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[[caption-width-right:256: Hey! [[ComicallyMissingThePoint Why did they get a new ref?]]]]

->'''Martin Lloyd:''' How am I supposed to tell a story without my lead character?\\
'''Cam Mitchell:''' Easy, just bring in a character to replace him.\\
''Everyone looks at Cam in silence''\\
'''Cam Mitchell:''' ...[[DefensiveWhat What]]?
-->-- ''Series/StargateSG1'', "200," [[SelfDeprecation mocking the hell out of itself]]

A character who joins the cast as a replacement for a character who has left the show due to real-life distractions (contract negotiations, death, etc.) despite being integral to the plot or concept of the series. Invariably, this character fills the {{Stock Character|s}} slot left vacant by the departed, whether that be [[PluckyComicRelief comic relief]], [[TheSmartGuy intellectual]], or [[TheBigGuy musclebound bruiser]].

Often, the character has some twist or gimmick to make it seem as if the character is unique, and the writers aren't actually grasping at straws to salvage the year's worth of scripts already written.

Some shows will take risks in such replacements, making the replacements truly different characters, rather than a similar character with a twist. That is much harder on the writers, since they can't simply tweak the scripts they had already written for the old character. Usually when this happens it is very intentional on the part of the production.

The vast majority of these replacements still take up the role of the previous character, such as a missing member of the FiveManBand, but as to how much they resemble their predecessor is up for debate.

{{Justified|Trope}} in [[CommandRoster military]] and some business settings where there are specific roles.

A Suspiciously Similar Substitute is dangerously prone to becoming [[TheScrappy hated by the fanbase]], creating a ReplacementScrappy, and for a very understandable reason. If they're too similar, fans may become annoyed at the removal of a well liked character if their replacement is just the same guy with a different name and face. They may wonder why the character needed to be replaced if the story can still be told with the previous character, and get annoyed at the unneeded change of character.

For ''very'' suspiciously similar substitutes, see BackupTwin. Compare DiscardAndDraw, which does the same sort of thing with superpowers instead of characters. The {{inver|tedTrope}}sion, where the ''same'' character fills a ''different'' role, is SameCharacterButDifferent.

See also: {{Expy}}, TemporarySubstitute, TheOtherDarrin, TheNthDoctor, PutOnABus, DroppedABridgeOnHim, RoleEndingMisdemeanor, CounterpartComparison, ReplacementLoveInterest, LongRunnerCastTurnover (the result of [[AddedAlliterativeAppeal Several Suspiciously Similar Substitutes]] over time), AntiHeroSubstitute (when the substitute is DarkerAndEdgier), and SuspiciouslySimilarSong (substitute ''in the form of a song'').

Contrast with the ContrastingSequelMainCharacter.

----
!!Examples:

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
* In ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'', Sai, the quiet, serious and emotionally distant ninja replaced Sasuke, the quiet, serious and emotionally distant ninja. It doesn't help that they look so similar, either. This fact is repeatedly lampshaded within the series. It is also somewhat ironic that the two resemble each other so, given that Sai quickly begins the CharacterDevelopment that would start to bring him away from the stoicness he was known for originally, and Sasuke [[spoiler: [[JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope quickly begins to descend into complete insanity.]]]]
* Vincent Volaju is one for Vicious in the ''Anime/CowboyBebop'' movie.
* In ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}'':
** The female coordinator character May (who replaced the significantly different Misty) was replaced by the female coordinator character Dawn.
** Brock was replaced with Cilan, who is the same with more food focus and less lechery.
** Jessie and James release their Victreebel (a carnivorous plant Pokémon) and Arbok (a poisonous snake Pokémon). Later on, James acquires a Cacnea (a cactus Pokémon) and Carnivine (a carnivorous plant Pokémon), which both retain Victreebel's tendency to accidentally injure its owner in displays of affection, and Jessie gets a Seviper, which is...a poisonous snake Pokémon.
** Ash gets a new bird Pokémon in every region which eventually is fully evolved (Pidgeot, Noctowl, Swellow, Staraptor, and Unfezant respectively).
* The character Priss from ''Anime/BubblegumCrisis'' was originally going to be killed off and replaced by Vision, who was suspiciously similar (brown hair, kind of feisty, was a singer) but ultimately fans liked the character, so she wasn't killed off after all, thus avoiding the trope entirely.
* ''Anime/TenchiMuyo'' is unique in that the third {{O|riginalVideoAnimation}}VA did something of an alternate continuity substitution. Mihoshi's partner in the Galaxy Police had long been Kiyone Makibi in the Universe and Tokyo continuities, but [[AllThereInTheManual supplemental materials]] Kiyone was the name of Tenchi's Mother (The first movie, based off the first TV series, named her Achika). OVA 3 introduces us to Noike, who happens to be Mihoshi's previously not known to exist GXP partner, while Tenchi's mother is finally officially named as Kiyone (and (re)introduced, in a way, by Tenchi's older sister who is strangely identical to her).
* Near from ''Manga/DeathNote''. This is intentional - Near ''tries'' to imitate L [[spoiler: and eventually admits that he failed to imitate L, but succeeded through TeethClenchedTeamwork]].
* Kaioh, the main antagonist of ''Manga/FistOfTheNorthStar 2'', has many similar characteristics to Raoh, the antagonist from the first series, including the fact that they rode huge elephant-sized horses. He is eventually revealed to be [[BackupTwin Raoh's blood-related older brother.]]
** There's also the renegade Gento successors, Boltz and Taiga, who appear only in the anime to replace Jakoh's sons, Sheeno and Jask, from the manga.
* ''Manga/ShikabaneHime'''s [[spoiler:Keisei]] dies, allowing Ouri to come closer to [[spoiler:Makina]] and to also be brought into the story as a major player instead of a male damsel in distress and hapless bystander. About 2 episodes later [[spoiler:Keisei's mentor]] is introduced. He has a very similar hairstyle and replaces the former as the even more [[spoiler:perverted comic relief and Ouri's new mentor.]]
* In ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam00'' [[spoiler:Neil Dilandy, killed late in the 1st series, is replaced by his twin brother Lyle Dilandy.]]
* One of the supporting characters in ''Manga/DGrayMan'' was killed. He was replaced by his equally chubby and androgynous sister.
* In ''Anime/{{Patlabor}}'', Takeo Kumagami replaces Kanuka Clancy after Clancy returns to America. They have very similar skills and fulfill the same police positions, although Kumagami is given a few quirks to distinguish her.
* Scattorshot in ''Anime/TransformersCybertron'' is an {{expy}} of Ironhide from ''Anime/TransformersEnergon''. Likewise, the Jones family in ''Energon'' is this to the Witwickys from ''Franchise/TransformersGeneration1''.
* In ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWars OG: The Inspector'', we are introduced to the [=EXBein=] and Guarbein, substitutes for the Huckebein Mk-III and Huckebein Mk-III Trombe. This is because the Huckies look too much like [[Anime/MobileSuitGundam Gundams]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Comic Books]]
* ''Comicbook/{{X-Men}}'''s Jean Grey, during periods when she has been rendered [[DeathIsCheap temporarily dead]] or otherwise unusable, has been substituted numerous times, most notably by her Alterniverse daughter, [[Characters/{{X-Men80sMembers}} Rachel]]. Now we currently have [[MessianicArchetype Hope Summers]], the first mutant born after the Decimation events. She [[SignificantGreeneyedRedhead looks like a teenaged Jean]], wears the same colors as she had, and displays similar [[PlayingWithFire Phoenix-like]] powers.
** As a long-running tradition in ''X-Men'', the team roster ''always'' has to include one plucky, BadassAdorable teenage girl who adopts {{Wolverine}} as a BigBrotherMentor. When the character grows out of the role, she's always replaced by another one. Kitty Pryde started the tradition, and her replacements have included Rogue, Jubilee, Marrow, Armor, Pixie, {{X-23}}, and most recently Oya. Marrow shook up the tradition a bit by having Gambit as her mentor instead, but the writers cut out the middleman with X-23 by making her Wolverine's [[DistaffCounterpart female clone]] (the closest thing to an actual little sister Wolvie's ever going to get).
* Parodied in ''Comicbook/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen: The Black Dossier'', where we're told the British Government, in assembling the 1950s League, tried to find substitutes of the ''entire'' 1890s League. It didn't work.
** W.E. John's Worrals for Mina; ''Hotspur''[='=]s Wolf of Kabul for Alan; Peter Brady (TV's first [[Literature/TheInvisibleMan Invisible Man]]) for Griffin; Professor Grey (from ''TheBeano'' strip ''The Iron Fish'') for Nemo; and a giant robot called the Iron Warrior (from ''Thrill Comics'') for Hyde.
** This went as far as to have Wolf hit on Worrals, when Worrals was openly gay.
* The Pre-Crisis version of Jason Todd, who took over the role of Franchise/{{Batman}}'s sidekick Comicbook/{{Robin}} after Dick Grayson became {{Nightwing}}, was a carbon copy of Dick Grayson right down to having a similar origin story (his parents were acrobats murdered by Killer Croc). This was averted with the Post-Crisis version, which revised Jason's origin as a street hoodlum who was picked up by Batman.
* In a rather peculiar example, when the Comicbook/{{Batgirl}} mantle was [[Comicbook/{{Batgirl2011}} returned to Barbara Gordon]] [[Comicbook/{{Batgirl2009}} from Stephanie Brown]] following ''Comicbook/{{Flashpoint}}'', Barbara's personality appeared to shift to be closer to LighterAndSofter Stephanie's, so she was a similar replacement to her replacement's replacement. Fans were not amused, to say the least, though it mostly comes from BadassDecay due to her prior role as Oracle being far more important.
** Stephanie was later slated to appear in the Smallville comic, but editorial ordered her to be replaced last-minute. Now we have a Barbara Gordon in that universe who also acts more like Stephanie would.
* When Creator/GrantMorrison was writing [[JusticeLeagueOfAmerica JLA]], he was unable to use Comicbook/{{Hawkman}} because the character's ContinuitySnarl had become such a problem. Instead, he created the replacement character Zauriel. He even hangs a lampshade on it by having Comicbook/{{Aquaman}} briefly mistake Zauriel for Hawkman in his first appearance.
