Long before Disney bought Fox, a lot of people were left wondering if the television network would remain on the air for long. In fact, the network seemed like such a joke early on that several shows began regularly joking about Fox which is a tradition that has continued now that The Simpsons mocks Disney. Thankfully for the people in charge of Fox, however, the network’s fortunes turned around when Married with children debuted and became a major hit.
In the years since Married with Children first became a success, the show’s generations of fans have wanted to learn everything they can about it. For example, many fans were shocked to learn the people behind the show wanted another actor to portray Married with Children’s Peg Bundy. On the other hand, a lot of fans don’t know the complicated truth about whether Married with Children’s cast actually got along.
Did The Cast Of Married With Children Like Eachother?
Before Married with Children came out and became a surprise hit, the show’s stars were all unknown to the masses. As a result, Married with Children’s cast must have been overjoyed when they became superstars overnight. In fact, the show’s headling star must have been especially excited since Ed O’Neill turned down an iconic TV role before he began starring in Married with Children.
Of course, even though any actor who becomes rich and famous should thank their lucky stars, that doesn’t mean that there isn’t a downside to notoriety. Given the fact that Married with Children’s cast all went through the roller coaster ride of rising to fame at the same time, it makes sense that most of them developed strong bonds. On top of that, the fact that Married with Children was such a controversial show likely contributed to an us against the world mentality among the show’s stars. No matter what the reason for their bond was, the four actors who played the Bundys have all spoken about how close they are several times over the years.
Even though there are many clips in which Married with Children’s four main stars sing each other’s praises, what they said during a 2012 reunion special tells the full story. After all, the actors say things like “we had so much fun” and “we laughed so hard”. Additionally, when talking about the chemistry they all shared, Katey Sagal remarked “it’s just so rare that it happens, it really, that it all comes together that way”. Finally, Ed O’Neill and David Faustino agree that the four of them are like family.
Ed O’Neill And Amanda Bearse's Feud
Several years after Married with Children came to an end, Ed O’Neill’s career was rejuvenated when he began starring in Modern Family. Even though the two shows couldn’t be more different, Modern Family featured Married with Children Easter eggs. Despite the show embracing Married with Children’s legacy, however, a lot of Modern Family’s fans would be appalled if they knew about Ed O’Neill’s conduct on the set of his star-making show.
On YouTube, a user that goes by homhable uploaded a video that features two clips in which Ed O’Neill and Amanda Bearse speak about each other. At the beginning of the video, Bearse is asked about O’Neill and she keeps things classy. “I follow the Thumper rule, if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.” After going on to talk about Married with Children ending, Bearse states that there was “no love lost there” between her and O’Neill before calling Ed “a great actor”.
When the video cuts to a clip of Married with Children’s main star talking to the Archive of American Television, Ed O’Neill says some shocking things about Amanda Bearse, to say the least. For example, O’Neill judgementally talked about the way Bearse presented herself. “She changed a bit. I mean, I have to say that when she started out, she was gay. She was gay for a long time. She was more or less the female in the couple. You know, she was very feminine, and cute. And then as the show, you know, 11 years it went, it progressed, a change took place where she then was the more masculine of the two. You know, she had several relationships over that time, and that became kind of interesting because then as she became more masculine, she became a little more snarky, you know, she could grow a tooth, as we used to say.”
After saying that, Ed O’Neill revealed what happened after he confronted Amanda Bearse because she didn’t invite him and David Faustino to her wedding. “She said, ‘This was a very tough call. But I just feel that you would find it amusing that me and Becky would come in in tuxedos in a church and walk down the aisle, and you and David would be snickering and finding it funny.’ I said, ‘Amanda, what is funny about two women in tuxedos walking down the church aisle?’ “I started laughing, and she said, ‘SEE?’ And I said, ‘Well, you know why, because it is f***ing funny. And I’m not going to be the only one that doesn’t think so. Well, that was it, you know. But, It was funny.”
Finally, Ed O’Neill goes on to reveal that he once insulted Amanda Bearse’s intelligence and threatened to get her fired. “Another time, we got in a big fight, over something, something stupid in the makeup room, and she said something about, ‘You’re a bully’ or something, and I said, ‘Well, you’re miserable,’ You know, it was bad, in front of everyone by the way, and then I said, ‘You know, you’re not very bright. That’s your problem.’ And she was bright, but in a way, she wasn’t … She said, ‘I’m not bright.’ And I could just see her gearing up like, ‘I’m smarter than you,’ and I said, ‘No, because I’ll tell you why, because I have a button I can push. That button says, “Get rid of Amanda Bearse.” You don’t have a button that says, “Get rid of Ed O’Neill.” Your button doesn’t work. Mine works.’ Now this was a mean thing to say. I never was going to push that button, but it was true. I could go to them and say, ‘Look, I can’t work with her. I go or she goes.’ Who goes? She goes.”