Rob Lowe of The West Wing has opened up about his experience on the NBC show The West Wing, outlining why he left after the fourth season. During an appearance on the Stitcher Studios program ‘Podcrushed,’ the star was open about his experiences on the smash political drama, relating it to “a super unhealthy relationship.” “It was the best thing I ever did,” Lowe stated in the interview.
He further went on to say how there was no space left for the character he was playing and that it wasn’t a very good experience for him. Here are all the details.
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Rob Lowe Talks About His Experience On ‘The West Wing’
“I did not have a good experience,” he admitted to Penn Badgley and his co-hosts, confessing that he “tried to make it work” but couldn’t get his troubles to go away. Lowe, who played Sam Seaborn, the deputy communications director, for the first four seasons, left the Aaron Sorkin series following Season 4. According to reports at the time, Lowe was dissatisfied with his character’s limited role and his lack of a salary rise in light of Martin Sheen and other co-stars obtaining raises.
“Then what happened was my kids were getting to a certain age where I could see them having first girlfriends or friends and being in a relationship that was abusive and taking it,” Lowe stated. “She’s the popular girl; everybody likes her, she’s beautiful, it must be great. All the things that people would say about making The West Wing to me. It’s so popular, it’s so amazing, it must be amazing. But I know what it’s like, and if I couldn’t walk away from it, then how could I empower my kids to walk away from it?”
He further added, “As much as it hurts to admit it, it has been increasingly clear, for quite a while, that there was no longer a place for Sam Seaborn on The West Wing,” Lowe said in a statement at that time. “Warner had allowed me an opportunity to leave the show as I arrived — grateful for it, happy to have been on it and proud of it.”
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What Happened To Lowe’s Character In The Series?
The West Wing portrayed the lives of fictional Democratic president Josiah Bartlet and his advisors in the world of politics. Bradley Whitford, Allison Janney, Janel Moloney, and Dulé Hill all appeared in the seven-season drama. The drama aired between 1999 and 2006.
Lowe was cut off from the Emmy-winning series in season 4. His character was running for Congress in Orange County, California. He returned to the part of Sam Seaborn in 2006 for two episodes of the seventh and final season. And again in 2020 for an HBO special benefiting the group When We All Vote.
Speaking of the show, he said, “We were a part of television history, and I will never forget it.”
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