* {{Lampshaded}} in ''Comicbook/NewAvengers''. {{Daredevil}} was unable to join the team due to his legal problems at the time, so he suggested to CaptainAmerica that Echo join in his place. He pointed out that since she has virtually the same skill set and all his knowledge of the Japanese underworld, it'd be the next best thing to actually having him on the team.
* A cross between this and ThePsychoRangers happens with NormanOsborn's DarkAvengers; villainous ranged-combat expert Bullseye imitates heroic archer {{Hawkeye}}, the new Comicbook/{{Venom}} symbiote imitates Franchise/SpiderMan, {{Wolverine}}'s [[{{Daken}} psychotic son]] takes his place, and so on.
* In ''JLA'' comics, Vibe was a member of the poorly received [[DorkAge/TheDCU Detroit League]] who, like the other newcomers to the team introduced in that run, had a stroke of misfortune or two when the roster needed to be cleared up for a new team. In his case, he died. Later, the Conglomorate, a rival team to the Justice League, is formed, featuring Vibe's identically-powered brother Reverb (as well as Vibe's JL teammate Gypsy). This was written by the same writer who killed off Vibe in the first place; Reverb lacks Vibe's out-there personality and is generally unlikable for the opposite reason.
* JohnByrne's run on ''Franchise/WonderWoman'' dumped the supporting cast established by the previous creative team, most notably archaeologist Julia Kapatelis and her daughter Vanessa, in favor of his own creations, most notably archaeologist Helena Sandsmark and her daughter [[WonderGirl Cassandra]].
* Lana Lang started her existence blatantly filling the role of LoisLane when they started telling stories about Superman's childhood as {{Superboy}}. Unlike her modern incarnation, she was both the love interest and the nosy inquisitive girl always trying to prove Clark was Superboy.
* The early 1960s ''Series/DoctorWho'' comics had the Trods, who were a suspiciously similar substitute for the Daleks, who were unusable at the time due to the rights to publish Dalek comics being in the hands of a different company.
* A common trend in superhero comics is that when a character leaves a team, they'll be replaced by LegacyCharacter or a character with very similar powers. For instance BlackPanther first joined Comicbook/TheAvengers as a replacement for the similarly-powered Comicbook/CaptainAmerica, Franchise/GreenLantern was replaced by Jade after quitting the [[JusticeLeagueOfAmerica JLA]], and Comicbook/{{Batman}} was replaced by Batwing after quitting the Comicbook/JusticeLeagueInternational.
* Following ''{{Ultimatum}}'', The X-Men were disbanded and replaced by the new comic 'Ultimate X', featuring James Hudson, the son of Wolverine. He's now sporting a new costume that greatly resembles the Mainstream version of Wolverine's classic Yellow and Blue suit. Subverted to some extent, in that Hudson is a teenaged boy with healing and the ability to consciously grow metal coating to his bones, while his father was...''Wolverine''.
** Later, when the UltimateMarvel incarnation of Peter Parker died fighting Norman Osborn, he was replaced by Miles Morales, a young teen with almost identical powers who became the new Spider-Man. To those who were/are critical of him, one of the biggest critiques is that Miles is too similar to Peter, being a science nerd NiceGuy motivated by guilt from not helping when he could (ironically, being that he could have saved Peter, but didn't). However it's established he isn't nearly as smart as Peter, and thus struggles to decipher his webbing formula.
** Subverted with Ray Connor, the second {{Daredevil}}. He had a virtually identical back-story to Matt Murdock (blinded in a childhood accident and then trained to use his other senses by Stick), [[DecoyProtagonist but ended up being turned into a vampire and then killed before he could actually become a protagonist]].
* Apparently due to legal issues with former writer Ken Penders, a large cast of characters in ''ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehog'' have suddenly up and vanished without seemingly even being allowed to name-drop them. Rob o' the Hedge, missing king of Mercia and RobinHood expy, has been replaced by the exceedingly similar Bow Sparrow. Time will tell if other Penders characters get similar treatment.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Film]]
* R (Creator/JohnCleese) in the ''Film/JamesBond'' films is introduced in ''Film/TheWorldIsNotEnough''. In ''Film/DieAnotherDay'' he becomes the new Q . Those who hadn't seen the previous film would assume he was TheOtherDarrin since he's exactly like his predecessor.
* ''Film/TheGodfather: Part II'': Frank Pentangeli was a replacement character for Peter Clemenza.
* ''Film/TheGodfather: Part III'': Tom Hagen is written out (died in between sequels) and is replaced by the much less charismatic and interesting George Hamilton character, B.J. Harrison. This was done thanks to a paycheck dispute with Robert Duvall, forcing Francis Ford Coppola to create this new replacement from scratch.
* Lt. Mauser replaced Capt. Harris in the 2nd & 3rd ''Film/PoliceAcademy'', acting as that film's villain and having more or less the same traits has Harris had, filling the same role. They were so similar that when Harris returned in the 4th movie, he was paired of with Mauser's assistant, Proctor, and the two had the same relationship Mauser and Proctor had.
** This is changed in the AnimatedAdaptation, where Mauser becomes a good guy, whereas Harris remains an antagonist.
** Also, when Steve Guttenberg refused to reprise his role as Sgt. Mahoney for the 5th and 6th movies, Commandant Lassard's nephew Nick was brought in to fill Mahoney's shoes, while the 7th movie had a cadet named Kyle Connors also fill the very same spot.
* When the Wachowski siblings wrote the second and third ''[[Film/TheMatrix Matrix]]'' films, they originally intended to bring back the character of Tank from the first one. But after they had a falling-out with his actor, they created Link as a replacement.
* Roman in ''2 Fast 2 Furious'' replaced Dominic from ''Film/TheFastAndTheFurious'' as the AntiHero with a criminal past. Though it's worth noting that Brian is now the main character with Roman as his sidekick, instead of co-lead with Dom. Both Roman and Dom are back in ''Fast Five''.
* ''Film/{{Beerfest}}'' plays this one for gags, when Landfill dies and the character is promptly replaced by his twin brother, portrayed by the same actor, who asks the rest of the characters to refer to him by his dead brother's name and never speak of the death again. He then promptly sleeps with his dead brother's widow and "feels that he's already known them all his life."
* The Creator/KeanuReeves character in ''Film/{{Speed}}'' was replaced by Jason Patric's character in the sequel, with SandraBullock being the holdover from the first film and having mentioned her previous relationship.
* A rather bizarre set of examples occurred within the ''Franchise/{{Godzilla}}'' franchise regarding the monster Baragon. First, ''Film/DestroyAllMonsters'' was going to have Baragon be the monster seen destroying France. Unfortunately, the suit was too badly damaged and instead Gorosaurus was used (Ironically, the dub version [[IAmNotShazam still calls Gorosaurus "Baragon"]])...And Baragon himself was reduced to a mere 10 second cameo. Later, Baragon was going to appear in ''Film/GodzillaVSMechaGodzilla'' but the suit was still too damaged to function and Anguirus was used instead. In both cases, Anguirus and Gorosaurus were given traits that were originally attributed to Baragon (IE: Jumping and burrowing).
** And then averted in ''Film/GodzillaMothraKingGhidorahGiantMonstersAllOutAttack!'', when the director wanted to use Varan, Anguirus and Baragon as the Guardian Monsters, but the studio wanted more popular kaiju. This time, Baragon survived the axe.
** The spinoff ''Film/RebirthOfMothra'' trilogy apparently knew it wanted to save [[ArchEnemy King]] [[EldritchAbomination Ghidorah]] for the role of [[Film/RebirthOfMothra3 the final film]]'s antagonist, but also wanted to draw audiences into the series with a villain of comparable menace. The first film's solution? The totally original, terrifying, powerful, destructive, ''evil'' new monster... Death Ghidorah. ...Hmm.
* ''Los Superagentes: Nueva Generación''. Unlike the recent sequels to ''Bañeros'' and ''Brigada Explosiva'', the new characters were clearly meant to replace the originals, as per the original Tiburon and Delfin show up in insultingly short cameos as opposing to joining in the action. Worse, the original Mojarrita and Chief of Acuario don't even show up.
* Jason replacing [[spoiler:[[Film/FridayThe13th1980 his own mother]]]] as the slasher in the ''Franchise/FridayThe13th'' sequels with the same M.O. and a related motive.
** [[spoiler:Roy Burns]] from ''[[Film/FridayThe13thPartVANewBeginning Part V]]'' (Following Jason being "KilledOffForReal"... for one film) would be a more "traditional" example. When disguised as Jason, [[spoiler:Roy]] not only used his M.O. but also acted like Jason; silently determined instead of deceptive, crazy-violent and motive-hissing.
** When Crazy Ralph was killed in ''[[Film/FridayThe13thPart2 Part 2]]'', audiences were introduced to very similar doomsayers in ''[[Film/FridayThe13thPartIII Part III]]'' and ''[[Film/FridayThe13thPartVIIIJasonTakesManhattan VIII]]''.
* Subverted like no tomorrow in ''Film/{{Scream 4}}''. Characters are thrown at us as being replacements for the characters of the original film, but [[spoiler:most of the new characters die]], the [[FinalGirl apparent Sidney replacement]] [[spoiler:turns out to be the killer]], and we even get a [[spoiler:[[RedHerring subverted]]]] Billy replacement who [[spoiler:is almost successfully framed for all the murders]].
* Jamie Kennedy as the new Mask in ''Film/SonOfTheMask''.
* Every Cenobite that follows Pinhead that is NOT Butterball, Chatterer or the Female Cenobite in the ''Franchise/{{Hellraiser}}'' sequels.
* Due to not having a high enough budget to render the characters' powers onscreen, Husk and Chamber were excluded from the ''GenerationX'' TV movie and replaced with Buff and Refrax, two [[CanonForeigner new]] heroes who had similar, but [[CoconutSuperpowers cheaper abilities]].
* The Creator/MarxBrothers - Allan Jones essentially takes over for Zeppo in ''Film/ANightAtTheOpera'' and ''Film/ADayAtTheRaces''.
