44 TV Actors Who Played Pretty Big Roles On These Shows, But Their Characters Just Suddenly Disappeared In The Blink Of An Eye

    Gone but never truly forgotten.

    Ajani Bazile-Dutes
    by Ajani Bazile-Dutes

    BuzzFeed Staff

    We asked members of the BuzzFeed Community to tell us which characters from TV shows randomly disappeared. Here are some of the characters who people did not forget existed:

    1. Judy Winslow, the youngest daughter from Family Matters (played by Jaimee Foxworth):

    Judy as the flower girl at a wedding
    Cartoon Network

    "The Winslow's youngest daughter? She was in the first couple of seasons and then went upstairs one epsiode, never to be seen again."

    —winterwednesday9

    2. Henry Finnerty, the youngest child from Grounded for Life (played by Jake Burbage):

    Henry with black stripes painted on his cheek
    Fox / The WB

    "WTF happened to him???"

    —arocknrolldream

    3. Derek Haig, Danny's friend from Degrassi: The Next Generation (played by Marc Donato):

    Derek talking to Danny
    CTV

    "He had such great potential and he never got a redemption arc."

    —ilitterallylovethis

    4. Blue Chessex, Holly J's ex-boyfriend from Degrassi: The Next Generation (played by Matthew Bennett):

    Blue talking to Holly J
    CTV

    —ilitterallylovethis

    5. Josh Wolowitz, Howard's half brother from The Big Bang Theory (played by Matthew Bennett):

    Josh sitting on a couch
    CBS

    "Howard had a surprise half brother for exactly one episode who was never to be seen again. It was kind of a weird storyline to introduce to never revisit, especially considering how Howard might have used this connection to his father to get a little closure."

    —lamusica83

    6. Richie Lanucchi, Doug's best friend from The King of Queens (played by Lawrence John Romano):

    Richie talking to Dough in a diner
    CBS

    "He was one of Doug's best friends and than disappeard and was never mentioned again."

    —yvonne89

    7. Phoebe Abbott, Phoebe's birth mom from Friends (played by Teri Garr):

    Phoebe talking and sitting on a couch
    NBC

    "She was first introduced in Season 3, and then vanished halfway through Season 4 never to be seen again."

    —obbb92

    8. Jenny Kelly, Sabrina's best friend from Sabrina the Teenage Witch (played by Michelle Beaudoin):

    Jenny from "Sabrina the Teenage Witch"
    ABC / The WB

    "I have questions."

    —Ginger Nuggets

    9. Gwen Grandy, Mindy's best friend from The Mindy Project (played by Anna Camp):

    Gwen standing next to Mindy
    Fox / Hulu

    "Mindy's best friend, Gwen, played by Anna Camp, disappeared. After the first season, they really stop pretending that Mindy had anything going on for her outside of the office and the people involved with it. There were several characters in the first season who just suddenly disappeared. I think there was a whole entourage of people in the office who were supporting characters who went away without any mention."

    —joep45cede9de

    10. Max, Zack and Cody's friend from The Suite Life of Zack and Cody (played by Alyson Stoner):

    Max talking to Zack and Cody
    Disney Channel

    —cheesecake21

    11. Alex Jensen, Sheldon's assistant from The Big Bang Theory (played by Margo Cathleen Harshman):

    Alex talking to Leonard
    CBS

    "She went out to buy quieter pants and never came back."

    —ferociouskitten

    12. Lexi Rivera, Mariana's best friend from The Fosters (played by Bianca Alexa Santos):

    Lexi talking to Mariana
    Freeform

    "She came back for one episode from when she moved to another country and then she just disappeared and was never mentioned again."

    —anonymous_cat_2

    13. Grace Sanchez, Gaby's biological daughter from Desperate Housewives (played by Cecilia Balagot):

    Grace talking to Gaby
    ABC

    "When Grace moved away, it was a hot mess and very hard for Gaby, but then after a few episodes we never see Gaby grieving again."

    —thatzokayy

    14. Christian Varela Expósito from Elite (played by Miguel Herrán):

    Christian looking in the mirror
    Netflix

    "After he got hit by a car, he was sent to Switzerland for treatment and no one ever spoke about him again, like he never existed."

    —s463b03bd4

    15. Nebula Lawrence, Topanga's sister from Boy Meets World (played by Krystee Clark):

    Nebula Lawerence from "Boy Meets World"
    ABC

    "She was there in Season 1, but then they completely forgot about her existence."

