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Grey's Anatomy star's absence explained in The Conners wedding episode

Photo credit: ABC
Photo credit: ABC

The Conners spoilers follow.

The Conners aired a lovely episode last night (October 13) in the US, as Louise Goldufski became part of the family by marrying Dan Conner.

But it wasn't all plain sailing, as a tornado threatened to completely derail the day. Thankfully, Jackie Harris stepped in and pronounced them husband and wife.

There were a lot of expected faces who didn't appear at the wedding, including Dan's best friend and business partner Chuck Mitchell, played by Grey's Anatomy star James Pickens Jr.

Photo credit: ABC
Photo credit: ABC

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"There were a couple of things," co-executive producer Bruce Helford told TVLine when explaining the absences. "First, the availability of the actors.

"James Pickens Jr, for instance, has this really hardcore schedule over on Grey's Anatomy, and it's very hard for Estelle Parsons (who plays Jackie's mother) to travel right now, so that was all in the midst of the discussion…

"There would have been a lot of those people, but they weren't available. We also had in mind that we didn't want to crowd the stage during COVID."

While staging a wedding during a natural disaster is a good way of covering up missing actors, that wasn't the reason the show went down that route. Fellow showrunner Dave Caplan explained: "A traditional wedding episode wouldn't have felt like The Conners.

Photo credit: Eric McCandless - Getty Images
Photo credit: Eric McCandless - Getty Images

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"A lot of things in the Conners' lives are tumultuous, so it only made sense to have a tumultuous wedding as well… A lot of what the Conners are about is perseverance. Giving them a wedding that is challenging and seeing them persevere and find happiness amongst the literal rubble appealed to us."

Season four of the show kicked off with a live episode that saw competition winners appear as distant relatives of the family.

The Conners airs on ABC in the US, and currently doesn't have a broadcaster in the UK.


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