* "Nigel" appears to be a replacement CompositeCharacter for Colin and Dennis Creevey in the ''Film/HarryPotter'' adaptations. (Colin appeared in the second film, but the actor decided not to do any more after that. Dennis never appears in the films full stop, but he's a very minor character in the books anyway.)
** Also regarding Potter, due to the actor who plays Vincent Crabbe being convicted for drug offences, Crabbe was PutOnABus for the two Deathly Hallows films. Gregory Goyle took on his role, and Blaise Zabini took on Goyle's role. Because of this switch, this case is sometimes mistaken for a RaceLift.
* ''Franchise/StarWars: Film/ThePhantomMenace'' had Captain Panaka (Hugh Quarshie), Queen Amidala's bodyguard. After Quarshie was unable to make it to the location shooting for ''Film/AttackOfTheClones'', he was replaced with Gregar Typho (Jay Laga'aia). Aside from the {{eyepatch|OfPower}}, they're the same, both in appearance and personality, to the point that some viewers wondered why Captain Panaka was suddenly sporting an eyepatch.
* ''RockStar'' depicts such a replacement when the main character Chris, lead singer of a tribute band, is hired to replace his idol due to his intentionally similar appearance and slightly better vocals. The film culminates in Chris [[spoiler: picking a fan out of the audience at a concert to replace himself]]. This is based on actual events: Music/JudasPriest replacing their original lead singer by picking the front man of a Priest tribute band.
* Played in ''TheGamers'': Ambrose dies, to be replaced by the nearly-indistinguishable Magellan, with a heaping helping of PlugNPlayFriends.
* In ''Film/TheRoom'', the actor who plays Peter (essentially the voice of reason or the man who "is always playing psychiatrist") quit at some point during the shooting. Another actor replaced him and took the lines he would have had in a later scene. However the new character never has any formal introduction. It is just implied he is another friend.
* In ''Film/IndianaJonesAndTheKingdomOfTheCrystalSkull'' Jim Broadbent plays a character meant to be a stand-in for Marcus Brody, who had died since the last movie, just as the actor Denholm Elliott had died in between films.
* Duke in ''Film/CitySlickers II: The Legend of Curly's Gold'' is a suspiciously similar substitute for his deceased identical twin Curly. Granted, his personality is different enough (less of a JerkWithAHeartOfGold, more Machiavellian) not to be cause for viewers to truly cry foul (there are shades of the EvilTwin trope here), but he's a suspiciously similar substitute all the same.
** Also in ''City Slickers II'' Bruno Kirby did not return from the first movie, so his spot was filled by Jon Lovitz, playing Billy Crystal's annoying brother.
* [[DeadGuyJunior Quarrel Jr.]], in ''Film/LiveAndLetDie'' is a Suspiciously Similar Substitute for his father, Quarrel, who was killed in ''Film/DrNo''. This is because the films were made in a different order from the books, where Quarrel gets introduced in ''Literature/LiveAndLetDie'', before being killed in ''Film/DrNo''.
* Grindor from ''Film/TransformersRevengeOfTheFallen''. He looks exactly like Blackout in both shape, size, appearance, and alt-mode (they both turn into helicopters).
** Also, Creator/MeganFox's Mikaela being replaced by Rosie Huntington-Whiteley's Carly.
* In the second ''[[Disney/TheRescuers Rescuers]]'' film (which takes place in [[LandDownUnder Australia]]), the role of Orville Albatross is replaced by that of his brother, Wilbur.
* [[Film/TheThreeStooges The Third Stooge]]. While Shemp was not Suspiciously Similar, Joe Besser and "Curly" Joe [=DeRita=] were. All three of them had their own unique method of delivery, however, distinct from Curly.
* When GeorgeSanders grew tired of appearing in ''The Falcon'' movie series, it was decided that his Gay Lawrence character would be killed off. The series continued with Gay's brother Tom stepping into the role of the Falcon. Tom Lawrence was played by Tom Conway ... who just happened to be George Sanders' brother.
* Averted in the remake of ''Film/{{Shaft}}''. Creator/SamuelLJackson didn't want to step into the iconic character's shoes, so the character was written as John Shaft's nephew who also happened to be named John Shaft. This seems to hang on one line of dialogue until Roundtree shows up in a cameo as the elder Shaft. Jackson's character is therefore not a Suspiciously Similar Substitute, but he does invite CounterpartComparison.
* In ''Film/TheMightyDucks'', Coach Bombay's mentor is his late father's old friend, a kindly Norwegian sporting goods vendor named Hans. In the sequel, he is replaced by his brother Jan, who makes an offhand comment that Hans is visiting their mother in Norway. Then, in the third movie, Hans has returned, and Jan is nowhere to be seen--he doesn't even show up at [[spoiler:Hans's funeral]].
* The ''Film/DeathRace'' prequels star Luke Goss as Carl Lucas, rather than Jason Statham as Jensen Ames. Like Statham, Goss is a white British man with a shaved head and PermaStubble. The characters aren't hugely similar, but appearance-wise they're very much alike.
* Most of the ''Film/TheTexasChainsawMassacre1974'' follow-ups introduce new family members who are similar to Drayton and Nubbins, Leatherface's brothers in the first film.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Literature]]
* The 1996 ''Franchise/StarWars'' spin-off, ''Literature/ShadowsOfTheEmpire'' (novel, comic book, video game, and breakfast cereal), being set between ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'' and ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'', found a replacement character for Han Solo in the lovable scamp Dash Rendar. Dash not only sported Han's in-your-face attitude, he flew a nearly identical ship to the ''Millennium Falcon'' and had a wacky robot sidekick. Though hastily [[BusCrash offed]] when he no longer served a purpose, Dash apparently [[NoOneCouldSurviveThat still exists]] in the hazier reaches of the "Expanded Universe."
** Oh, there are plenty of other substitutes. Ben in [[Literature/LegacyOfTheForce LOTF's]] a substitute for Anakin; [[ShotaCon Tahiri even tries to seduce him...and he's 13!]]
** Gavin Darklighter, who is the cousin of Biggs Darklighter.
** With the repeated "new Dark Lords" and "new superweapons," the WHOLE Expanded Universe should be called Shadows of the Empire!
* After [[spoiler:Ned Stark's]] death at the end of ''[[Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire A Game of Thrones]]'', Davos Seaworth shows up to serve the function of TheStoic, family and honor oriented, speaker-of-truth-to-power to a Baratheon king. They even mirror each other in interesting ways, particularly their fates ([[spoiler: Ned is killed in a last minute whim of Joffrey's, Davos miraculously survives his ship's sinking]]) compared to their children's ([[spoiler: Ned's children find ways to thrive in adversity, while four of Davos' sons are killed in battle]]).
** Oberyn "The Red Viper" Martel was TooCoolToLive, and fans have suspected that TheScrappy Gerold "Darkstar" Dayne was created as one of these. Both men are the black sheep of their families and have badass reputations and are known by cool nicknames. More to the point, both men are from the some place and Dayne interacts with Oberyn's family members.
* A meta-example in Creator/NealStephenson's ''Literature/TheBaroqueCycle'': Daniel Waterhouse [[ConversationalTroping notes]] that some people can be replaced in their positions with only the most superficial elements changing, but other people are more crucial to the story, and their loss will forever change the status quo no matter who replaces them.
* ''Literature/InDeath'' series: ''Eternity In Death'' has Eve and Peabody questioning the housekeeper who worked for the murder victim. Then they go to see the murder victim's friend, whose housekeeper might have been a clone of the previous one. The story states that the two housekeepers are sisters.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live Action TV]]
* ''Series/StargateSG1''. Jonas Quinn was sort of like Daniel Jackson... but from another planet! However, after Michael Shanks decided to return as a regular, Jonas Quinn was abruptly and permanently written out of the series at the beginning of the seventh season.
** Despite being the {{Trope Namer|s}} for a while, Jonas Quinn wasn't even the best example of this trope on this show. Cam Mitchell, an Air Force colonel with a snarky sense of humor and a tendency to make pop culture references (like the actor Browder's character in ''Series/{{Farscape}}'') replaced Richard Dean Anderson's character, Jack O'Neill, when he started CommutingOnABus to spend more time with his family. This somewhat falls under the "military role" exception, but is more likely due to a desire to have a new leading man, particularly one with a built-in audience. In addition, the "military role" exception doesn't explain their sufficiently similar personalities; Mitchell hadn't SeenItAll like O'Neill, had a lower rank and lacks the Ancient gene, but other than that they could have delivered the same lines.
** This trope received its LampshadeHanging (along with about a hundred others) in "200," when an actor backs out from playing the lead in the ShowWithinAShow based on the SG team's adventures, leading to the page quote above. And at the end, we find out the "Colonel Danning" character from ''Wormhole X-Treme!'' was substituted. "Dr. Levant" is not indicated to have had a Suspiciously Similar Substitute when he left the show, but much like the ''real'' ''Stargate SG-1'', they may have resolved to never speak of it.
** JewelStaite's Dr. Keller also replaced Dr. Beckett on ''Series/StargateAtlantis'' as the caring and sometimes out of his/her element doctor, despite having appeared on the series previously as a different character.
* ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'' has Balthazar, who's very, very similar to the now-dead Gabriel (except taller, blonder, and with a hot British accent).
** Later in the series, fans commented that the character "Frank" was just an unnecessary replacement for Bobby, who was taken away from the leads to supposedly "strip the show back down to just the brothers."
** When he was first introduced, many fans feared that Benny would replace Castiel as Dean's gravel-voiced, coat-wearing, non-human BFF.
* David Spade's and James Garner's characters on ''Series/EightSimpleRules''.
* On ''Series/{{Cheers}}'', the sweet-natured, dimwitted old bartender Coach was replaced by the sweet-natured, dimwitted young bartender Woody Boyd. Rebecca Howe (a ruthless and hot corporate exec) was more distinct from her predecessor Diane (a bookish and pretty in a girl-next-door-way barmaid), but Rebecca gradually became more and more like Diane.
** Al, the elderly man who sat at the opposite corner of the bar from Norm and occasionally made sarcastic comments, was replaced by Phil, the elderly man who sat at the opposite corner of the bar from Norm and occasionally made sarcastic comments. In the ReunionShow episode of ''Series/{{Frasier}}'', Frasier says how good it is to see Al again, only to be told "I'm Phil, you jackass! Al died!"
