Kelsey Grammer reveals that David Hyde Pierce’s Niles not being in the new reboot made him realize one heartbreaking fact about Frasier.
After David Hyde Pierce turned down returning as Niles in the Frasier revival, Kelsey Grammer realized something heartbreaking about his character. Snobby psychiatrist Frasier Crane’s return to the small screen is already set for later this year. However, the new Frasier reboot will see him not in Seattle, but back in Cheers’ Boston, and surrounded by a new set of people.
Speaking with Metro UK, Grammer recalls the day that he found out neither Jane Leeves nor Pierce would return for the Frasier reboot. He shared that it was his wife, Kayte Walsh, who pointed out that throughout Crane’s life, he hasn’t really had a good close friend, resulting in Nicholas Lyndhurst’s new character, Alan Cornwall. Read his full quote below:
Jane [Leeves, who played Daphne] is not in it, David [Hyde-Pierce, who played Niles] finally said, ‘I really can’t come back and play that role again’, and that was actually the birth of a new direction. I went home that day and had one of my little meditations and thought, ‘Boston [where Cheers was set]. He has to go back to Boston and sew up some loose ends and find the Frasier that he did not become when he left Boston.’ And my wife pointed out that Frasier never had a real friend. I was like, ‘You’re right!’
Why Frasier Never Had Any Friends In Cheers & The Original Show
Frasier’s lack of friends is a troublesome fact that has been overlooked for years simply because he was always surrounded by people. However, looking back at his arc thus far, it isn’t surprising that this is the case. When he was introduced in Cheers, he was merely a late addition to the cast. Even the way he was integrated into Sam Malone’s group was odd, considering he was only brought in because of his ties to Diane. Additionally, he was also very different from the usual pub crowd; even though he regularly hung out at Cheers, he never forged any deep friendships.
When he moved back to Seattle for the original Frasier, the idea was to see him reconnect with his dad and brother. The Cheers spin-off could even be classified as a family sitcom, as most of its narratives revolve around the relationships within the Crane clan. That’s arguably the reason why it became so successful since it was able to differentiate itself from its parent series. That being said, it’s quite unfair to say that Frasier never had an actual friend given Roz Doyle’s (Peri Gilpin) existence. Granted, they were first co-workers at KACL, but their relationship developed far beyond being colleagues.
Much of Frasier’s success as a character stems from the people around him. Given that, there’s pressure for his new dynamic with Alan to be a big hit as it may very well spell the reboot’s success or failure. With a proposed October release date, more about the Frasier reboot should emerge soon.
