Frasier's Peri Gilpin Landed Roz After Playing Another Character In The Universe

In 1993, "Cheers" wrapped up after 11 seasons. That same year "Frasier" debuted, and ran for another 11 seasons until 2004. Almost 20 years after that, star Kelsey Grammer led a revival of the beloved sitcom that saw Dr. Crane relocate from Seattle to Boston, the city in which he first appeared some 40 years prior, during the third season of "Cheers."

When you factor in Frasier's 1992 guest appearance on another show set in the "Cheers" universe, "Wings," you have a character who has been played by the same actor since his debut across four separate series and four decades. That's pretty impressive, regardless of whether season one of the "Frasier" revival felt like a series that should have been a one-off special. The only character to match Frasier's four-show record is Bebe Neuwirth's Lilith Sternin, who returned for the "Frasier" revival and secured her place within sitcom history as a result.

But there is another actor who has appeared in three of the four "Cheers" universe shows and is the only one to have done so while playing different characters.

Peri Gilpin is best known for playing the titular doctor's radio producer in "Frasier," a role she reprised in a recurring capacity for season 2 of the revival series. Streaming age "Frasier" saved its best guest appearance for last in season 1, when Roz returned for a touching Christmas episode that actually stacked up quite well against festive installments from the OG sitcom. Now a regular character in season 2, Roz has helped to elevate the reboot somewhat, which continues to struggle to overcome the lack of the original ensemble cast.

But it turns out that playing Roz was not Gilpin's debut in the "Cheers" universe. In fact, she actually appeared in that very sitcom prior to landing what is her best known role on "Frasier." The actress played reporter Holly Matheson in season 11, episode 21 of "Cheers," entitled "Woody Gets an Election," which aired the same year "Frasier" debuted. Initially, Gilpin was not set to appear in the spin-off, with Lisa Kudrow originally being cast as Roz. But after Kudrow was fired from the show, Gilpin was brought in and came to embody the role of Frasier's down-to-earth producer. Kudrow, who also appeared in "Cheers" as Woody's acting partner in season 8 episode 9, landed "Friends" a year later.

As it turns out, Gilpin had actually auditioned for Roz alongside Kudrow before initially missing out on the role, and it seems part of the reason she was brought in to read for the part was due to her appearance on "Cheers." As Kelsey Grammer told his co-star during a Q&A ahead of the "Frasier" season 2 premiere in 2024, "That was one of the things that referred you to us. When we were looking for the Roz character, it was like, 'Oh she was on 'Cheers,' yeah I remember her, she was great.'" Gilpin then recalled that Grammer told her to read for the part, and she said "I have read, like five times."

Peri Gilpin isn't the only "Frasier" actor to have appeared in "Cheers." The late John Mahoney, who played Frasier's father Martin Crane on the original series, actually guest starred on "Cheers" as Artie, a zookeeper and part-time songwriter who is hired to write a jingle for the titular bar. His appearance in the show, which only came to be after the previous actor experienced stage fright, led to Mahoney's casting in "Frasier." Had Mahoney not passed away in 2018, he would have surely appeared in the revival series and matched Peri Gilpin's record for playing multiple characters across three "Cheers" universe shows.

Meanwhile, during the Q&A, Kelsey Grammer recalled how "Cheers" actors Ted Danson and George Wendt had a penchant for shooting spitballs at Woody Harrelson during filming, with Gilpin claiming to have been a victim of the same game. In fact, the actress claimed you can see the spitballs hitting her face during her season 11 appearance. Thankfully, she was a good sport about it, which worked in her favor as her "Cheers" appearance contributed to Grammer and co. bringing her back to audition for Roz. Had she made a fuss about the spitball antics, we might well have got Lisa Kudrow as Roz, no Phoebe on "Friends," and a "Frasier" revival severely lacking in Gilpin's uplifting presence.