* Speaking of ''Frasier'', this trope was neatly deconstructed/lampshaded with Mel Karnofski, Niles' RomanticFalseLead between divorcing Maris and getting together with Daphne. Mel was a blatantly obvious slightly-milder carbon-copy of Maris (or rather, [[TheGhost Maris's actions and descriptions]] given a more subtle form and voice), paralleling her in everything from being a manipulative and domineering JerkAss to her hysterical, unstable, mood-swinging, and obsessively fussy and neurotic behavior -- and Niles is unable to see it. Frasier outright ''tells'' Niles that he's repeating a horrible pattern (Maris was quite emotionally abusive and generally had an adverse effect on Niles' mental state), and speculates that he's just jumping at the chance for someone comfortingly familiar because Daphne is getting engaged and he (apparently) no longer has a chance with her.
* Phil Capra (for Joel Fleischman) on ''Series/NorthernExposure''.
* In season 3 of ''Series/{{Lost}}'', the Others' chief tough guy, Danny Pickett, was replaced by Ryan Pryce a few episodes after the former's death.
** Bram first appears in the same episode in which Ceaser dies (the actor didn't want to stay in Hawaii) and takes over his role, which was promised to be important at least for the season.
* Agents Doggett and Reyes on ''Series/TheXFiles''.
** Also the various informants, starting with Deep Throat, coming into X, and finishing with Marita Covarrubias.
** One case was forced: "Travelers" and "Agua Mala" featured Arthur Dales, the first FBI agent to deal with X-Files. Dales' actor Darren [=McGavin=] suffered a stroke filming "The Unnatural", leading him to be replaced with M. Emmet Walsh playing [[NamesTheSame his brother Arthur Dales]], a former police officer (who lampshades his parents didn't have much creativity with names). To make it worse, both Dales were played in flashbacks by the same actor.
* ''Series/{{Mash}}'' replaced half its original cast during its run with new characters slotted into their roles in the ensemble, but partially subverted the trope by giving the new characters key differences. Womanizer Trapper John was replaced by happily married B.J. Hunnicutt, oblivious draftee [[McLeaned Col. Blake]] was replaced by regular-Army taskmaster Col. Potter, incompetent {{Jerkass}} Frank Burns was replaced by JerkWithAHeartOfGold surgical diva Charles Winchester. Clerical savant [[HypercompetentSidekick Radar]] wasn't given a replacement character but instead his duties were handed off to slacker first-class [[EnsembleDarkhorse Klinger.]]
** This is lampshaded [[IncrediblyLamePun depres]][[TearJerker singly]] in the episode "Depressing News", when Hawkeye is lamenting to B.J. how the war rolls on even as the people fighting it are killed or replaced (using the surplus tongue depressors that have been shipped to the 4077th as a visual aid):
--->'''Hawkeye:''' Tongue depressors, doctors, soldiers, we're all the same...(''holds up one tongue depressor'') Trapper John goes. No problem, there's plenty more where he came from. (''tosses it aside and picks up another'') B.J. Hunnicutt. Same size, same shape. (''picks up another'') Frank Burns out... (''picks up another'') Winchester in. Just a hair's difference. (''picks up another'') Henry Blake. (''snaps it in two'') Rest in peace, Henry. (''picks up another'') Incoming Sherman Potter. (''to B.J.'') My God, hasn't this elimination tournament gone on long enough?
** Sgt. Luther Rizzo is arguably a substitute for Sgt. Zelmo Zale.
* Capt. Oliver Hudson on ''Series/SeaQuestDSV''.
** Lonnie Henderson is probably a better example, going so far as to step in as Ford's love interest in season 2 to replace Katie Hitchcock.
* Ida Mae Brindle on ''Series/SmallWonder''.
* Jeffrey Sinclair and John Sheridan (both J.S.'s, like Creator/JMichaelStraczynski), and, later, Susan Ivanova and Elizabeth Lochley, on ''Series/BabylonFive''. The difference between the two changes and their effect on the show is marked, as was general reaction.
** Ivanova was herself a Suspiciously Similar Substitute for Laurel Takashima from the PilotMovie ''Babylon 5: The Gathering''.
*** That's how it ended up, but according to JMS that wasn't the original intention. The two characters were originally supposed to coexist until the end of the second season when Laurel would turn out to be TheMole and leave the show (written in because JMS knew Tamlyn Tomita wouldn't want to commit to five years) and Ivanova would become the executive officer... but then Tamlyn Tomita decided not to come back for the series at all.
** Likewise, Talia Winters replaced Lyta Alexander when the series began; in a recursive twist, though, when Andrea Thompson decided to leave the show, they brought back Lyta in a double-un-Suspiciously Similar Substitute maneuver.
*** WordOfGod admits this was a blatant [[DroppedABridgeOnHim Bridge Drop.]] Talia's actress was clamoring for more screen time and generally being a pain to work with, so JMS unceremoniously fired her. Additionally served as a standing notice to other cast that AnyoneCanDie, in addition to the flexibility mentioned below.
** Stephen Franklin replaced Benjamin Kyle. Noticing a pattern yet? Face it - if this wiki had been around ten years ago, the page you're reading would be called "John Sheridan."
** Straczynski has stated that every major character on the show had an "escape hatch" for each season, to allow the actor to be replaced if necessary without affecting the overall story arc.
** ''Babylon 5'' did this with alien species too. After the Shadows left the galaxy, a suspiciously similar race called the Drakh appeared, handwaved as the "dark servants" of the Shadows.
* Flo replacing the deceased Selma on ''Series/NightCourt''. Flo then also died a year later, leading to the younger Roz. (Also on this show, Lana was replaced by Mac, and Liz was replaced by Billie, then Christine).
* On ''Series/ThreesCompany'', DumbBlonde Chrissy being replaced by her cousin, DumbBlonde Cindy.
* Oliver (for Jeff) on ''Series/{{Coupling}}''.
* ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000'' is an interesting case. All characters other than the robots had been replaced by the show's end, yet the writers took care to make the replacement (and their interaction with the rest of the cast) different from the departing character. Consequently, there's no real consensus among the fans whether any given replacement was better or worse than the original. It also helps that each replacement actor was either behind the scenes since the start, or with the team for ages before they got in front of the camera, so none of them were really "new."
** Joel was sort of a father figure to the 'bots. His replacement, Mike, interacted with the 'bots as their equal (at best) and tended to be more overtly sarcastic. The {{flame war}}s over which of the two was better are [[InternetBackdraft notorious]].
** TV's Frank was Dr. Clayton Forrester's minion and punching-bag; when he departed, he was replaced by Pearl Forrester, Clayton's mom and one of the few people capable of cowing her son into submission. After Clayton departed, Pearl took over as the head Mad, and gained her own minions, Bobo and Observer.
** TV's Frank himself being a replacement for Dr Erhardt, who [[HandWave "went missing"]] after the first season. Prompting Joel to remark during "Earth vs. The Spider" when a character who looked alot like Dr Erhardt was eaten "So THATS what happened to him!"
*** The actor playing Dr. Erhardt also provided the voice of Tom Servo during the show's first Comedy Channel season. When he left, and Kevin took over for Tom Servo in season 2, a fan mailed in an 11-page long banner screaming "I HATE SERVO'S NEW VOICE". ("Does he realize," Kevin later commented, "That he just sent hate mail to a puppet?")
* Sikozu replacing Jool, who initially replaced Zhaan on ''Series/{{Farscape}}''.
** Noranti somehow replaces Zhaan, as "cleric/spiritual leader/healer" on the ship too.
** This was more of Zhaan being replaced by two characters: her science side by Jool and her spiritual side by Stark. Then Jool is replaced by Sikozu and Stark by Noranti.
** Crichton {{lampshade|Hanging}}s this series of changes by simply calling Sikozu "the new girl" in the Season 4 opener. By this time even he's blasé about the ComboPlatterPowers of the various new additions.
* Sergeant Baker replaced Sergeant Kinchloe as 'radio operator who happens to be black' on ''Series/HogansHeroes'' in the final season. Unfortunately, unlike Kinchloe, Baker didn't have much characterization outside 'radio operator who happens to be black' and wasn't the most satisfying of replacements.
* An interesting exception can be found on ''ADifferentWorld''. Originally it was a star vehicle created for Lisa Bonet by Creator/BillCosby's production house, but after Bonet's 1988 pregnancy forced her from the program after the first season, no substitute for her was cast. Instead, it became an ensemble show, and eventually two minor characters -- Dwayne Wayne and Whitley Gilbert -- evolved into its real stars and carried the show for five more years.
* ''Series/StepByStep'' replaced Cody ([[RoleEndingMisdemeanor upon actor Sasha Mitchell's run-in with the law]]) with Bronson Pinchot's character, who, despite being French, was essentially the wacky roommate Cody was in every way.
** They also had the character of Flash, nicknamed because he was an adult with the hyperactivity of a 4 year old. Essentially another Cody given a justification.
* In ''Series/{{Heroes}}'', West's relationship with Claire leaves him as little more than a straight version of Zach. The writers tried to cover this up by giving him the power of flight/levitation but his lines and role as a foil character made it obvious.
* For one season of ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'', Dr. Kate Pulaski (played by Diana Muldaur, who'd appeared twice as different characters in the [[Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries Original Series]]) replaced Dr. Beverly Crusher as ship's doctor.
** Pulaski was indeed a Suspiciously Similar Substitute, but not for Crusher. She shared far more personality traits with [=McCoy=].
* In a case falling halfway between Suspiciously Similar Substitute and TheNthDoctor, ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' replaced Jadzia Dax with Ezri Dax in the final season: different hosts, same symbiote, and a Trill's personality is a blend of the host and symbiote.
** In the early production of ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'', Kira Nerys was actually a replacement character for Ro Laren, because the actress that played Ro in ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' declined the offer to appear in ''Deep Space Nine''
*** The exact same thing happened in the early production of ''Series/StarTrekVoyager'': B'Elanna Torres was also a replacement character for Ro Laren, because Michelle Forbes again refused to commit to a seven-year show.
