I smell fresh Emmy material for Brothers & Sisters matriarch Sally Field.
According to sources, Balthazar Getty, who plays the Oscar winner’s eldest son, was informed last week that producers were not planning on picking up his option as a full-time series regular next season. However, that doesn’t mean that Tommy’s place setting at the Walker dinner table is being permanently removed. Not yet, anyway. Per a B&S source, Getty is currently in talks with the show to stay on in a reduced capacity, perhaps as a recurring guest star.
While a rep for the show declined to comment, Getty’s spokesperson denies that the actor is leaving.
Rumors about Getty’s possible exit have been grist for the gossip mill for months. The actor’s real-life drama — the collapse of his marriage and ensuing tabloid-ready romance with Sienna Miller — has allegedly alienated him from his co-stars, many of who had grown close to his wife, Rosetta, and their four young children. What’s more, according to E! Online’s Marc Malkin, Getty has been showing up late for work and proving increasingly “difficult” to work with.
But per multiple sources, Getty’s sorta-departure is not the result of any one issue but a combination of factors that also includes budgetary and storyline considerations. Tommy has long been considered the most disposable of B&S’s siblings. Removing him, at least as a regular presence, frees up the show to introduce some new blood.
In any case, don’t expect Tommy to exit by way of a casket. Although an ABC insider says the idea of killing off a Walker has been discussed, the network would likely view such a twist as “too morbid.” As a result, Tommy is likely to either relocate with his wife and baby, or just drift into the background and reappear for the occasional disastrous dinner party.
What do you think? Is Tommy an integral part of B&S? Or will you not even notice if he’s missing? Also, could Getty be the subject of a certain blind item (tee-hee)? Sound off below!
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i knew he was the blind item. I don’t hate or love Tommy. He is definetly not my fav character, but the Walkers work best together
NOOO even though tommy has the smallest part of any of the Walkers the whole name of the show is brothers and sisters and they (the producers etc) can’t intentionally get rid of one
He was on top of my List for the blind item.
As it is, he’s not really an integral part of the cast nor is his wife. When did he last have a major storyline before his baby’s sickness?
As much as i’ll miss his hotness, he could be sent away and just appear rarely.
Tommy and his wife only have one baby. The other twin died at birth.
I won’t miss Tommy at all. He and his wife have always been kind of disposable, and once I heard about his despicable off-screen conduct, I couldn’t stop thinking about that whenever he appeared.
I think the whole is together so much that his absence would be awkward from the family dinner. He should relocate with the family, could work out as a good story. The pressure of the family business is proving to be too much of a strain on him professionally as personally, makes since to get away.
I am not sure why everyone is always so down on Tommy. I like the character because at least he is a balance to all the wackiness of the other characters which I guess makes him literally the “straight” man and in this case more boring than the others.
Thank you for finally revealing the blind item! I think Tommy should go but they should kill him off. I don’t see it as too morbid. I think it’d make the show more dramatic and I could see amazing Emmy performances…especially from Sally Field. (Anyone who’s seen the graveyard performance in Steel Magnolias knows that I’m talking about!)
But.. but… he’s a walker! they all have to stay together… plus he’s cute! lol.. not cuter than dave though…
it will be weird not having tommy around… i hope it dosen’t happen!
i guessed getty awhile ago…totally not surprised.
He will not be missed. He brings down the show whenever he is on screen, and his plot-lines have “missed” their mark everytime.
Yey! Ausiello finally reveals a Blind Item!
Well, since they just revealed Kevin to be the father of Tommy’s daughter, I guessed that Tommy might not be long for this world (thus setting up some sort of custody battle if Tommy’s wife bought the farm with him). But I agree that killing him would be too much death on this show. They are constantly referring to William’s death and I’d rather him just go away for a bit and that way they have the option down the line of having him return. Always keep the options open I think for these types of shows.
does that mean we can stop mentioning that stupid blind item!?!
I like Tommy and would prefer all the siblings stay on the show. If its budgetary then they should skip bringing on the new half sibling and use the existing Walkers instead.
I hope that sk@nk Sienna Miller was worth losing your TV role, Balthazar. You’re such a loser.
I like the idea of him fading into the background. Y’know, still mentioned and seen occasionally – think Merediths Mother pre-death in Greys. That would work well.
Love the show put can see where Tommy would be the least missed if he were to ‘move away’. It could be that his attempted power play with Holly that is upcoming may not work out after all and she sends him to some outpost to ‘tend to the business elsewhere’ as punishment
Oh ho … cosmic payback is such a beyotch. Sienna herself is next …
I find it interesting that the season is not even over yet and we are already talking about Balthazar’s status for next season.
