Was John Amos fired from ‘Good Times’? The truth behind his character’s exit – Hollywood Life

John Amos He died of natural causes on August 21 in Los Angeles, his representative confirmed on Tuesday. He was 84 years old.

“With a career spanning more than 50 years, Amos left a legacy of groundbreaking work in both television and film, with a commitment to positive representation of African Americans in media,” the statement said. There is.

The late actor is best known for his role as James Evans Sr. good times, There he played a hard-working father struggling to support his family in difficult circumstances. However, his character was canceled in season 4, where he died in a car accident.

Here’s everything you need to know about how that decision was reached.

Was John Amos fired? good times?

good times It received high ratings and was praised for making television history as one of the first sitcoms with an all-black cast. Norman Lear‘s jeffersons (1975-85). However, Amos also esther rollThe actor, who played his wife, Florida Evans, felt there was still room for black members on the show. They asked Lear to allow them to revise the script, which had been drafted by mostly white writers.

Documenting the trials and tribulations of a black working-class family living in the Chicago projects, good times (1974-79), which aired on CBS, never shied away from the harsh realities of life in public housing. The show tackled topics such as racial prejudice, substance abuse, and poverty while maintaining a sense of humor.

Despite its critical success, Amos felt that the show skewed too much toward comedy. At one point, while reminiscing about his roots with a childhood friend, James, played by James, was so poor that while other children’s clothes were patched, he recalled that “my clothes are patched!” I did.

“I had a way of expressing differences with the script that were not acceptable to the creative staff,” Amos explained.

Although Amos’ outspokenness was initially welcomed, he was ultimately deemed a “subversive element” and was fired in 1976, as he stated in an interview on the SiriusXM program. Morning shaking. He was written out starting in season 4, when his character died in a car accident.

“I wasn’t a very diplomatic guy back then. [the show’s producers] “I’m tired of having my life threatened because of jokes,” he continued. “So they said, ‘Why don’t we just kill him?’ We can move on with our lives! That taught me a lesson – I don’t know how to kill him. It wasn’t as important as I thought it would be to Norman Lear’s plans.