Why Hollywood Won't Cast Jenna Elfman Anymore

Jenna Elfman was introduced to Scientology by her husband Bodhi in the mid-'90s, and she's been heavily involved ever since. Dedication to Scientology is a full-time job in itself, and the aspirations of its parishioners are expansive. In the past, members have spoken about its goals, most publicly in this leaked internal video of Tom Cruise. Elfman mirrored Cruise's sentiments in a 2015 tweet, saying, ""What is important to me? I give a damn about making the world a better place. I'm interested in seeing other people do well. And spreading kindness, warmth and sincerity." Elfman's roughly 20-year affiliation with Scientology implies a dedication that understandably has shifted her focus away from personal or professional success and toward furthering very different set of goals.

Jenna and Bodhi have been married for more than 26 years, and as their podcast attests, it's taken quite a bit of effort on both of their parts to make the union last harmoniously. During an interview with ET last year, Elfman cited humor as the catalyst for a healthy marriage. But one thing is clear: between Scientology, acting, their podcast, and just day-to-day life, the Elfmans spend a tremendous amount of time together, often collaborating. They have two sons as well. That kind of closeness can be a moving target for some couples, and the time spent to make it work is time spent away from the camera.

Elfman has picked the wrong project as often as any professional actor, but even when her work has been quite good, it's usually her male co-stars who move on to bigger and better things. For example, Elfman's Dharma and Greg costar, Thomas Gibson, enjoyed an 11-year run on CBS's stable procedural Criminal Minds. That kind of job security for an actor is rare—and it's been earned by Elfman, who was arguably the more charismatic character on their show. Matthew McConaughey played alongside Elfman in Ron Howard's 1999 comedy EDtv, and we all know how that ended up for him. Even more recently, actor J.K. Simmons was on the short-lived 2013 sitcom Growing Up Fisher with the actress, and a year later he'd won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for Whiplash.

Prestige television (shows like Game of Thrones or Stranger Things or True Detective) has become increasingly popular, and in turn has shifted the focus of television studios away from 30-minute network comedies. Through big budgets, great acting, dark storylines, and the rise of streamable content, the sitcom is being swallowed up by binge-watchable dark dramas. There are exceptions, of course—The Big Bang Theory has been humming along for 10 seasons—but the opportunity for a comedic television actress like Jenna Elfman to get in on the ground floor of a hit network sitcom seems to be dwindling. All is not lost, however: as Netflix hits like Fuller House and One Day at a Time have proven, viewers enjoy binging comedies as much as they do gritty dramas.

Even after being involved with multiple cancellations, Elfman's still a name brand with fans and decades of Hollywood equity—which is why in May of last year, it was announced that ABC would be picking up yet another Elfman vehicle, Imaginary Mary, set to premiere in March of 2017. The plot is as old as time: A CGI entity (voiced by Rachel Dratch) returns from a long hiatus to guide and/or disrupt the average life of a public relations executive (played by Elfman). We'll have to wait and see whether the show succeeds, but by September of 2016, it had already been cut down from 13 episodes to 9—which doesn't look like a good sign.