Steve Urkel (Jaleel White) may have been the centerpiece of “Family Matters,” but television’s favorite nerd next door was a later addition to the long-running sitcom. Urkel first appeared halfway through Season 1, and what was supposed to be a single-episode appearance blossomed into a full-fledged role.
It was Harriette Winslow who served as the catalyst for “Family Matters.” Jo Marie Payton originated the character on “Perfect Strangers,” and her performance as Harriette the elevator operator was so well-received that she inspired a spinoff. However, Payton exited “Family Matters” in the middle of the ninth and final season, when she was quickly replaced by Judyann Elder, who played Harriette for the show’s remaining episodes.
Payton felt it was time to leave because the show had run its course. The actress told TV Series Finale in 2010, “I think it probably was because the show was kind of running out of air, what they call ‘jumping the shark,’ you know what I mean?” She also wanted the freedom to pursue other projects. “I just wanted something else to do, just to energize me a little bit more, on the creative side.”
Jo Marie Payton didn’t renew her contract when Family Matters switched networks
Jo Marie Payton’s departure from “Family Matters” was in part a result of the series’ move from ABC to CBS at the end of Season 8 in 1997. For Payton, the network shakeup coincided with the end of her contract. “I was like a free agent and so when they went to CBS and all, they asked me to come back,” Payton explained. “And we agreed that I would come back just to kick off the move to CBS and that’s how that whole deal went. I was to do half of a season, eight of the episodes. And I had an option out and I exercised my option . I did.”
Payton also denied rumors that she left the show due to arguments with Jaleel White, confirming that her decision was purely creative and contractual.
After having played Harriette Winslow for over 200 episodes, Payton’s departure was understandably jarring for the rest of the cast, especially when Judyann Elder was brought in as her replacement. “It was hard for me after nine years of doing something with one person,” Reginald VelJohnson, who played Carl, told Entertainment Weekly in 2017. “It’s like getting a divorce and then marrying someone else. It was weird.”
However, the “Family Matters” cast wasn’t entirely unfamiliar with sudden departures. Judy (Jaimee Foxworth), the youngest member of the Winslow clan, suddenly disappeared during Season 4 and was never mentioned again.
