"Chandler Was Going To Cheat On Monica" — Here Are Nine TV Plotlines That Were Changed, And I Couldn't Be More Relieved

"He went to the writers and said the audience would never forgive him."

It must be difficult as script writers to try and navigate the growth of a character, especially in the early days.

CW

Luckily, if they're way off the mark they can always adapt the script, but here are some scrapped storylines that would have changed our most beloved shows...

1. Chandler cheating on Monica — Friends

NBC

After the sad passing of Matthew Perry, actor Lisa Cash revealed that she was originally cast in Friends as a hotel worker in Las Vegas who would then have a fling with Chandler. The storyline would coincide with Chandler being upset that Monica had lunch with her former boyfriend, Richard.

Lisa commented that on the day her scenes were supposed to be shot, Matthew Perry "went to the writers and said the audience would never forgive him (Chandler), which made a lot of sense."

Okay, I'm so glad they scrapped this storyline because in no world would Chandler do that to Monica. Even though he was previously afraid of commitment, Monica helped him through that, and I really think him cheating would have wasted his growth as a character.

2. Jim cheating on Pam — The Office

NBC

Oh yeah, one of the most beloved couples in TV history almost had a completely different story. In Brian Baumgartner's (Kevin in The Office) book, it was revealed that Jim would have an affair with Pam's maternity leave replacement in season eight. 

John Krasinski did everything to ensure that this plotline would *never* happen, including going to Greg Daniels the series creator: "I remember saying things that I never thought I’d say before, like, ‘I’m not going to shoot it.’" While adding that there is only so far that you can push fans of the show before they're no longer on board.

3. Steve was going to be killed off in season one — Stranger Things

Netflix

Yup, The Duffer brothers confirmed this but decided to keep Steve on as the actor Joe Keery played the part so well. Since then, we've witnessed huge growth in the part of Steve, and he has one of the strongest character arcs in the whole show. It wouldn't be the same without him, truly.

4. Mr. Schue was originally written as a crystal meth addict — Glee

Fox

Ryan Murphy revealed that: "Mr. Schue, I believe, was a crystal meth addict in Ian’s script..." However, he felt as though the writing was too dark for network television, and worked to overhaul the entire script before the pilot was released.

He also revealed that Matthew Morrison was not the first choice for the role, but Justin Timberlake was seriously considered. Honestly, they look so similar to me, I can picture it.

5. Jess was supposed to kiss Schmidt instead of Nick — New Girl

Fox

Fans of New Girl will all remember *that* moment when Nick grabs Jess and they finally kiss for the first time. Buuuut, things weren't meant to go that way originally. Yup, Schmidt and Jess were the ones who were supposed to share a kiss during the "True American" game. Creator of the show, Liz Meriweather, switched it to Jess and Nick, but wasn't sure that the two would actually kiss until a week before shooting:

"We were right on the edge of starting to spin our wheels with their story and holding out any longer felt like not an honest thing. It felt exciting to give ourselves this challenge of how are they going to get out of this or how is this going to affect everything."

Of course, they made the right call, and it's one of those scenes that will forever live in my mind.

6. Klaus was going to be killed off in season three — The Vampire Diaries

The CW

NGL, reading about this one physically pained me. Klaus is a fan favourite of the show, and even went on to star in The Originals. Julie Plec admitted that she had intended to kill off Klaus for good at the end of season three, but chose to backtrack as she wanted the storyline of the "original" vampires to evolve. Julie revealed:

"Our intention was that, after a long, arduous year of trying to vanquish and defeat the villain, our heroes would prevail and he would be no more. But when you have actors who are that good, you have to let your storytelling evolve and wrap around that a little bit."

Can you imagine how different The Vampire Diaries would have been without our favourite murderous hybrid?

7. Haley and Lucas were going to be a couple — One Tree Hill

The CW

Bethany Joy Lenz (who played Haley) revealed that the writers were originally hoping for a Haley and Lucas pairing to work, before adding "but Chad (who played Lucas) and I had no chemistry, so it just didn’t work. Our energy was so sibling-ness, that it didn’t happen." The whole drama with Peyton and Brooke was enough for me, I'm glad this wasn't added to the mix.

8. Rue was supposed to kill Nate at the beginning of season one — Euphoria

HBO

In the original script, a flash-forward revealed that Rue had killed Nate and left his body in a cornfield. The majority of the pilot episode would have focused on the murder of Nate, however, there is a possibility that Nate could be killed off in latter seasons, particularly with his abusive behaviour towards Maddy and his connection with Cassie. I can only imagine how different Euphoria would have been if this plot stayed, it definitely would have been more of a murder mystery that's for sure.

9. Lafayette was killed off early in the books — True Blood

HBO

One of the show's most beloved characters was actually supposed to be killed off very early on, instead of staying for all seven seasons. In the show, his character arc grew so much from how he was written in the books, that his popularity amongst fans lead to him becoming a permanent fixture on the show and diverting from the original plot. 

In the second book, Lafayette was found dead after visiting a secret sex club, where Sookie found his body. It's safe to say, True Blood wouldn't have been the same without him.

Are there any others you can think of? Let us know in the comments below!