"Ghosts" (US version) - one missing character in each episode

November 4, 2021 9:35 PM

Wife and I are very much enjoying the new US version of the TV show "Ghosts." There are six primary ghosts - and in each of the last three episodes, one of the six ghosts has not appeared in any scene. In tonight's episode, for instance, the ghost of the elderly matron was not featured. Curious - does anyone know why the producers/showrunners would do this?
posted by davidmsc to Media & Arts (6 answers total)

Best answer: TV Tropes: Absentee Actor lists the various practical reasons.
posted by zamboni at 9:46 PM on November 4, 2021 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I first noticed this with STNG, and assumed that it was for budget and contract reasons. Marina Sirtis is cheaper if you only have to contract for 22 episodes rather than 25. It's also simpler (and cheaper) to write and shoot an episode that has fewer characters. Multiply that out by most members of an ensemble cast and you have a material saving.
posted by Winnie the Proust at 6:24 AM on November 5, 2021 [3 favorites]

Response by poster: Good points - I thought it might be plot-related, but now it appears not likely.
posted by davidmsc at 8:17 AM on November 5, 2021

Did you see if the actress is appearing in any other films or shows shot around the same time?

Sometimes an actress may have signed on to do a production which gets delayed or goes long. Then the shooting schedule collides with the schedule of another production and the person can't be in two places at the same time. The writers adapt.
posted by JoeZydeco at 8:32 AM on November 5, 2021 [2 favorites]

Oh and don't forget pilots. You might shoot a pilot years before it's approved, and suddenly they want you for 12 episodes and you've already committed to a movie shoot right in the middle of the show.
posted by JoeZydeco at 9:46 AM on November 5, 2021

I noticed this too! I never noticed any conspicuously absent ghosts in the UK version.
posted by 41swans at 11:49 AM on November 5, 2021