Being able to meet and connect with fans of Three’s Company was something actress Joyce DeWitt loved doing when she was on there.
DeWitt was a part of the ABC sitcom along with co-star John Ritter. What was it about her connection with fans, though? We get a little more information from this article on Best Life.
If you recall, she played Janet Wood on Three’s Company. She talked about the show’s fans in a 2009 interview with Gay Calgary.
‘Three’s Company’ Star Welcomes Fans’ Compliments Over Her Role
“I have had women in their 30s come to me and say I became a lawyer because of you,” DeWitt said. “I knew women could be smart and have a way in the world. (And) I loved playing [Janet] and I did fight hard to play her the way I wanted to play her.”
The Three’s Company star said that she “never imagined that all these years later people would remember me because they remember her. But I am delighted, if I had to leave a calling card I would happily leave that character.”
As you remember, the show originally had Ritter, DeWitt, and Suzanne Somers in the original cast. Jenilee Harrison and Priscilla Barnes would have some turns on the sitcom after Somers left. Three’s Company is now part of the classic TV rerun world and fans are still watching Jack, Janet, and Chrissy get into shenanigans.
DeWitt Definitely Was Not A Fan of Seeing Ritter On New Show
When the ABC sitcom ended, that meant Joyce DeWitt was out of work. Well, she would find out that Ritter was going to be in a follow-up show titled Three’s A Crowd.
She was not included and would be a bit miffed that he was staring up this new show. Without DeWitt in the cast, too. And she never got an offer from him or anyone to be on it.
DeWitt would talk about this in an interview with Closer Weekly. TV historian Chris Mann shares what she said about her situation with Ritter.
“TV Guide had done a cover story titled, ‘John Ritter: He’s Looking For a Different Trip Now,’” Mann said. “So, I think the writing was sort of on the wall that Three’s Company would be winding down, but for whatever reason, John followed the producers’ advice not to disclose to Joyce that they had planned to spin off his character at the end of Season 8.”
Mann says that it was explicitly clear that DeWitt was being purposefully left out of the cast. She has gone on to do stage work after her time on TV. Now, she’s still connected to the sitcom and will be forever.
