One of Family Guy’s biggest stars still regards the show’s resurrection from cancellation as a standout career moment, over 20 years later. Seth Green has voiced Chris Griffin in the cartoon sitcom since it began in 1999, as well as Griffin family neighbor Neil Goldman.
In conversation with ScreenRant’s Ash Crossan at San Diego Comic-Con 2025, the actor has recalled many people not even realizing he was in the show during its early years. Yet, while many of Family Guy’s main characters are voiced by creator Seth MacFarlane, Green’s performance as Chris Griffin has made him one of the sitcom’s most iconic voices.
Family Guy’s 24th season will soon be on the way, but the show was initially cancelled in 2002 after just three seasons. Seth Green remembers trying to get more eyes on the show, and being delighted that it was resurrected by Fox. Here’s his recollection of what happened in full:
Seth Green: I read the pilot script for this show and I just loved it so much, and then, when we got canceled, I was able to get videotapes of the whole first season, and I forced so many people to watch this cartoon. I was like, “Oh, look at this.” And they didn’t even know I was on it because it didn’t sound like me, and then I was like, “This is such an entertaining show.” So, the fact that it came back on the air, the fact that we’ve been doing it for so long, the fact that people say it’s a comfort, I love that.
Green Was Proven Right By The Animated Sitcom’s Subsequent Success
Seth Green’s comments about Family Guy’s cancellation and subsequent return in 2005 reflect the belief that he and others working on the show always had in it, despite the series being taken off the air. Their confidence in the sitcom has been vindicated not only by its initial return in 2005, but by the audiences it’s still attracting two decades later.
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Family Guy Would Have Ended 16 Years Ago If Seth MacFarlane Had Had His Way
Family Guy creator and star Seth MacFarlane admitted he thought the show would end a long time ago, but the animated cartoon has lasted 23 seasons.
The long-running comedy series has struggled for network ratings, but the fanbase it accrued via syndication and home video releases in the mid-2000s demonstrated its true potential to become an animated sitcom juggernaut. Apparently, this potential was already clear to the likes of Green from the very beginning of the show.
Our Take On Family Guy’s Resurrection From Cancellation
It’s A Comeback Story Like Few Others In Modern Television
Family Guy’s return from its 2002 cancellation is one of modern television’s most impressive comeback stories, given that the series is still going strong after a further 20 seasons on the air. Aside from his own animated show, Robot Chicken, Seth Green’s role as Chris Griffin is now arguably his most famous, which is a testament to Family Guy’s enduring appeal.
Prominent figures like Seth Green believing in Family Guy even when the chips were down might have made all the difference.
Fox picking up the sitcom again three years on from their initial decision to cut it short was a sliding doors moment in the history of animated comedy, as back in 2005, there were no rival streaming platforms to swoop in and take a chance on the show. If Fox hadn’t changed their mind, Family Guy would have ended for good.
Now, as Seth MacFarlane’s recent comments about Family Guy’s future indicate, there’s no sign of the show ending anytime soon. With legions of fans and sustained ratings success, the sitcom looks set to emulate its forerunner, The Simpsons, in reaching the 30-season mark.
This level of success looked highly unlikely for Family Guy in the early 2000s. But prominent figures like Seth Green, who was already an established actor at the time of the show’s cancellation, believing in it even when the chips were down might have made all the difference.
Family Guy
8/10
- Release Date
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January 31, 1999
- Network
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FOX
- Showrunner
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Seth MacFarlane
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Alex Borstein
Lois Griffin / Tricia Takanawa / Loretta Brown / Barbara Pewterschmidt (voice)
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