*** And Tom Paris was a suspiciously similar substitute for a character the same actor played on Next Gen for various complex reasons.
*** To complete a common pattern, T'Pol was originally written to be T'Pau, a Vulcan priestess who appeared in the Original Series and in ''Film/StarTrekIIITheSearchForSpock.'' But since it was thought at the time that reusing a character would force them to pay royalties to the writer who created the original T'Pau, the character was changed. T'Pau did appear in the fourth season during a story arc on Vulcan. It was some years later that a judge in California ruled that such a reuse would ''not'' force a producer to pay royalties to the original writer. (This, incidentally, is one of the reasons why Nicholas Locarno in TNG became Tom Paris in Voyager).
*** Taurik, a Vulcan Ensign who appeared in a single episode of ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'', became a recurring crew member in ''Voyager'', where he was called Vorik, for the same reason that Locarno became Paris and T'Pau became T'Pol. Jeri Taylor, a producer on ''Voyager'' and the mother of the actor (Alexander Enberg) who played Taurik and Vorik, once quipped that the rhymedly named Vulcan Ensigns were identical twin brothers.
* Actually this trope has been in ''Franchise/StarTrek'' from the start were Captain Pike is replaced after the {{Pilot}} with Captain Kirk. Both are square jawed, two fisted adventurers with a close friendship with the ship's physician and a mild romantic interest in a female yeoman.
** Pike was not exactly an established character, though, since the pilot was not shown in the series' regular run. Yes, it was chopped up to become the story-within-a-story of "Menagerie" but that was run well after Kirk was established as Captain.
** The characters of TOS were based on the characters originally conceived for the rejected pilot, with Pike becoming Kirk, Boyce becoming Bones, Smith becoming Rand, etc.. This practice is extremely commonplace when a Pilot turns into a green-lighted series. Similarly, the characters of TNG were based on the characters of the abandoned "Star Trek: Phase II" series: Will Decker became the similarly-named Will Riker; Decker's old flame, the empathic Deltan Ilia, became Riker's old flame, the empathic Betazed Troi; and Xon, the Vulcan struggling to understand humanity, became Data, the android struggling to understand humanity. A writer's strike proved to be nothing more than a minor inconvenience for TNG: they just dusted off some old "Phase II" scripts and went to work (though only one script ended up being used for the strike-shortened second season; another was pushed back to season four).
*** Xon was created to replace Spock when Creator/LeonardNimoy decided he didn't want to do the "Phase II" series.
** Captain Picard is based on Captain Pike.
*** I think that the execs might have hired "him" on purpose; "their" version of a comically ShoutOut.
* One of the world's few substitute ''anticipations'' happened in the kids' series ''Series/SpaceCases''. With Jewel Staite having ''Series/FlashForward'' hanging in the balance, her character, Catalina, was given an "imaginary friend" named Suzee, who was really a person living in AnotherDimension that Catalina could communicate with. When the other series required Ms. Staite's services, a little AppliedPhlebotinum switched Suzee to the real world (as played by Rebecca Herbst) and Catalina to the "imaginary" world.
* ''Series/BeakmansWorld'' {{su|spiciouslySimilarSubstitute}}bstituted its lovely young female assistant not once, but ''twice''. Both were a result of the show's fate: The first switch happened as the show [[ChannelHop moved]] to CBS from syndication (and Alanna Ubach deciding to do movies instead), and the second happened after an [[UnCanceled Un-cancellation]] (and Eliza Schneider deciding to do stage shows instead).
* Many older kids shows, like ''Series/YouCantDoThatOnTelevision'' and ''Series/KidsIncorporated'', substituted the ''entire cast'', and ''Kids Incorporated'' did so repeatedly. Their reasoning is likely similar to why the Vienna Boys' Choir and Menudo boot their kids out at 13.
** Similarly, the late 80s-early 90s incarnation of ''TheMickeyMouseClub'' turned over its cast a few times. Notables in the mix include Keri Russell (as part of the first rotation of new blood) and Music/BritneySpears (as part of one of the last rotations).
** The UK kids' show ''WhyDontYou...'' is another example, but is had one notable exception in its later years: Ben, the Welsh MadScientist, was evidently considered un-substitutable, so he continued past the typical age, eventually playing a [[Series/RedDwarf Holly]]-style computer program based on the original Ben, so that the disparity between his age and the rest of the cast wasn't an issue.
* Before the series adopted its [[Franchise/SuperSentai Japanese counterpart's]] format of each season essentially being a standalone show, ''Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers'' did have some cast changes, always preserving the number of TokenMinority characters. The second Pink Ranger, Katherine Hillard, is an especially egregious example, not being much like [[TheDitz her predecessor]] before becoming a Ranger, but then rapidly becoming her clone. ({{Dark Action Girl}}s take heed: GoodIsDumb).
** In ''Series/PowerRangersZeo'' they replaced the African-American yellow ranger Aisha with a girl in Africa who she was apparently SwitchedAtBirth with.
** They did manage a successful change in ''Series/PowerRangersLostGalaxy'', where actress Valerie Vernon had to leave due to being diagnosed with leukemia. Originally they were going to take the previous pink ranger and bring her in as a replacement, but when that deal fell through, they took [[Series/PowerRangersInSpace the previous season's]] reformed BigBad, Karone, and made her the replacement. In this case, the character was vastly different because she had aspects of TheAtoner.
** Another successful change was [[Creator/JohnnyYongBosch Adam Park]], the second Black Ranger. While Zack was fun-loving and energetic, Adam was fairly quiet and thoughtful. Early on, this was all his character had to him, but an ad-lib in TheMovie ([[WhatKindOfLamePowerIsHeartAnyway his dejected "I'm a frog..."]] when finding out what his spirit animal is) gave him some Woobie points and being the second-longest serving ranger gave him fairly decent character development. He's one of the most popular characters in the series now and the only pre-Disney buyout ranger to appear in the 15th anniversary ReunionShow.
* The original ''Series/KamenRider'' was forced to do this with Takeshi Hongo/Kamen Rider 1 after HiroshiFujioka broke his leg while attempting a stunt. Unlike many examples of this trope, however, the replacement character (Hayato Ichimonji/Kamen Rider 2) is remembered fondly by the fanbase and has become just as much a fixture of the franchise as his predecessor, and when the former returned to the show, the two are often paired under the nickname "Double Riders."
** ''KamenRiderDecade'' has done this to most of the cast of the shows they visited, using the conceit of {{Alternate Universe}}s. Sometimes these changes are justified (for instance KamenRiderKuuga's actor considers the series an OldShame). However, a good number of actors have returned to play their original characters as well, even if they're also AU incarnations.
** The old-school Riders had a recurring, cross-seasonal ally named Tobei Tachibana. He started out as Hongo's friend who ran the motorbike racing club, but got more and more involved with things Rider-related just due to being close to the guys trouble followed most, becoming something of a BadassNormal. When PowersThatBe decided to bring the character back in ''KamenRiderSkyrider'' but the actor declined, the Tachibana role in that and [[{{KamenRiderSuper-1}} the following]] series went to the nigh-identical Genjiro Tani. His personality and role were exactly Tachibana's, and sometimes past Riders talked to Tani as if they knew him ''much'' better than they did, as if scripts with Tachibana in mind had already been written. They really shoulda gone the MagicPlasticSurgery route.
* The ''MetalHeroes'' series ''SpaceSheriffGavan'' had Gavan's BridgeBunny Mimi leave to see to her ill mother for the last 3rd or so of the series, and replaced with a character called Marin who was the exact same character minus the {{Love Interest|s}} part (since Mimi was only leaving for a short while so her and Gavan were still technically in a relationship) Unlike most examples though Marin was already an established character on the show as a BridgeBunny to Gavan's MissionControl and was specifically called in to fill in for Mimi.
* ''Series/TheWestWing''
** Will Bailey seems to have begun as one for Sam Seaborn (right down to ''several'' "passing the torch" incidents in which Sam encouraged Toby to accept Will's help with the Inauguration speech, Will was semi-formally inducted into Sam's old position, etc.), but the writing of the show shifted after Creator/AaronSorkin's departure, and within a year Will's character had shifted jobs into the Vice-President's office and was portrayed more as a cynical political operative than as an idealist. Joshua Malina (Will) has even described himself as a worse-looking, less-expensive Rob Lowe (Sam). Which you have to admit has a grain of truth to it.
** Joe Quincy (Matthew Perry), who was hired to fill a position opened by Ainsley Hayes (Emily Procter), a [[BlondeRepublicanSexKitten "blonde, leggy Republican."]] Yeah, he was a Republican too. Josh doesn't like that the similarities end there.
--->'''Josh''' "If you're a Republican, you damn well better look like Ainsley Hayes!
--->'''Donna''' "He does!"
--->''Joe and Josh stare''
--->'''Donna''' "I mean... he will to other people!"
** The show seems to be unable to hang on to the actor playing the White House Counsel, and so the feeling of similarity is probably due to the fact that the dialogue the new guy is sprouting was actually written for the previous guy. The scene that introduces Counsel Oliver Babish (the one with the oversized gavel and dictaphone) was pretty obviously written with Lionel Tribbey (his predecessor) in mind.
* ''Series/{{Maverick}}'' introduced a Suspiciously Similar Substitute ''before'' the star left, in the form of Bret Maverick's brother, Bart. This was principally done in order to accelerate the show's shooting schedule, since they could shoot a Bret episode and a Bart episode at the same time. Reportedly, the show's writers had no idea whether a given episode would be a Bret episode or a Bart episode when they wrote it. By the show's end there were two other Mavericks in rotation, one of them played by Roger Moore. The most suspiciously similar of them all was Brent Maverick, who was introduced shortly after James Garner (who played Bret Maverick) left the show. Not only was Brent's name just one letter off from Bret's, but he was played by Robert Colbert, who bears a remarkable likeness to Garner. When Colbert discovered the producers' plan for him, he rebelled against them, reportedly begging them to, "Put me in a dress and call me Brenda! ANYTHING but this!"
