Michael Boyle

"The Walking Dead" is famous for killing off its cast, to the point where the vast majority of the Season 1 survivors are long gone by the final season. The show even killed off characters like Andrea, (Laurie Holden), despite the actress thinking it was a mistake, and would later kill off Carl (Chandler Riggs), even though he survived the entire run of the comics.

Long before Keri Russell delivered her standout performance on "The Diplomat," she guest-starred in Season 6 of "Scrubs." Russell played Melody O'Harra, the college best friend of Elliot (Sarah Chalke), in two episodes. J.D. (Zach Braff) repeatedly tries to hook up with Melody rather than confront his feelings for Elliot, until Melody questions him about his behavior and prompts him to realize what he's doing.

"Star Trek: The Next Generation" made it all the way to Season 7, but according to writer and producer Brannon Braga, the series should've made it until at least Season 10. "In my mind, 'TNG' never ended," Braga told The 7th Rule in an August 2026 interview. "It was taken off the air at the height of its popularity. It had another three years, easy."

While the action genre is filled with big tough guys like Jack Reacher (Alan Ritchson), what sets him apart is his total absence of family or possessions. Reacher has no wife or kids, nor does he have a home or car. He is a self-described "hobo" by choice, roaming through the country with nothing except a toothbrush. "Reacher" author Lee Child thinks this is a key part of the character's appeal.

"Star Trek: The Next Generation" made it all the way to Season 7, but according to writer and producer Brannon Braga, the series should've made it until at least Season 10.

Cop dramas have existed from virtually the moment television began. "Barney Blake, Police Reporter," premiered in 1948 and embraced a crime-of-the-week formula that would become a staple of the genre. "Stand By For Crime" premiered in 1949; Whereas the previous show established a key trend, this one's approach was a bit of a dead end. The series aired for a live audience, and invited viewers to call in with their own guesses as to who the killer was.

Four years before Gary Sinise played a hero in the hit Stephen King miniseries "The Strand," he guest-starred as a serial killer suspect in the Los Angeles-set NBC cop series "Hunter," which aired over 150 episodes across seven seasons between 1984 and 1991. Sinise appeared in the Season 6 episode "Lullaby" as Lord Tony Rutherford, a British politician and keen photographer suspected of killing multiple sex workers from his home country. It was one of his first notable roles, yet nobody really talks about it these days, and that's a little surprising, because "Hunter" was a pretty big deal at the time.

"Reacher" may have made Alan Ritchson a major star, but the actor was already quite busy long before the Prime Video series. Even outside of the major roles on this list, he's landed a series of charming one-off roles. He starred in the "Black Mirror" episode "Nosedive," as the handsome, potentially closeted groom of the main character's childhood frenemy; played Jess'(Zooey Deschanel) love interest, Matt, in Season 4 of "New Girl;" and a talking cow in an oddly psychedelic episode of the Nickelodeon series "Fred."

“Can we even trust her?” Stewart asked.

“Can we even trust her?” Stewart asked. Jon Stewart called out President Trump's scandalous relationship with his 35-year-old aide Natalie Harp.