    —Zarina Tolagayeva

    16. Ben Geller, Ross's son from Friends (played by Michael Gunderson, Charles Thomas Allen, John Christopher Allen, and Cole Sprouse):

    Ben Geller from "Friends"
    NBC

    "I get that he wasn't one of the most important characters, but he was Ross's son! It's just weird that he completely vanished after Season 8. Of course, there's that wild fan theory suggesting that Ross lost custody of Ben, but we all know that it was just poor writing and they completely forgot about him after Emma was born."

    —Lizzy Phalange

    17. Scott Rosson, Serena and Dan's half brother from Gossip Girl (played by Chris Riggi):

    Scott Rosson from "Gossip Girl"
    The CW

    "He's Lily and Rufus's son. They made such a big deal about him, and then after they had some kind of a family reunion and all seemed well, he just vanished and was never mentioned again."

    —starfireizzy

    18. Mr. Turner from Boy Meets World (played by Anthony Tyler Quinn):

    Mr. Turner lying in a hospital bed
    ABC

    "He was a major character in Seasons 2 through 4 and then got in a motorcycle accident and was never seen again. They briefly mentioned him in the Season 5 graduation episode, saying he was on the 'other side of the school.' It was such a lame send-off for a great character."

    —danae9

    19. Kendra Mason, Spinner's adopted sister from Degrassi: The Next Generation (played by Katie Lai):

    Spinner standing next to Kendra
    CTV

    "Toby also had a thing for her, then poof...gone."

    —Rachel Beth

    20. Mike Montgomery, Aria's brother from Pretty Little Liars (played by Cody Christian):

    Aria walking with Mike
    Freeform

    "He disappeared and didn't even show up at Aria's wedding."

    —Captain Bill

    21. Terri McGreggor from Degrassi: The Next Generation (played by Christina Schmidt):

    Terri from "Degrassi"
    CTV

    "They made her a survivor of domestic abuse, then her attacker came back and put her in a coma. The next thing we hear, she’s okay and transferred schools. Like, what? It’s a shame they got rid of their one plus-size cast member. They could’ve done so much more with her."

    —Pokelovr1

    22. Danny Kessler from Lizzie McGuire (played by Byron Fox):

    Danny Kessler from "Lizzie McGuire"
    Disney Channel

    "He was the original heartthrob on the show, and then he randomly disappeared and suddenly Ethan Craft was the new crush."

    —haleyw4ae66dcb9

    23. Dave Rygalski from Gilmore Girls (played by Adam Brody):

    Dave from "Gilmore Girls"
    The WB

    "He left for college in California, and he and Lane were doing long-distance, but after the marriage jug episode, he was never mentioned again. He wasn't even mentioned when Lane started dating Zach, one of Dave’s best friends."

    —bethw41d9ffb62

    24. Tina Pinciotti, Donna's sister from That '70s Show (played by Amanda Fuller):

    Tina Pinciotti from "That '70s Show"
    Fox

    "She was mentioned, and then later Donna was randomly referred to as an only child."

    —foley

    25. Evan Mayer, Carl's son from Desperate Housewives (played by Sawyer Church):

    Carl and Evan from "Desperate Housewives"
    ABC

    "His mom left them, and Evan was very upset and made disturbing drawings. Then Carl died in the plane crash. Later we see that Julie is given some money and Susan got shares in his strip club, but no one mentioned the poor little kid, like, ever!"

    —Marie GVA

    26. Sara Spooner, Carrie's sister from The King of Queens (played by Lisa Rieffel):

    Sarah Spooner from "The King of Queens"
    CBS

    "Carrie had a sister in the earlier episodes. She was part of the main cast and lived in the house with them. It was also a double meaning for the show’s title, as Kevin James was the 'king' and Carrie and Sara were the 'queens.' She disappeared by the seventh episode and is totally wiped from the history of the show. From then on, Carrie is treated like an only child."

    —joaqamole

    27. Miles Goodman, Sabrina's college roommate from Sabrina the Teenage Witch (played by Trevor Lissauer):

    Miles from "Sabrina the Teenage Witch"
    ABC / The WB

    "He is never mentioned or seen again after Season 6, when Sabrina graduates from college."

    —mattyc3

    28. Kayla Huntington Scavo, Tom's daughter from Desperate Housewives (played by Rachel G. Fox):

    Tom talking to Kayla
    ABC

    "She left to live with her grandparents and was never talked about again."

