Full House became a huge hit after the sitcom’s debut in 1987 — but fans might be surprised to learn John Stamos actually wanted out of the show not long after he was cast as Jesse Katsopolis.
During the first episode of the Dave Coulier’s new podcast Full House Rewind, hesat down with Full House creator Jeff Franklin to discuss the beginnings of the beloved series. Midway through their chat, Coulier, 63, and Franklin, 68, recalled how Jodie Sweetin — who was cast as Stephanie Tanner — “stole the show” during the cast’s first table read.
“I remembered our first table read,” Coulier said, as Franklin added, “Where there’s a room full of studio and network executives. They were all there to see Stamos, I think.”
However, when Sweetin started reading her lines, it was apparent to everyone that she was a star.
“[She] stole the whole thing,” Franklin pointed out.
Coulier, who played Joey Gladstone on the series, then recalled: “And I remember walking out with John. He’s like, ‘The whole show is going to be her. We can’t do this!”
It wasn’t until “much later” that Franklin learned Stamos, 59, “was so upset about having to play second fiddle to these really funny kids” that he called his agent and attempted to quit the show.
As Franklin remembered it, Stamos told his agent, “This is a mistake. Get me off this show.”
Despite his initial hesitance, Stamos went on to play the Elvis-obsessed Uncle Jesse for the sitcom’s entire eight-season run from 1987–1995. He was joined by Coulier, Sweetin, Candace Cameron Bure, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Andrea Barber, Scott Weinger, Lori Loughlin and the late Bob Saget.
The hit show helped further cement Stamos as a bonafide TV star and launch the rest of the cast into stardom. He and the cast also returned to reprise their roles for the sequel series, Fuller House, which ran on Netflix from 2016 to 2020.
This isn’t the only anecdote about Stamos’ Full House beginnings that have come to light.
Earlier this year, the actor appeared on Josh Peck’s Good Guys podcast, where he revealed that he nearly got the Olsen twins booted from the show. The then-11-month-old twins were having a rough day on set during a memorable season 1 scene when the moment happened.
“[Dave] and I were changing the baby,” Stamos told Peck. “We’re carrying the baby downstairs, I think I was holding on to their armpits and Dave was holding her little feet. We take her into the kitchen and hosed her down, we put a fan on her, wrapped her up in paper towels. She was screaming. Both of them, they wanted to be anywhere else but there, and so did I.”
When the situation got worse, Stamos recalled thinking the Olsen twins, now 36, were not ready for prime time. The producers eventually hired “two red-headed kids” but it wasn’t long before Stamos wanted the Olsen twins back.
“I said, ‘Bring the Olsens back, these kids are terrible!’” he recalled. “It was a day or something, we tried the other kids, it didn’t work. I said, ‘This is not going to work, guys,’ and I screamed it 10 times. I said, ‘Get rid of them, I can’t work like this.’”
Despite those unconventional beginnings on the series, Stamos went on to develop strong bond with the rest of the Full House cast. In September 2022, he opened up about the impact the show has had while marking its 35th anniversary.
“When when it first came out, the reviews said it wouldn’t last until Thanksgiving,” he told outlet. “When it ended, it was time to move on. I was trying to keep my distance from it. And it just got bigger every year, bigger and bigger, and I realized, ‘Why am I running from this?’ I got to the point, too, where I’d done enough work that I felt I was able to do other things and prove myself as an actor. And so now I just absolutely love it. I just love it.”
Full House is currently streaming on Hulu and HBO Max, while Fuller House can be streamed on Netflix.
