It’s amusing that everyone will gladly say that someone is leaving a show, but very few will dig in and say why. Apparently Madeleine Mantock is making a ‘difficult decision’ to leave the show and move on with her life, which could mean a number of things. The hope is that she’ll find what she’s looking for and do well, but the usual diatribe is that she’s grateful for the chance and everyone wishes her well because she was such a great person to have on the set and all that jazz. Seriously, no offense to anyone, but get a new line when it comes to someone leaving a show. It’s pretty convincing to think that there’s a script of what people are supposed to say when leaving a show and what the showrunners and directors are supposed to say in return. Doesn’t that get boring to anyone else to hear it so often? It’s all well and good to wish everyone well, but simply come up with something else to say. Wondering how her character is going to be written off is definitely going to be of great interest to the fans, especially since her character’s condition is bound to make things a little difficult.
Writing someone off of a show isn’t exactly a hard thing to do, especially with a fantasy show such as Charmed, but making it believable is one of the key ingredients, and creating a scenario in which the fans aren’t bound to storm the production studio looking for the writers would also be wise. Don’t underestimate fans, especially fans with internet access. There is a possibility that the story could be written in a manner to allow Madeleine to come back from time to time if she feels the need, but for now, her character simply needs an exit that will satisfy people and leave a possible opening that could be used in the coming days.
Whether another actress will be brought in to take her place is hard to say, since this is what happened in the original show when Shannon Doherty took off. As of now, it does sound as though the show might push forward with the remaining two actresses, but it wouldn’t be too surprising if a third was brought in eventually, a person that has some connection to the remaining two even if it’s a thin connection at best. Charmed is basically a fantasy soap opera, so it’s not hard to think that things will be shuffled around a bit in order to make everything work as is desired by the fans and those in charge. The best thing that can be said right now is that the show isn’t about to be canceled since it appears to be doing just fine, which doesn’t mean much since shows that have been doing great have been canceled in the recent past. But there’s more hope for this show since plenty of people are still watching and the numbers are likely good enough to keep it around for a while. Plus, tragedy on a show can actually interest the fans even more so it might be that the current season’s finale will be enough to get people wanting even more, which would be a plus.
The show will likely be given some way to cope with the loss of a character since it’s bound to happen that this will have happened for a reason so that something else could happen and a different storyline could be explored. Switching things up midstream isn’t something that a lot of studios are entirely unprepared for, since it’s likely that the studio has known that Madeleine has been wanting to leave for a while. If she did up and bolt without telling anyone that would have been a serious mistake, but it’s also a mark of someone that’s truly unhappy with the position they’re in, and that doesn’t appear to be the case here since Madeleine appears to be parting ways with the show without any real anger, just the casual regret that comes from leaving a show that’s been good to person for a while. The hope is that she’ll be moving on to something that will keep her just as happy.
Operating without a main character is going to force the show to unveil a storyline or two that will deal with the character’s loss, but it’s easy to think that something will come up fairly quickly since many TV shows tend to be versatile enough that they can take this kind of situation and make it work. The storylines in a TV show are far easier to rework than those in a movie, or so it sounds, and it’s fair to think that a show can adjust a lot quicker when such a thing is needed.
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