The Full House Scene That Almost Made John Stamos Quit The Show
John Stamos' acting career spans more than four decades, but he'll forever remain linked to his role as Uncle Jesse on "Full House" more than any other. Recently, a memoir by Stamos titled "If You Would Have Told Me" hit bookstore shelves. Upon reading it, among plenty of other key revelations, fans of his work on "Full House" might be surprised to learn that he almost quit the show over a scene in its very first episode.
Variety has an excerpt from the book in which Stamos recalls how he completely lost interest in the gig during an early table read. Specifically, a scene at the end of the pilot episode in which the whole family gathers around Michelle's (Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen) crib and sings the "Flintstones" theme song convinced Stamos that the show was not for him at best and was likely to fail at worst. He then recounts contacting his agent immediately after reading the "Flintstones" scene, telling him, "I'm dying to pull the rip cord on this family-friendly hell."
At first, Stamos' fears seemed justified when the first season of "Full House" failed to capture a sizable audience. However, after ABC reshuffled its schedule and aired the already popular "Who's the Boss" as its lead-in, "Full House" became a hit. Regardless of the show's success, however, by the first season's end, he had already told his agent he had a change of heart and considered his castmates family.
John Stamos felt upstaged by Jodie Sweetin
In mid-2023, while appearing on an episode of the YouTube interview series "Hot Ones," John Stamos likewise discussed his intent to quit "Full House" after that same early reading of its pilot episode. Specifically, he recounted how his co-star, Jodie Sweetin, bothered him that day.
"I hated that show," Stamos begins after interviewer Sean Evans broaches the subject of the iconic sitcom. He then shares that the way it was first described to him gave him the impression that children would merely serve as background characters and that he would be one of its major stars. During that early table read, as one of the youngest members of the Tanner family on "Full House," an elementary school-aged Jodie Sweetin got so many laughs from the table read's attendees that Stamos apparently couldn't hear himself reciting some of his lines. This just compounded his resultant disinterest in working on the show.
Bob Saget, it turns out, was instrumental in convincing Stamos to stay. Of course, before long, he took to the gig, regardless of some sappy moments and instances where he continued to be upstaged by his much younger co-stars. "I fought it for a long time, Stamos recalled. "Then I finally said, 'What am I doing?' It's a beautiful show we built with sweetness and kindness. The central character was love."