Rob Lowe Says Leaving The West Wing Was ‘The Best Thing I Ever Did’: ‘It Was a Super Unhealthy Relationship’
Rob Lowe isn’t mincing words about his exit from The West Wing.
The actor called his decision to leave the the hit NBC drama “the best thing I ever did” in a podcast interview with Stitcher Studios’ Podcrushed, likening his time there to “a super unhealthy relationship.” Lowe says that he “felt very undervalued” on the show, adding: “I did not have a good experience.” He insists that he “tried to make it work,” but he ultimately compares it to a toxic romance: “I walked away from the most popular girl at school, but I also knew that it was a super unhealthy relationship, and it was the best thing I ever did.”
Lowe played deputy communications director Sam Seaborn for the first four seasons of The West Wing, which debuted on NBC in 1999. But he left the show after Season 4, citing a diminished role for his character. (Reports at the time also claimed that Lowe had sought a pay raise and been rebuffed, while Martin Sheen and other co-stars had received raises.) Lowe returned to guest-star in a pair of episodes in The West Wing’s seventh and final season.
At the time of his departure, Lowe said in a statement, “As much as it hurts to admit it, it has been increasingly clear, for quite a while, that there was no longer a place for Sam Seaborn on The West Wing. Warners had allowed me an opportunity to leave the show as I arrived — grateful for it, happy to have been on it and proud of it. We were a part of television history and I will never forget it.” An official statement from Warner Brothers Television and John Wells Productions said the move was made “amicably.”
Since leaving The West Wing, Lowe has of course continued to be a familiar face on the small screen with major roles on Brothers & Sisters, Parks and Recreation, The Grinder, Code Black and others. He currently stars as firefighter Owen Strand on the Fox drama 9-1-1: Lone Star.
He wanted to be a star! To be the lead actor of his own show. He had The Lyon’s Den on NBC within a year of leaving The West Wing, and it flopped. Then he did Dr. Vegas on CBS and that flopped even faster. So then I think his agent told him to consider being part of ensembles again and he found success in “Brothers and Sisters” and “Parks and Rec” though he did not stay with either through the end.
Exactly, always thought that he has a big ego. Pretty guy but is he that good of an actor?
Both him and and Emily Vancamp are the king/queen of 4 seasons and done (West Wing, Brothers & Sisters (Appeared in 1×9), Parks & Rec (a few guest spots before and after)) / (Everwood, Brothers & Sisters, The Resident (a few eps of S5), Revenge).
Well, Revenge and Everwood ended after four seasons so hard to judge those.
Revenge ended with season 4 *because* EVC left it. The showrunners were reportedly trying to figure out how to make the show work without her and, fortunately, figured out that they couldn’t.
I have a hard time blaming her for leaving Brothers and Sisters and Revenge. In both cases, the writing for her character had fallen tremendously in quality.
It also SUCKED after her dad was alive.
I always joke that Emily VanCamp can’t count to five because of that lol. But Lowe sounds so conceited.
I always say Rob Lowe can’t see a show through to the end. He’ll leave that 911 show before it ends. Just wait and see.
Really? You always say this? You must be fun at parties
Are you okay? :(
This was the common understanding in entertainment media at the time, I recall. It was roundly believed that he’d thought he’d be the star of the show but when it turned into something really approaching a true ensemble, he was not satisfied.
Can confirm as someone there that he felt he was first on the call sheet and would complain at every table read that he didn’t understand the “perspective of the script,” meaning why he wasn’t in every scene.
True. Also, although Martin Sheen had been cast as the POTUS, his role was originally envisioned as an occasional guest star role. However, Martin Sheen made a strong enough positive impression in the pilot and early episodes that the role was quickly reconceived to be of regular status and central to the series.
And, in his defense, as his role decreased the show got worse. After he left, the show fell off a cliff quality wise.
There was a place for his character, but it wasn’t as the lead like he thought he was (and that he arguably started out as). The show had moved into more of an ensemble. That wasn’t what he signed up for and his ego wouldn’t allow it, I guess.
i think you are exactly right. I won’t watch anything he’s in. Too much of an ego.
I’ve got an acquaintance whose actually befriended him and says he’s pretty chill, but people are complicated
Yes they are and he may be a perfectly nice guy. Just not my cup of tea.
It has always been reported that he believed he was going to be the star. Should be the star. Given he was the name, with the exception of Martin in the pilot. But the focus turned to Josh, and the rest of the staff and Martin’s Jed was brought in for a series regular role, and it turned into the President and the staff show. He was always unhappy after that. He probably was denied for a raise because he was already pulling more than others, until the show became a hit. And the others forced a pay raise, which they deserved, especially after the Emmy wins. And he walked away. True, Sam did sorta fall importance in especially his final full season. But it had become a ensemble show, and he could not stand that…Never could accept it.
