Ted Danson Thought One 'Cheers' Costar Would Be 'Terrible'

Ted Danson is a prolific actor, but certainly no prophet. The Cheers star recalled being "dead wrong" about most of his instincts while on the sitcom from 1982–1993, including the casting of one of his most beloved co-stars.

On his SiriusXM podcast Where Everybody Knows Your Name, Danson recalled some of his past mistakes to guest Andy Richter, "One of my first obvious ones was Cheers casting Shelley Long," he says. "That's all wrong," Danson recalls telling producers at the time, "she'd be terrible for that." 

Danson, who played Sam Malone, quickly learned about how wrong he was when the show became a success. "Right out of the shoot she became this instant, brilliant character actor doing a brilliant job," he said on his podcast, describing Long as "serving the entire thing perfectly." 

Danson went as far as to credit the success of Cheers with Long's acting, saying "that first year she put us on the map." His claim may not be hyperbolic. The year after the show first premiered, Long won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for her portrayal of Diane Chambers. 

Danson and Long auditioned for Cheers as a pair, Danson revealed on the Smartless podcast in 2024. Despite being teamed up, Danson still disapproved of Long's acting style, which led to tension on set in early seasons of the sitcom. "It was hard for us sometimes to be in the room together," Danson told Smartless. Feud rumors circulated the pair for years following the show's end in 1993.

While Danson's misfired casting decision may have followed him the longest, it's not the only error he made on set of Cheers. On Everybody Knows Your Name, Danson recalled a note he had for co-star Mary Steenburgen. "I'll say 'turn right here,' and she'll say, 'thank you, but I know it's left,'" he says, "if they did the opposite, it would work brilliantly."