    —ninariley95

    29. Isaac Lahey from Teen Wolf (played by Daniel Sharman):

    Isaac talking to Scott and Stiles
    MTV

    "He was there at the end of Season 3 and then was never shown again."

    —niccajones15

    30. Danny from Teen Wolf (played by Keahu Kahuanui):

    Danny sitting next to Ethan on the bus
    MTV

    "They dropped the bombshell that he knew about all the supernatural stuff, and then he’s never mentioned again because the show's creator felt there wasn’t anything more they could do with his character? Like, what?"

    —cc4411364

    31. Violet and Roscoe Plunkett, Christy's kids on Mom (played by Sadie Calvano and Blake Garrett Rosenthal):

    A side-by-side of Christy holding Oliver and Violet sitting at a table
    CBS

    "She acted as if she didn't have any children. They brought in Violet for one episode last season, and Roscoe went to live with dad full-time, but they never address it."

    —Toti68

    32. Alex Lesman, Lorelai’s boyfriend from Gilmore Girls (played by Billy Burke):

    Alex Lesman from "Gilmore Girls"
    The WB / The CW

    "He seemed like a pretty cool guy and then he just disappeared."

    —kilodelta5

    33. Robin Sylvester, Sue's daughter from Glee (played by Jordyn Orr):

    Sue holding her baby
    Fox

    "She was literally in like one episode and that's it."

    —happy_feet_12

    34. Austin Britt, Edie's nephew from Desperate Housewives (played by Josh Henderson):

    Edie bringing Austin a soda as he sits on the couch
    ABC

    "He leaves after getting Danielle pregnant, but there’s no mention of him after his Aunt Edie dies? Also, he’s on Wisteria Lane at the same time as Edie's son, Travers, but they never interact? It’s very strange."

    —Kora Carstairs

    35. Abby Day, Jess's sister from New Girl (played by Linda Cardellini):

    Jess and Abby from "New Girl"
    Fox

    "She was there, then she wasn't. She was never even mentioned again."

    —blueribbs84

    "Abby didn’t even go to Jess's wedding!"

    —blueribbs84

    36. Eric Tramer, Jessie Spano's stepbrother from Saved by the Bell (played by Joshua Hoffman):

    Eric and Jessie talking in a bedroom as he holds a sweater
    NBC

    "He was there for all of one episode, if I recall."

    —t49e12a934

    37. Detective Daniels from Brooklyn Nine-Nine (uncredited role):

    Detective Daniels talking to coworkers
    NBC

    "She was introduced in the pilot along with Hitchcock and Scully but was never seen again."

    —paigesmoon

    38. Cathy Simms from The Office (played by Lindsey Broad):

    Cathy Simms from "The Office"
    NBC

    "She had this random plotline about trying to sleep with Jim, and then after the failure of the Sabre store launch in Florida, she just didn't come back to Scranton and was never mentioned again."

    —chrism254

    39. Ruby Lucas from Once Upon a Time (played by Meghan Ory):

    Ruby from "Once Upon a Time"
    ABC

    "She was almost a main character and then was just gone and only mentioned a couple of times. She went from Snow’s best friend to being gone."

    —natalieg47790f622

    40. Mutt Schitt from Schitt’s Creek (played by Tim Rozon):

    Mutt from "Schitt's Creek"
    Pop

    "I thought they’d at least bring Mutt back for the finale, but no, he just evaporated."

    —leahg19

    41. Santiago Herrera from Friday Night Lights (played by Benjamin Ciaramello):

    Santiago from "Friday Night Lights"
    NBC

    "I had to go back when I was watching because I thought I missed something, but no, poof, he's gone."

    —abbycdefg

    42. Leah Murphy from Grey's Anatomy (played by Tessa Ferrer):

    Leah from "Grey's Anatomy"
    ABC

    "I know she was initially fired from the hospital, but she came back in later seasons. Since she was hired back, she should be working there, but they totally forgot about her after that. WHERE IS SHE?"

    —s4bb472acb

    43. Mandy Hampton from The West Wing (played by Moira Kelly):

    Mandy Hampton from "The West Wing"
    NBC

    "She's the queen of disappearing from shows. When her character went away, the term 'Mandyville' was coined."

    —rhiannons4e2d6f859

    44. And lastly, Chuck Cunningham, the oldest child from Happy Days (played by Gavan O'Herlihy and Randolph Roberts):

    Chuck talking at dinner
    Paramount Television

    —nprfan1

    What other TV characters randomly disappeared? Let us know in the comments!

    Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.