* To an extent, Hugh Laurie in the third and fourth series of ''Series/{{Blackadder}}'' seems to have filled this role (aristocratic fop) in replacement of Tim [=McInnerny=] from the first two series, after [=McInnerny=] left because he didn't want to be typecast. When [=McInnerny=] rejoined the regular cast in the fourth series, his character resembled that played by Stephen Fry (brown-nosing rival) in the second series, with Fry in turn now playing a character more akin to that of {{BRIAN BLESSED}} and Miranda Richardson respectively (insane tyrant) in the first two series. This slightly convoluted game of "musical chairs" in regards to actors and characters appears however to have been of little detriment to the series.
* Nancy Oleson on ''Series/LittleHouseOnThePrairie'' is a replacement for long-time nemesis, Nellie Oleson. This is lampshaded in the episode where the Olesons adopt her, as Harriet mentions how she looks "just like Nellie" while Nels later ruefully acknowledges that she acts just like Nellie, too.
** Nancy was Nellie on steroids; actually vicious enough to unthinkingly put people's lives in danger, much like their mother. When Nell returns for a visit, even she is struck by the resemblance--and put off as well, fearing her mother is making the same mistakes--which was an understatement.
* ''Series/RobinOfSherwood'' replaced Michael Praed's Robin of Locksley with Jason Connery's Robert of Huntingdon, tying two contradictory legends together by making RobinHood a LegacyCharacter.
** Creator/TheBBC version of ''Series/RobinHood'' appeared to be about to do this too. Season 3, episode 10 invented a backstory for Robin Hood and Guy of Gisbourne that created a mutual half-brother for the characters. Both Jonas Armstrong (Robin) and Richard Armitage (Guy) were expected to leave the show at the end of the third season, presumably to be replaced by their brother Archer. Then the show was cancelled.
** Likewise, on the BBC version, the character of Marian was replaced with Kate...who had the same personality as her predecessor, only blonde and poor (and shrill). The result was cringe-inducing considering that Kate was written as arrogant, impetuous, and initially antagonistic toward Robin, just as Marian was. What the writers failed to realize was that such traits are understandable and endearing in a privileged noblewoman who had been jilted by Robin, but completely nonsensical in a peasant girl who had no reason to be any of these things.
* ''Franchise/LawAndOrder'' has always had six main characters: two detectives, their chief, the DA, the executive assistant DA, and a regular assistant DA. Given that the series [[LongRunners lasted for 20 seasons]], all six roles have been substituted as actors move on, some of them several times over. It also helps that the show is heavily story-based, and not too dependent on characterizations.
** ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'' has seen this a few times; while actress Mariska Hargitay was away due to pregnancy, her character Olivia Benson was briefly replaced by arguable CanonSue Dani Beck, who spoke fluent French, physically assaulted perps without consequence, was famous for her effectiveness in fighting crime, had a cool personal PDA/GPS system that she flashed around a few times, and had the romantic affair with Elliot that fans wanted him to have with Olivia. In general, the fandom doesn't miss her.
*** Similarly, the ADA's in SVU get replaced. Most people didn't mind the Alex Cabot replacement by Casey Novak (they have very different personalities), but the ADA who replaced Novak for Season 10 was a mediocre blend of both of them, with a dash of InformedAbility to boot. "They used to call me the Crusader." Fan backlash led to them bringing back Alex.
* Coy and Vance replaced Bo and Luke Duke in ''Series/TheDukesOfHazzard''. They were such substitutes, they even had the same ''hair color''.
** The following season Bo and Luke were brought back, and Coy and Vance were [[PutOnABus never heard of again]].
** Deputy Cletus Hogg, although his initial appearance on the show preceded Enos' departure [[SpinOff for his own series]], and he was allowed to stay on even after Enos returned.
** Roscoe was also replaced briefly by two different sheriffs - including TheOtherDarrin himself.
* In the Australian teen series ''WickedScience'', the girl in Toby's group, Dina, was replaced by Toby's cousin Sasha in Season 2.
* Mr. Harmon, Old Mr. Grace, and Mr. Spooner replacing Mr. Mash, Young Mr. Grace and Mr. Lucas on ''Series/AreYouBeingServed''.
** Also Mr Grainger, the head of menswear, was replaced by Tebbs, Goldberg, Klein, and Grossman before they eliminated role and made Mr Humphries head of the department.
* Charlie Crawford replaced Mike Flaherty as the Deputy Mayor on ''Series/SpinCity''. The key difference was that Charlie was a HandsomeLech and Mike wasn't.
** Charlie Crawford was played by CharlieSheen, who also played Charlie Harper in ''Series/TwoAndAHalfMen''. Sheen ended up getting fired from the show due to his drug problems and for making derogatory remarks about the show's creator and executive producer. Harper was killed off and replaced by Walden Schmidt, played by AshtonKutcher. Both characters are immature womanizers.
* When Gomer Pyle left ''Series/TheAndyGriffithShow'' in 1964 for his own spin-off, ''Gomer Pyle USMC'' (of "'PYYYYLE!'...'Shazam!'" fame), he was replaced by equally hayseed cousin Goober Pyle.
** Up to that point, Goober was only [[HeWhoMustNotBeSeen referred to by Gomer]] as a running gag; his materializing as Gomer's replacement would be something like ''Series/{{Seinfeld}}'''s Kramer being replaced by the infamous "Bob Sacamano." Weird.
*** Well, technically, Goober ''did'' appear in one episode ("Fun Girls") prior to Gomer's departure from Mayberry.
** Warren Ferguson and (arguably) Howard Sprague, for Barney Fife.
** Andy's steady girlfriend in the first season was pharmacist Ellie Walker; after she was written out of the show (apparently due to lack of chemistry between Andy Griffith and Elinor Donahue), Andy was given a couple more temporary love interests before Helen Crump was finally introduced in season 3.
** When the show was retooled as ''Mayberry, R.F.D.'', Sam Jones and his son Mike essentially became the substitutes for Andy and Opie Taylor.
* In ''Series/OnlyFoolsAndHorses'', when the actor playing Granddad died he was almost immediately replaced by his previously mentioned brother Uncle Albert.
* The long-running Australian sitcom ''Series/HeyDad'' continued for a 13th and 14th season after the titular character left, with a family friend serving as an unofficial father figure. Over its long lifespan, the show had a nearly complete changeover of cast, with replacements alternating between thinly-disguised substitutes and unexplained [[TheOtherDarrin Other Darrins]].
* ''Series/MyThreeSons'' did this a lot. They replaced grandpa Bub with Uncle Charlie. Later the oldest son left so the dad adopted the youngest son's friend.
* ''Series/DoctorWho'' did this recently, when Howard Attfield, who played Donna Noble's father in "The Runaway Bride," died during the filming of Series 4. They filled his role with Wilfred Mott (Bernard Cribbins), who had been created as a one-off guest character in "Voyage of the Damned" and was promptly retconned as her maternal grandfather.
** This is not the first time Cribbins has been a ''Series/DoctorWho'' Suspiciously Similar Substitute; in the second of the 1960s non-canon movies, ''Film/DaleksInvasionEarth2150AD'', he plays Special Constable Tom Campbell, who replaces the character of Ian Chesterton who appeared in the corresponding episode from the TV show and who appeared in the earlier movie ''Dr. Who And The Daleks''. Louise, also replaces Barbara.
** The Doctor's regeneration was designed specifically to avoid this. Originally there was no plans for him to regenerate he wasn't even designated an alien, it only came about when Creator/WilliamHartnell had to leave the show due to health issues. A producer thought it would be a novel idea and thus the doctor as we know him was born.
** The real offenders are the early companions. Once Barbara and Ian left, Steven replaced them. Before that, Vicki replaced Susan, and was later replaced herself by Dodo, with Sara and Katarina briefly holding the role. The companion model of a young heroic male and attractive young female was used as a counterpart to the older Hartnell, and the slightly old Troughton, at which point it was changed for a sidekick-type model. There were several exceptions -
*** Polly and Ben were a pair, and separately didn't fit the ideas of a female and male companion. They were seen with Jamie, the new version of the young heroic male.
** The original plans for Season 7 had Zoe as the Third Doctor's companion; when her actress declined to stay on, they created Liz, a similar HotScientist, to replace her.
*** Stephen Fry had to pull out of writing a script because he couldn't find the time to rewrite his episode to accommodate Martha Jones instead of Rose Tyler as the companion.
*** Early plans for Series 4 had a character called Penny Carter stepping in as the new companion, 'as much like Donna Noble as I can get away with' according to writer Russell T. Davies. Then CatherineTate agreed to do the show after all and Donna became the full-time companion. Penny Carter did appear as a minor character.
* ''Series/{{Torchwood}}'' did this in ''Children of Earth'' with Lois, who fills the role Martha was joining to play had Freema Agyeman been available.
** Subverted in the same miniseries when a character [[spoiler: who seems like he's being built up to be a substitute for Owen suddenly shoots Jack in the back, and then gets shot himself. RTD says this was intentional, because he thinks it's a disservice to characters to outright replace them with a Suspiciously Similar Substitute.]]
* ''Series/TheSarahJaneAdventures'', as well as replacing Maria with Rani, plays with this in-universe a few times:
** Luke has a nightmare about being replaced in ''The Nightmare Man''.
** In ''Goodbye Sarah Jane Smith'', Ruby attempts to become this for Sarah Jane.
* ''Series/DueSouth'' did this surprisingly well, mixing in a bit of [[TheOtherDarrin Sister Becky]]. One character is sent away "under cover" while the main character is out of town. The replacement is introduced as someone pretending to be that character, in order to maintain his cover.
** For bonus points, the replacement is almost nothing like his predecessor, [[spoiler:with almost everybody except Fraser seeming to be unaware of this]]
* {{Channel 4}}'s {{Mockumentary}} series ''This is David Lander'' changed its title to ''This is David Harper'' when Creator/StephenFry was replaced by Tony Slattery.
** A few years earlier, Stephen Fry was supposed to be the second regular on ''Series/WhoseLineIsItAnyway'', but backed out at the last minute (he didn't actually like doing improv that much). He was replaced by...Tony Slattery.
*** Stephen Fry and Tony Slattery were both members of the Cambridge Footlights at the same time, by the way. And Slattery took up the position of Footlights president after Fry's good friend and frequent collaborator Hugh Laurie served in that position for a year.