So is this confirmation of that blind item or not? Seems like a good fit, but if it is, why not just come out and finally confirm it for real?
Yeah, they’ve never really known what to do with him (or his mute wife). Forcing in that affair storyline last year that resulted in the show losing its creator is a perfect example of why they’re better off just writing him out.
I like the idea of him sticking around on a recurring basis (don’t daytime soaps do this a lot) but it might be weird if there are instances when the whole family is together and he’s just missing. I think the best thing to do would be to have him move up to Napa (since he’s in the wine business) where he’d be close enough that he could visit a lot, but far enough away that he can be gone for stretches too w/o it being a big deal.
Even with losing him, I still don’t really understand how this show has ever afforded its huge cast and all the big guest stars it seems to get.
Simply “fading him into the background” would not make sense. For the last 2 years, the Walkers have been joined at the hip at all times. They all appear together at Nora’s house for no reason. To suddenly have Tommy disappear but still “be there” would be stupid. If he’s not going to be a regular, they should have him move away…..Or maybe they should pull a Soap Opera stunt and recast the role?…..I’m not too happy about this, because I like Tommy, but the character had no storylines except for his affair last year and that storyline was boring.
The obvious plan would be for him to get sick of his intrusive family and move away from them. They way these people are in each other’s business would drive anyone away.
I just re-watched the last-aired episode. Getty’s performance was very good, and his presence crucial. As somebody pointed out above, he balances off the B&S characters, even Saul. They are too readily caught up in drama – I think the writers are WAY overplaying the disastrous get-together card. It’s getting tiresome and no longer makes for unique TV. Elizabeth’s illness revealing her biological father was an important pick-up from a past episode, and an interesting way to extend the leash before introducing Ryan Lafferty. It was the kind of get-together that seemed important, mainly because we have a Walker who sees that not all get-togethers should be like the typical “Walker dinner party”. So if Balthazar has been showing up late to work and has problems with Rhys or whoever, then they should keep him in the background, bringing him for important balance, but they should not altogether eliminate the character, unless of course Ryan Lafferty is not all crazy but more balanced himself
Um, just kill him. I don’t think Sarah Jane Morris should have to lose her job because he wanted to act like a diva on set. Several storylines could come from Tommy’s death. Like, Nora losing a child, Julia losing her husband, Kevin potentially having to step in to be a father to Elizabeth, Scotty having to deal with Kevin being a father, everyone else losing a brother, the business (would Holly fully take over or would Sarah step back in? Or maybe even Julia or Kevin?) My main how is for Julia to get a storyline and both being windows would be a perfect way for Nora/Julia to connect.
So far Michael has always said it’s not the person in the blind item, but this time he asks if it could be, so that makes me think Getty is the person in the blind item. On the other hand, I don’t consider B&S to be morbid, particularly in contrast to all the forensic shows, and in the blind item it said killing him would be too morbid, even for this show. So that makes me think it isn’t Getty. That clue makes more sense with Caruso.
I could care less what Balthazar Getty does in his personal life. I can’t believe there is so much finger wagging on this stream.
As for Tommy, I kinda blame the writers for making him so one-dimensional. His only action seems to be furrowed brows looking concerned. With all those lively Walkers, he’s such a dud.
But. He’s a Walker nonetheless. Recurring status could be okay (seeing how Gaius Charles and Scott Porter’s recurring status paid off on FNL is a huge example of that), but he would have to move away to explain why he isn’t suddenly in Nora’s kitchen like the rest of the family.
What ever happened to Lena anyway?
I love him and was looking forward to his fight to get the company back. Tell the kids to behave so we can have a rich season.
How about this for a storyline? It turns out Tommy isn’t really a Walker after all! And that there’s yet ANOTHER illegitimate Walker out there somewhere. So Nora and Kitty take another road trip to find this next missing Walker. But– Uh Oh– it turns out that the new illegitimate Walker(not to be confused with the last two illegitimate Walkers) is actually the character played by Steven Weber who’s been having a fling with Sarah (Rachel Griffiths). But just as things seem as though they’re getting all incestuous and icky again, it is revealed that Sarah is actually not a Walker, either. And that there’s yet ANOTHER illegitimate Walker out there somewhere. So Nora and Kitty go on yet another road trip, wherein it is revealed that Kitty is not a Walker and that there’s yet another… etc., etc., etc.
Well he could be, but the thing it says that he may be a recurring guest star next season, I think the blind item meant the person was fired completely.