You never know how a show or movie will hit. The West Wing was so good because it truly turned into an ensemble show. His loss our win.😊
I agree with Stacey. The show very quickly centered around Jed, Josh, CJ, Tobey and Leo. He really became more of a secondary character. Aside from denying him a pay raise, I would not be surprised if West Wing requested that he take a pay cut. He was paid as the star of the show and that simply didn’t end up being the case,
Everybody criticising him. He knew what he wanted, he quit, and he went pursue it. As should anyone. Given he kept on working and still is, years later, with several hits under his belt, good for him. A job is a job. You don’t have to be eternally tied to it. You can walk away. When they want to kill a character off, they do it.
No one is saying he cannot leave. He did leave. He chose to leave. It was actually more unusual back then, in the early 2000’s than it is now, where you see a lot of actors leaving. Which is their right. He’s saying it was a abusive situation, and felt undervalued. When the reality is that he was pissed that he was not the star of the show, and the other stars of the show eventually came to meet his salary level.
They would not allow him to make the most. And he did not want to be seen as a ensemble. So, he left.
So you say, based on what, internet rumors? If not, please share the source. I enjoyed Rob Lowe on West Wing and on many other shows, especially The Grinder. I wish he never left West Wing, but he’s entitled to make his own decisions. I don’t know why everyone is so bitter about it.
Of the time. It’s common knowledge he was paid more because it was believed the character of Sam was going to be a more central player. Why Sam and the Laurie storyline was prominent in the first episodes. Despite Josh getting into trouble. Sam was the focus. But after it started to air, there was a shift. Josh, CJ, Toby and especially Leo and the President became more prominent. After the Emmy wins. Sometime I believe in Season 2, or early in Season 3 after more Emmy wins. The others not named Rob held out for a pay raise. NBC gave it to them, and it’s not coincidence only a year later did Rob leave. He has a right to have left, and his opinions on the matter. But its pretty clear at the time, as this post indicates the rumors of the salary dispute was the true cause. And the shift in Sam’s prominence on the show. To a more ensemble feel.
Well for me, I didn’t care for his character on The West Wing. The other characters were more interesting. It was a plus IMHO when he left the show.
He also currently stars on the Netflix comedy Unstable. Just wanted to mention that because I much prefer it to the endless stream of 911 procedural dreck.
I thought at the time that they were going to do a spinoff. His character went back to California to become governor, or senator? West Wing West. Ultimately that could have ended up back at the west wing.
I believe they had his character run for an open House seat.
I’m sure he wasn’t happy about his deep con bubble being burst every six seconds by people so much smarter than he was.
To me Rob Lowe was the best character on The West Wing. Really missed his presence once he left. A far more likable character than the other members of the ensemble, although I really did like Martin Sheen and Dale Hill.
I stopped watching West Wing when Rob left. I was actually watching for him. I got tired of Martin Sheen’s pompousness and changed the dial.
Honestly, Will Bailey was a breath of fresh air and kind of brought a new dimension to Toby and the others for a while. I think it just worked out as being the perfect time for Lowe and the series to part ways. Sam’s arc had played its course and they either needed to give him something new to do or let him go away for a while, which ended up happening when Lowe left. I actually liked that he returned for those two episode in the final season, although I didn’t buy that he returned to corporate law after his issues with it over his run and his love for speech writing.
I think there is truth to the fact that the show started struggling to figure out what to do with Sam. In seasons 3 and 4, you see he always tended to get the C stories in episodes. I will say that the show lost a step once Lowe left. Will Bailey wasn’t a good enough replacement character. And in general, that sense of optimism in the first 4 seasons, dissipated and was replaced with a lot more in fighting and cynicism in the storylines. You can tell that post Sorkin, writers struggled to figure how to write these characters without putting them in conflict with one other.
I thought I’d read at the time that he was a Republican on a Democratic set and was just being slowly squeezed out.
At a time when we’ve spent years hearing about people (mostly women) who underwent abuse and brutal treatment at the hands of producers, directors, fellow actors, it feels really uncomfortable how Lowe describes things. I mean, I get that he felt undervalued and he wanted to be the star of a show and not part of an ensemble. He never has stories of horrible treatment, but he’s been talking about how horrible it was and how he was treated for almost twenty years. He needs better language. Because being highly paid and not being a star is not mistreatment.