* ''Series/{{NCIS}}'' did this on several occasions.
** At the end of Season 2, NCIS agent Kate Todd is shot and killed by Ari Haswari, a Hamas terrorist working undercover within Mossad. Then at the beginning of Season 3, Mossad agent Ziva David, Ari's sister, joins the NCIS team as a Liaison Officer. Ziva resembles Kate physically- both are slim, brown eyed brunettes. And Ziva quickly picks up Kate's habit of engaging in rivalry, banter and UnresolvedSexualTension with NCIS agent Tony [=DiNozzo=]. Otherwise, Kate and Ziva are quite different characters, but this is not a case of TheOtherDarrin.
** The fifth season ends on a {{cliffhanger}} which implies that Tony, Ziva, ''and'' [=McGee=] will all be substituted, and, indeed, the sixth season premiere shows Gibbs leading a new team, with establishing shots helpfully indicating which of the previous characters' niches the new agents fit into. Interestingly, the new team has most of the worst qualities of the characters they're replacing--Langer is a meaner Tony, Keating is a wimpier [=McGee=], etc. The trope is then fairly quickly subverted and by the end of the second episode of the season, the team is reunited and back in business.
** Subverted in the 7th season opener when the team interviews replacements for Ziva. Two don't live up to their hype, and one came in at the wrong time. [[spoiler: Ziva returns at the end, at least physically.]]
* ''Series/{{Sliders}}'' was rife with substituting toward the end, though most weren't very similar to those they replaced. However, Quinn got substituted when actor JerryOConnell left, by way of TheNthDoctor by being "fused" with 'Mallory' (his non-identical counterpart from a parallel universe), at the same time [[McLeaned Colin was]] PutOnABus. But with a different personality and face, Quinn Mallory's substitute ''isn't'' the other Quinn Mallory. HotScientist Diana Davis takes his role as the scientific brains on the team.
** A certain segment of the fanbase believes that [[EpilepticTrees Arturo was substituted by]] ''his own alternate''.
*** To be fair, the episode that this happens in allows for that interpretation as [[TheProfessor Arturo's]] villainous duplicate tries to replace him so he can escape his own world and just before they slide they are having a classic "which is the real one?" battle, and after the slide the [[TheProfessor Arturo]] who was left behind gives a quiet, "Oh, my God."
*** Series creator TracyTorme has tormented fans by saying that he knows which Arturo made the jump, but will never reveal it.
* Done by necessity quite a lot on gentle old dears' British comedy ''Series/LastOfTheSummerWine'', as elderly cast members die off with inconvenient regularity. (Currently only one member of the original central trio is still alive).
* Done on ''Series/AlloAllo'' when Mimi and Captain Bertorelli appeared as substitutes for Maria and the German Captain Hans respectively -- in particular, Mimi was at least as short as Maria and both had fiery tempers. It allowed them to continue the gag of Mimi/Maria having to get a stool to stand on in order to hug René. Later, Monsieur Leclerc was replaced by his twin brother after the original actor died. Captain Bertorelli and the second Leclerc were ''then'' replaced in a TheOtherDarrin manner.
** Also parodied in the series, when René's death was faked and he was forced to pose as his own Suspiciously Similar Substitute twin brother for the rest of the show.
*** '''René:''' "I am ''also'' named René."
* The German police drama ''Siska'' did this when they replaced the eponymous lead character with his never-before-mentioned brother after he was killed off.
* Luka Kovacs for Doug Ross in ''Series/{{ER}}''.
** Similarly, Abby Lockhart for Carol Hathaway. She was introduced as Carol's OB nurse during her labour, but promptly replaced her in the ER after she left. Not only did she immediately start dating Luka, Carol's ex (and aforementioned Doug Ross replacement), but she was even given the aborted nurse-to-doctor storyline (admittedly with some differences; Carol had always been an RN but decided to study for and take her MCATs just to see if she could pass them. Although scenes were filmed with Carol starting medical school, actress Julianna Margulies was unhappy with the storyline as Carol had always passionate about nursing and she felt it was out of character for her to switch careers. By contrast, Abby was introduced as a wannabe doc who took nursing shifts to pay for med school. She dropped out not long after her introduction due to lack of funds, but always intended to go back and finish, which she eventually did, becoming a fully-fledged doctor).
* ''Series/MarriedWithChildren'': Straitlaced banker Steve Rhoades (David Garrison) was Marcy's husband for four seasons, and then was replaced by [[CasanovaWannabe pretty-boy]] Jefferson D'Arcy (TedMcGinley) when Garrison wanted to leave the show to avoid being typecast. This was rather a subversion because Jefferson was a completely different character than Steve.
* ''Series/{{Everwood}}'', for some extent at least: Linda and Amanda are both facing a tragedy of sorts, both feel uneasy around Nina (foreshadowing, much?) and both have a similar relationship with Andy: the rocky start, people against the affair, having a hard time fitting in Andy's family life, and finally breaking up over something directly related to the aforementioned tragedy. Amy's best friends, Laynie and Hannah (who never appeared simultaneously, although they'd be best friends themselves in ''Grey's Anatomy'', same actresses, different characters), also share some traits: tragedy again (the common denominator for everybody in the show), introverted, both have an older brother (one of them [[spoiler: dies]] and the other [[spoiler: has a strong chance of inheriting Huntington's]]), both are somewhat "dark" and both girls click with Ephram instantly (Laynie actually dates him, Hannah is more a best friend / neighbour / like sibling type). Last but not least, Stephanie is in many ways a short-lived Madison II (college-girl, very different from Ephram, great with Deliah, kind with Amy in spite of her (Amy's) jealousy).
* ''{{Teachers}}'' initially both justified and averted it. It justified it because, in a school, teachers genuinely do come and go and get replaced, so it never seemed odd to have cast changes between series. They averted it by not replacing characters with direct clones, particularly after main character Simon left and the show became an ensemble piece. Unfortunately, after the third series, {{ensemble darkhorse}}s Kurt and Brian left, along with Simon's arbitrary replacement Matt, to be replaced by Damien and Ben, substitutes for Kurt and Brian, and Ewan, a substitute for Simon. Cue SeasonalRot and no fifth series.
* Dr. Peele of ''Series/AmericanGothic'' was this, replacing Dr. Crower--only to then be sent veering off in a different direction by being paired up with the FemmeFatale, then relegated to backburner status for the rest of the series.
* Sandy Duncan's character on ''Series/TheHoganFamily'', which was ''Valerie'' before Valerie Harper quit.
* Neil Morrissey as Tony Smart from series 2 of ''Series/MenBehavingBadly'', replacing Harry Enfield as Dermot Povey. Since this happened on {{ITV}}, and the show only became popular after the third series was taken up by Creator/TheBBC, most viewers have only the vaguest idea there ever ''was'' a Dermot Povey. (In one ClipShow, a single scene from series 1 is shown, prompting Tony to ask "Who was that?")
* ''Series/That70sShow'' replaced Eric and Kelso with Randy, who had similar personality traits of both other characters.
** Yet instead of getting an empty-headed loser, which were the funniest parts about Eric and Kelso, we ended up with a smart pretty-boy, which is ultimately, a [[MarySue Gary Stu]]. [[ReplacementScrappy This did not go unnoticed by the viewers.]]
* In ''Series/BlakesSeven'', substitutes are always the same gender as the outgoing character, for no particular reason but to make up the numbers. [[spoiler:Jenna is replaced by Dayna, Blake is replaced by Tarrant, and Cally is replaced by Soolin.]] Slightly subverted in the episode 'Rescue', though, where the tough guy and the female pilot are replaced by a male pilot and a tough chick, respectively.
* In ''Series/{{Frontline}}'', each season features a new Executive Producer, all of whom are equally amoral but manipulate people in slightly different ways.
* In ''Series/GilmoreGirls'', when Chad Michael Murray (Tristan [=DuGray=]) left for ''Series/OneTreeHill''. This left a void in the Rory/Dean/Other love/hate triangle. The void was soon filled by Jess Mariano (Milo Ventimiglia).
** Although Jess's character was VASTLY different from Tristan's, and the dynamics of the relationship between him and Rory were much more even.
** Logan Huntzberger, however, was just Tristan 2.0.
* ''Series/{{Monk}}'' did this when Traylor Howard was introduced as Natalie Teeger, replacing Bitty Schram's character Sharona Fleming as Monk's assistant midway through season 3. The next few episodes were very obviously written for Sharona, with the only real difference in the characters being Natalie calls him "Mr. Monk" instead of "Adrian." (Well, almost all of the time) This gets especially weird when she states that she's never seen Monk's feet like that's a big deal, despite having only taken the job in the previous episode. The point at which the writers ran out of their previous scripts and were able to start creating material specifically for Natalie (mostly involving her dead husband at first) is very, very clear, and happens some time around "Mr. Monk and the Election" or "Mr. Monk and the Kid".
** Due to the death of Stanley Kamel (Dr. Kroger), Hector Elizondo has taken on the role of a new psychiatrist for Adrian Monk.
* ''Series/GetSmart'' (the original show) did this for the episode "Ice Station Siegfried." Don Adams had a root canal and couldn't be there for the shooting of one episode, so the writers created Agent Quigley, who acted exactly like Maxwell Smart and was also attracted to Agent 99, to replace him for one episode. He was never seen nor mentioned again. Incidentally, the script for "Ice Station Siegfried" was so bad that Adams purposely scheduled his dentist appointment so that he would miss the filming of it and not another Season 5 episode.
* ''Series/DadsArmy'' introduced Private Cheeseman as a substitute after the sudden death of James Beck, who played Walker. The character fast became a [[TheScrappy Scrappy]] and was written out after only one season.
* Although not as obvious as some other examples, the producers of ''{{Series/Buffy|TheVampireSlayer}}'' wrestled with who they could get to replace Cordelia's snarky truth-telling character (who had left for ''Series/{{Angel}}'', where she'd undergo a whack of CharacterDevelopment and change personalities anyway). At first, when getting wind of the popularity of Spike and deciding to keep him on, they'd thought to have him do it, but they later decided to use Anya, a previously one-episode appearance, to become a regular and take over Cordelia's role in the group.
