10 Iconic TV Characters Only ONE Actor Could Play
3. Sam Beckett - Quantum Leap
It's difficult to picture NBC's legendary sci-fi series Quantum Leap being nearly as successful with another actor playing its time-travelling physicist Dr. Sam Beckett.
Bakula brought such a unique energy and sense of humour to the role of Beckett, for which he received four Best Actor Emmy nominations, that it's tough to even consider who might've played the part otherwise.
This fact was made abundantly clear to Martin Gero, showrunner on the recent Quantum Leap reboot, who made the decision to revive the IP with a new protagonist rather than recast Sam Beckett given that Bakula is basically irreplaceable in the role. Gero said:
"Everyone felt like the original show was so iconic, it would be crazy to cast a new Sam and a new Al and just start again. We would never be able to recapture the magic of those two characters, so to be able to do something totally new but in the same space - creating as a sequel more than a reboot - that just made sense to the entire creative team."
Though that was certainly a smart way to approach the new take, it's nevertheless received wildly mixed reviews, with many complaining that it lacks the sense of fun that Bakula and co-star Dean Stockwell brought to the table.