20 Ways Your Favourite TV Shows Were Almost Completely Different
7. Frasier - Niles Originally Didn't Exist
It's impossible to imagine Frasier without Niles. The character is crucial to the success of the show, giving Frasier someone to spar with and elevating its farcical nature, with David Hyde Pierce and Kelsey Grammer complementing each other perfectly.
But there's a reason the character of Niles, or just the idea of Frasier having a brother, was never mentioned on Cheers: he didn't exist.
There were no plans to introduce a sibling for Frasier during the conception of the show either, until one of the casting directors found a photo of Pierce and showed it to the creators, pointing out how much he looked like a younger version of Grammer. Before long they were looking at tapes of his previous performances, and the character of Niles was created.