards | Seth Armstrong | Emmerdale | 2005-02-11 | Emphysema | Character killed off with a heart attack while flying home from Australia. | ||
| John Spencer | Leo McGarry | The West Wing | 155 | 2005-12-16 | Heart attack | 7 | Character killed off with a heart attack; running mate Matt Santos wins presidential election. |
| Mako Iwamatsu | Iroh | ' | 31 | 2006-07-21 | Esophageal cancer | 2 | Voice work already completed for the second season, had one non-speaking appearance in the beginning of the next season and was then recast with Greg Baldwin, who accurately imitated his predecessor's voice and voiced the character for the third and final season, along with two guest appearances in season two of the sequel series. |
| Steve Irwin | Crocodile Hunter | The Crocodile Hunter | 2006-09-03 | Fatal Stingray injury | 5 | Series cancelled. In 2018, the remaining family members starred in the series, Crikey! It's the Irwins, following their work at the Australia Zoo. | |
| Christopher Allport | Andrew Campbell | Mad Men | 2008-01-25 | Avalanche | 1 | Character killed off with a plane crash. | |
| Ashley Callie | Lee Haines | Isidingo | 500+ | 2008-02-15 | Traffic Accident | 11 | Character went missing and later dies off-screen without specifying her cause of death. |
| Mark Speight | Presenter | SMart | 173 | 2008-04-07 | Suicide by hanging | 14 | A special tribute to Mark Speight was broadcast. Along with the final two series' new format, guest presenters appear each week to assist the two presenters, Kirsten O'Brien and Mike Fischetti. |
| Stanley Kamel | Dr. Charles Kroger | Monk | 46 | 2008-04-08 | Heart attack | Character killed off with a heart attack and replaced as Adrian Monk's psychiatrist by Dr. Neven Bell, portrayed by Héctor Elizondo. | |
| Clive Hornby | Jack Sugden | Emmerdale | 2008-07-03 | Cancer | Character killed off with a heart attack. | ||
| Kathy Staff | Nora Batty | Last of the Summer Wine | 246 | 2008-12-13 | Brain tumor | 29 | Character written out as visiting Australia, and replaced by Barbara Young as her sister, Stella, who is house-sitting for her. |
| Wayne Allwine | Mickey Mouse | Mickey Mouse Clubhouse | 99 | 2009-05-18 | Complications caused by diabetes | 3 | Character recast for season 4; replaced by Bret Iwan as the current voice of Mickey Mouse. |
| Maggie Jones | Blanche Hunt | Coronation Street | 2009-12-02 | Character killed off. | |||
| Charlie O'Donnell | Announcer | Wheel of Fortune | 2010-11-01 | Heart failure | 22 | Replaced in June 2011 by Jim Thornton. | |
| Elisabeth Sladen | Sarah Jane Smith | The Sarah Jane Adventures | 2011-04-19 | Cancer | 5 | Production suspended before the commencement of filming of three planned 2-part serials, resulting in an abbreviated broadcast season and leaving some story arcs and plot points unresolved. | |
| Andy Whitfield | Spartacus | Spartacus | 2011-09-11 | Non-Hodgkin lymphoma | 4 | Character recast with Liam McIntyre taking over the role. | |
| Betty Driver | Betty Williams | Coronation Street | 2,800-plus | 2011-10-15 | Pneumonia | Character killed off with an illness. | |
| Ian Abercrombie | Chancellor Palpatine/Darth Sidious | 29 | 2012-01-26 | Kidney Failure | 5 | Character recast with Tim Curry taking over the role. | |
| Ernest Borgnine | Mermaid Man | SpongeBob SquarePants | 15 | 2012-07-08 | Kidney Failure | 8 | Status unknown; possibly written out |
| Jerry Nelson | The Count and other characters | Sesame Street | 2012-08-23 | Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease | 43 | Many of Nelson's characters recast; taken over by Matt Vogel. An episode loosely inspired by Jerry's death and centered on The Count aired in 2013. | |
| Larry Hagman | J.R. Ewing | Dallas | 356 17 | 2012-11-23 | Acute myeloid leukemia | 2 | Character killed off with two fatal gunshot wounds, an episode revolving around his funeral, and an episode detailing his master plan. |
| Jeanne Cooper | Katherine Chancellor | The Young and the Restless | 1,296 | 2013-05-08 | Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease | 40 | Character killed off by dying in her sleep. |
