This Is Why James Garner Left Maverick
789Since the inception of American film and television, Westerns have been an in-demand genre. However, in the 1950s and 60s, the popularity of gunslingers and cowboys exploded. American audiences had a voracious appetite for these types of stories.
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Among them was the popular TV series Maverick. The series follows Bret and Burt Maverick two brothers who travel the American west looking for adventure, fortune, and, of course, games of poker.
Maverick starred James Garner and Jack Kelly as the two titular brothers. The show ran for 5 seasons and totaling 124 episodes.
Though the show was never in short supply of great storylines, there were also a few interesting stories happening behind the camera.
For example, James Garner, the lead actor sued Warner Brothers and quit the series.
Keep watching as we take a closer look at James Garner’s feud with the series and other stories from Maverick.
In 1960, when the writer’s guild went on strike, the studio halted production on the series and furloughed James Garner. To this, Garner sued WB over breach of contract. He won and decided to leave the show to pursue his own career.
Warner Brothers knew they wanted to keep Maverick on air, so they tried to replace Garner’s character. The studios looked at two different James Bond actors to join!
Beyond the casting ordeals, there was also so drama with the scripts. Because of the writers’ strike, they decided to recycle old Maverick Scripts and use them for other shows.
Maverick went through some rough times after Garner left, but he would return to the universe one day. In 1994, director Richard Donner was tasked with rebooting the show into a film. Donner chose Mel Gibson to play the part of Bret Maverick. Playing Maverick’s Pappy was, of course, James Garner.
Maverick was a cool series that captivated American audiences during the peak of the Western genre’s popularity. This video will take a look at many of the interesting tales from the series.
This Is Why James Garner Left Maverick