10 TV Stars Who Controversially Left Their Hit Shows

5. Chris Eccleston - Doctor Who

The fact that Chris Eccleston left Doctor Who isn't surprising in and of itself. After all, one of the show's most famous tenets basically requires that the lead role be a revolving door of sorts. Fans of Doctor Who will have gotten used to the fact that their cherished actors will leave after a few years, and the character of the Doctor won't disappear, but merely change. When Eccleston signed on, we had just gotten the show back. He was the very first Doctor of the rebooted series in 2005, so we were all sort of expecting him to stick around for a while. At least until it was firmly settled into the BBC lineup. It was a huge shock when he announced that he was leaving the show after only one series of thirteen episodes. We'd barely had a chance to get used to him, and then he was gone. His one year tenure on the show was the shortest of any Doctor, and looking back it really wasn't long enough to fully establish the character. It seems pretty obvious now why he left, though -- he wasn't happy. We doubt that he really knew what he was signing up for before the international phenomenon became a reality. It's also easy to imagine that Eccleston, a serious dramatic actor, might be put off by some of the sillier episodes of the first series and less than keen to commit to another season.