| Richard Thorp | Alan Turner | Emmerdale | 2013-05-22 | Character killed off in his sleep. | |||
| Cory Monteith | Finn Hudson | Glee | 81 | 2013-07-13 | Heroin and alcohol overdose | 5 | Production delayed; character killed off in a special tribute episode without specifying cause of death. |
| Lee Thompson Young | Barold "Barry" Frost | Rizzoli & Isles | 2013-08-19 | Suicide by Gunshot | 4 | Production suspended; character was said to be on vacation at the end of the 4th season, then later killed off in a car accident on the way home and was given a funeral in a fifth season premiere. | |
| Marcia Wallace | Edna Krabappel | The Simpsons | 178 | 2013-10-25 | Pneumonia | 25 | Character retired, later killed off screen. Edna's death is acknowledged in the 25th-season episode "The Man Who Grew Too Much." |
| Christopher Evan Welch | Peter Gregory | Silicon Valley | 5 | 2013-12-02 | Cancer | 1 | Character killed off while taking a trip in the Serengeti after suffering a implied heart attack while running away from a tent incident. |
| Carol Ann Susi | Debbie Wolowitz | The Big Bang Theory | 39 | 2014-11-11 | Cancer | 8 | Character died in her sleep while on vacation in Florida. |
| Don Pardo | Announcer | Saturday Night Live | 726 | 2014-08-18 | Natural causes | 38 | Replaced by former SNL cast member Darrell Hammond. |
| Anne Kirkbride | Deirdre Barlow | Coronation Street | 1,439 | 2015-01-19 | Breast cancer | Character killed off, possibly with a brain aneurysm. | |
| Shirley Stelfox | Edna Birch | Emmerdale | 2015-12-07 | Cancer | Character killed off with ovarian cancer. | ||
| Alan Young | Scrooge McDuck | Mickey Mouse | 2 | 2016-05-19 | Natural causes | 3 | Character recast; no official replacement has been named. Currently, John Kassir is alternating with David Tennant. |
| Anton Yelchin | Jim Lake Jr. | Trollhunters | 2016-06-19 | Blunt traumatic asphyxia | 3 | Character recast; replaced by Emile Hirsch. | |
| Carrie Fisher | Angela | Family Guy | 32 | 2016-12-27 | Cardiac arrest | 15 | Character killed off with implied drowning in Season 17 episode, Pawtucket Pete. |
| Carrie Fisher | Mia | Catastrophe | 6 | 2016-12-27 | Cardiac arrest | 4 | Character killed off in Season 4, Episode 6 |
| Miguel Ferrer | Owen Granger | ' | 105 | 2017-01-19 | Throat cancer | 8 | Character initially disappeared to take care of "unfinished business", but Callen and Sam later find out he died under a tree. |
| Bill Paxton | Detective Frank Rourke | Training Day | 13 | 2017-02-25 | Complications from heart surgery | 1 | Series cancelled. |
| Glenne Headly | Diane Futterman | Future Man | 5 | 2017-06-08 | Pulmonary embolism | 1 | Character killed off. |
| Adam West | Mayor West | Family Guy | 117 | 2017-06-10 | Leukemia | 15 | Character killed off and has appeared as a ghost. West had recorded his voice for 5 future episodes which they plan to use. |
| John Dunsworth | Jim Lahey | Trailer Park Boys | 99 | 2017-10-16 | 12 | Series ended. Replaced with Trailer Park Boys: The Animated Series. | |
| Anthony Bourdain | Himself | ' | 2018-06-08 | Suicide | Series ended. | ||
| Barry Elliott | Barry Chuckle | Chuckle Time | 12 | 2018-08-05 | Bone cancer | 1 | Series cancelled. |
| Kristoff St. John | Neil Winters | The Young and the Restless | 1,697 | 2019-02-03 | Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy | 46 | Character killed off with a stroke. |
| Luke Perry | Fred Andrews | Riverdale | 42 | 2019-03-04 | Stroke | 3 | Character killed off with a off-screen hit-and-run accident in the season 4 premiere. |
| Russi Taylor | Minnie Mouse | Mickey Mouse | 2019-07-26 | Colon Cancer | 5 | TBD | |
| Russi Taylor | Minnie Mouse | Mickey and the Roadster Racers | 2019-07-26 | Colon Cancer | 2 | TBD | |
| Russi Taylor | Various characters | The Simpsons | 2019-07-26 | Colon Cancer | 30 | Certain characters recast, including Martin Prince; taken over by Grey DeLisle. | |
| Linda Porter | Myrtle Vartanian | Superstore | 35 | 2019-09-25 | Cancer | 5 | TBD |
| Naya Rivera | Collette Jones | Step Up | 2020-07-08 | Accidental drowning | 2 | TBD |