Every series, movie and book has the same outline of protagonists and antagonists as well as secondary supporting characters who are usually just there to back up the those in the lead roles. Often times an exit of a star or an unexpected reaction to these secondary characters makes them more popular than anyone could have imagined and before long they become one of the biggest draws to the show. For one episode or several, fans enjoyed a specific character stealing the show and delivering some of the best moments and lines, and eventually their importance to the show was recognized with a promotion to a main role! Here are 12 popular secondary TV characters who were promoted to lead roles:
12. Mimi Bobeck – The Drew Carey Show
When The Drew Carey Show first aired in 1995, Kathy Kinney as Drew’s arch enemy Mimi Bobeck was only supposed to have a small role in the pilot episode. Fortunately for the actress, however, audiences laughed the most at her scenes when pitted against Drew and after a few more episodes they knew she had to be kept. It didn’t take long for Mimi to go from a one-off character to a lead and which also led to more varied workplace storylines than the show originally intended.
© Warner Bros. / Courtesy: Everett Collection