Least Likely Frasier Character Nearly Got A Spinoff
For better or for worse, we are currently experiencing a major Frasier renaissance. The titular character now has a revival show on Paramount that takes him out of the comfortable world of entertainment and into the distinctly less comfortable world of teaching at Harvard while trying to repair a relationship with his son. So far, the revival has been surprisingly thrifty on returning characters, and that’s part of why we were shocked to learn that the relatively obscure Lana Gardner nearly got her own Frasier spinoff during the height of the original show’s popularity.
Jean Smart Tells All
News about this wild-sounding spinoff comes to us courtesy of Jean Smart, the actor who brought Lana Gardner to life. Appearing on Good Morning America, Smart revealed that her character had proven popular enough to seriously impress the producers of the show. Accordingly, she came close to getting her own Frasier spinoff, something that would have felt incredibly “meta” considering Frasier is itself a Cheers spinoff (more on this later).
Lana Gardner
If the Lana Gardner character isn’t ringing any bells, you might have to go back and stream a few Frasier episodes on Paramount+. The character was one of Frasier’s girlfriends, and she only appeared in seven episodes between season 7 and season 9. In that brief time, however, Jean Smart’s performance managed to impress critics and audiences alike.
Smart Killed It On Frasier
The most likely reason that the producers considered green-lighting a Frasier spinoff featuring Lana Gardner is that Smart kept earning major awards for her performance. She might have only appeared in seven episodes, but the actor earned the Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series twice for this role. At the time, it likely seemed a no-brainer to give a new series to an established guest character in a blockbuster show who kept winning awards.
Why Didn’t It Happen?
With all that going for the idea, why did we never get a Frasier spinoff featuring Lana Gardner and her son? The answer, of course, has to do with money. It would have just been too expensive for NBC to create the spinoff, and the primary reason for this is that a Gardner show would have been a spinoff of a spinoff.
As Jean Smart explained on Good Morning America, a Frasier spinoff would mean that the producers of Frasier would have to get paid. And because Frasier was a spinoff of Cheers, the Cheers producers and creators would also need to be paid. Faced with the prospect of having to pay serious cash just to create a show that might or might not succeed, NBC ended up just pulling the plug.
A Return To Frasier’s Life?
While Lana Gardner never got a Frasier spinoff show, there is still a longshot chance that this character could make an appearance in the second season (or a future season) of the Frasier revival show on Paramount+. The first season was notoriously lacking in legacy stars, merely bringing back Roz (Peri Gilpin) and Lilith (Bebe Neuwirth) for brief cameos. Kesley Grammer has previously talked about how Gilpin should get more time onscreen and how much he’d like to bring characters from Cheers into the show, so there’s always a chance Smart could return as the star and producers discover the importance of legacy characters.
Of course, the jury is out on whether Smart would even want to return to the Paramount revival show. She’s been busy lately with projects like Hacks on Max, a dramatic series for which she has won consecutive Emmys for her performance. Considering her current success, we somehow suspect she has no real regrets about not landing a Frasier spinoff back in the day.
