Why Bea Arthur Decided To Leave The Golden Girls

Why Bea Arthur Decided To Leave The Golden Girls

The Golden Girls came to an end when Bea Arthur, who played Dorothy Zbornak, walked away from the show, but why did she actually leave the sitcom?

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Why Bea Arthur Decided To Leave The Golden Girls

The Golden Girls ended because Bea Arthur decided to leave the show, but why did she exit the sitcom in the first place? The actress was among the four titular actors of the sitcom, she played Dorothy Zbornak opposite Betty White’s Rose, Rue McClanahan’s Blanche, and Estelle Getty’s Sophia. Unlike other sitcoms with multiple leads, The Golden Girls was a true ensemble, as each character was pivotal in the show’s overall vibe. So, it was definitely a shock when Arthur announced that she’s walking away from the project, effectively setting up its end.

Debuting in 1985, The Golden Girls followed the adventures of the single middle-aged women who were living together in Miami. For seven seasons, the series went through their day-to-day lives, highlighting the delights and struggles of ladies their age — something that was unique and even modern during that era. Each character was charming and memorable in their own right: Dorothy was sarcastic and witty, Rose was a bit slow to catch up but was kind and charming, Blanche was unapologetically sexual, and Sophia was wise and frank, almost to a fault. Throughout its run, The Golden Girls was an instant hit for both critics and audiences. It tackled sensitive and controversial topics which added to its relatability to its viewers which, in hindsight, made it ahead of its time.

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But, all things must come to an end — at least that’s Arthur’s principle when she announced that she’s retiring her role as Dorothy in The Golden Girls. There were several reasons behind her decision; that includes feeling like the writers have done everything that they could with the four main characters. According to the book “Golden Girls Forever: An Unauthorized Look Behind The Lanai” written by Jim Colucci who interviewed 20 actors and crew members of the show including Arthur, the actress felt that by the latter years, the quality of the sitcom was starting to slip. The Golden Girls was known for its strong narratives and she was simply no longer impressed with how the episodes are panning out and she wanted to leave the show while it was still resonating with people. When asked about the same matter, however, White had a different opinion; she thought that they ended prematurely. Chances are that the rest of the cast felt the same way considering they stayed behind and starred in the short-lived spin-off, The Golden Palace.

The same tell-all also revealed that Arthur was actually offended by how much the show poked fun about her character. Colucci revealed that while White, Getty, McClanahan were less phased about below-the-belt jokes when it came to their characters, their co-star, ultimately struggled. “Unfortunately, the things that were said about Dorothy were that she was big and ugly. And that wears on an actress after a while,” the author shared. Arthur’s son, Matthew Saks, backed up the idea that his mother thought that “the ideas had started to run out” in a separate interview with Closer (via Cheat Sheet). But he also added that aging was also part of the reason why the actress left The Golden Girls. Arthur was around 70 years old when the sitcom ended and it’s understandable why she wanted to retire Dorothy and slow down; after all, filming a full season of a series composed of 26-25 episodes is no easy feat. Arthur died of lung cancer in 2009 — just two and a half weeks short of her 87th birthday.

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Arthur’s Dorothy, however, was sent off in a satisfying way in the final season of The Golden Girls. After years of dealing with her cheating husband, Stan, and struggling to navigate the dating scene, she caught herself in a whirlwind romance, marrying Blanche’s uncle, Lucas Hollingsworth. The pair relocates in Atlanta. She did appear in a couple of episodes in The Golden Palace, but since the spin-off wasn’t well-received, it eventually had to end after one season.

Link Source : https://screenrant.com/golden-girls-show-bea-arthur-exit-reasons/

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