** While we're at it, Spike, the Vampire-fighting-for-good, is curiously similar to Angel. Eventually even the slightly-different motivation, the behaviour-dampening hardware placed in his brain, is written out and he is given a soul just like his counterpart. And yeah, they both date Buffy.
** Their personalities are not remotely similar, though.
** ''{{Series/Buffy|TheVampireSlayer}}'' also inverted the trope with Kennedy, who was deliberately made very different from Willow's previous love interest Tara. Perhaps not the best idea, as Kennedy was pushy, arrogant, and abrasive where Tara was shy, gentle and empathetic. [[TheScrappy She was not received well]].
* Meanwhile, in the spinoff ''Series/{{Angel}}:''
** There's a textbook {{subver|tedTrope}}sion in season 1, after Angel loses Doyle. He complains that his link to the Powers That Be is gone, only to be told that "whenever a door closes, another opens." Enter a very Doyle-like character...who turns out, after a series of misdirections, to be the MonsterOfTheWeek, not the new sidekick. Cordelia [[DiscardAndDraw gains Doyle's powers and role]].
** Doyle himself was a Suspiciously Similar Substitute for Whistler, a character who appeared briefly in flashbacks in ''Buffy'''s second season finale and recruited Angel to the side of good. Both are sarcastic demons (half-demon, in Doyle's case) who work for the PowersThatBe. Doyle was originally intended to ''be'' Whistler, but the actor was unavailable when the show was greenlit, so they reworked him as newcomer Doyle.
** Creator/JossWhedon admits that after Cordelia went insane, fell into a coma, and was absent in the show's final season, the writers felt that the show had lost an important puzzle piece. Enter Harmony. Dim-witted, blonde, and completely peculiar vampire who seems to carry the personality of Cordelia circa Season 1. They even went as far as adding her as a main character in the opening credits for the final six episodes.
*** Though since Harmony had been there since the very first episode of ''Buffy'' (and being one of the Cordettes) her character was already known and accepted.
*** WordOfGod is that Harmony was supposed to be a recurring character once she arrived on Angel...but they forgot about her until the final season. Then, they ended up having her in every episode, so it was somewhat necessary to make her part of the main cast.
** For Season Five, Eve served the part of Cordelia that was to play Angel's foil. Spike as in ''Buffy'' Season Four came on to give the much-needed sarcastic remarks. Illyria, later, became the one who provided conflict by always saying it like it is.
** Eve also effectively replaced Lilah Morgan as the untrustworthy senior female at Wolfram & Hart, as she herself commented on in her first scene.
* In ''JudgingAmy'', Dan Futterman played Vincent Gray, Amy's highly intelligent younger brother, in episodes 1 through 51, when he left the show. He was soon substituted by Kevin Rahm in the role of Kyle [=McCarty=], Amy and Vincent's highly intelligent second cousin who had much of the same intelligence and mannerisms as Vincent. With Kyle's introduction, it was explained that Vincent and Kyle had been roommates and spent much of their younger years together. Vincent returned to the show in episode 100, and effectively reverse-substituted for Kyle who left the show in episode 118. Vincent remained for the rest of the show's run.
* Jeffrey Coho from ''Series/BostonLegal'' is an interesting example, in that he was the substitute for a character who was still on the show. Over the first two seasons, the main character Alan Shore transformed from being a rather-slimy-lawyer-with-a-deeply-buried-heart-of-gold type to a civil rights crusader. Jeffrey Coho was brought onto the show at the beginning of Season 3, and was identical in personality to Season 1 Alan, even down to his politics and his feuding with Brad Chase (except, mercifully, for the friendship with Denny Crane, which was only ever Alan's).
* ''Series/{{Benson}}'' - Rene Auberjonois' Clayton Endicott III was a clone of his predecessor, Taylor (albeit with a more impressively pretentious name).
* ''Series/HillStreetBlues'' - When Michael Conrad died after Season 3, his Sgt. Esterhaus was replaced with Robert Prosky's Sgt. Jablonski (who was even given a similar {{catchphrase}} to close out the briefing at the top of each episode).
* ''{{Series/Alice|1976}}'' - Jolene, for Flo.
** Jolene didn't actually replace Flo per se. When Polly Holiday left to star in the short-lived spinoff "Flo," she was replaced by Diane Ladd (who played Flo in the movie), although on the TV show, she played an original character named "Belle Dupree", another sassy, sarcastic middle aged southern gal. Eventually Diane left, and SHE was replaced by Jolene.
* ''The Streets of San Francisco'' - Dan Robbins, for Steve Keller.
* Inverted, somewhat, on ''Series/AllInTheFamily'': The character of George Jefferson was expressly written for Sherman Helmsley, who [[AbsenteeActor was unavailable]] at the time the show's early seasons were shot due to his appearance in a Broadway musical; the character of George's brother, Henry Jefferson, was devised as a placeholder until Helmsley became available in Season 4 (although George was "on" the show as an [[HeWhoMustNotBeSeen offscreen character]] in the earlier seasons).
* Phil in ''Series/CornerGas'' replacing Paul as the Cree with long hair and the four letter name that starts with P and ends with L who works as the head bartender. The only difference apart from name is that Phil looks older and has a deeper, less enthusiastic voice.
* When Mickey left ''Series/{{Hustle}}'' after season 3, Billy was introduced as a Suspiciously Similar Substitute for ''Danny'', with Danny taking up Mickey's role. In season 5, Mickey's back and the Danny/Billy role is taken by Sean, with his sister Emma as the new Stacie.
* Utterly averted in ''KindredTheEmbraced'', a show loosely based on WhiteWolf's old ''TabletopGame/VampireTheMasquerade'' setting. The main character's actor died in a motorcycle accident shortly after the first season, but, rather than writing in a new lead, the show was ''cancelled''.
** This was because Mark Frankel's character Julian Luna had quickly [[EnsembleDarkhorse taken over as star of the show]] after proving far more popular than the original lead -- C. Thomas Howell's Frank Kohanek -- who was [[TheScrappy intensely disliked by fans and critics alike]]. Frank was supposed to be written out in Season 2, and Julian made the lead. Without the fan favorite, the producers believed that the show was too weak to continue.
* Tiffani Thiessen's Valerie Malone on ''BeverlyHills90210''. Valerie was introduced after Shannen Doherty was fired from the show and was a brunette of similar temperament to Doherty's Brenda who lived in her room and slept with her ex-boyfriend. Her twist was that she was a pot-smoking 'naughty girl', as the characters in the show would constantly remind us.
* This happened with Doherty again on ''Series/{{Charmed}}''. When Doherty left she was [[RealLifeWritesThePlot written out of the show]] and her character, Prue, was [[KilledOffForReal killed by a demon]] which left a rather big hole in the show's premise of having three sister witches [[TheChosenOne prophesised]] to be the greatest force of good the world has ever had. WordOfGod says that they decided they needed another young, hot, brunette to fill the role of the third sister, so in steps RoseMcGowan as Paige the [[LongLostRelative unknown fourth Halliwell sister]] given up for adoption and happens to be Half-[[OurAngelsAreDifferent Whitelighter]] as a result of the sister's mother having an affair. (Bonus points for averting an AssPull in that the mother's affair with her Whitelighter was [[ArcWelding already established]].) In-Universe the third sister needed to have the power of [[MindOverMatter telekinesis]] as Prue had so Paige was given the power to [[TransportersAndTeleporters teleport herself and other objects via her Whitelighter powers.]]
* After Howard Hesseman left ''HeadOfTheClass'' in 1990, Billy Connolly's character substituted him for the show's final season.
* ''Series/DiffrentStrokes'' - After Edna Garrett's departure for her own spinoff (''Series/TheFactsOfLife''), she was replaced as the Drummonds' housekeeper with Adelaide Brubaker...who was substituted, in turn, by Pearl Gallagher.
** Mrs. Garrett was eventually substituted herself on ''The Facts Of Life'' by her sister, Beverly Ann Stickle.
* ''TheLoveBoat'' replaced Julie [=McCoy=] with her sister Judy as "Your Cruise Director," following actress Lauren Tewes' departure from the show due to cocaine addiction.
* Sophie's cousin Barney in the fifth series of ''Series/PeepShow'' is a fairly obvious replacement for her brother Jamie from series four; they look similar, are both musicians, both obsessed with Jeremy, and Barney even hangs around with Sophie's father for no explained reason.
* Season three of ''MIHigh'' replaced Daisy, Blaine, and their boss. A number of minor characters are also gone as well. In fact the only characters who have been carried over from the last season are Rose, [[BigBad The Grand Master]] and the school headmaster.
** The third series replaced Lenny Bicknall with Frank London, both retired superspies posing as a high school caretaker.
* ''Series/KnightRider'' replaced WrenchWench Bonnie Barstow with April Curtis for the second season, then brought back Bonnie the next year.
* ''Series/HappyDays'', upon the leaving of Creator/RonHoward, brought in a family friend named Roger who replaced the 'straight-man' tendencies of Richie.
* There have been seven Series/{{Iron Chef}}s: Chen Kenichi (Chinese), Hiroyuki Sakai (French), Masaharu Morimoto (Japanese), and Masahiko Kobe (Italian) are the ones American viewers are most familiar with. The dubbed version tried to push the idea that Morimoto was the direct successor to Rokusaburo Michiba, the original IC Japanese. In truth, Morimoto was a substitute to a substitute: Michiba's replacement was Koumei Nakamura (Who can be spotted behind Chairman Kaga in the opening credits, where Kaga is standing behind the pile of strawberries). There's also the original IC French, Yutaka Ishinabe (Who's portrait can be spotted in the opening panorama).
* Season 7 of ''Series/TwentyFour'' introduces Janis Gold, a frumpy bespectacled computer technician, who is the FBI's version of Chloe. They bring Chloe back for a few episodes, and they don't get along.
** The character of Mandy is another example. If the producers couldn't get Mia Kirshner the actress who played her they created another sexy terrorist. Season 4's Nicole is a prime example, because she behaves in EXACTLY the same way as Mandy would, [[spoiler: she has sex with a character to get him on side, then reveals her true colours. Mandy did more or less the same thing in the first episode]]
*** Which is amusing in itself considering Mandy actually ''did'' return at the very end of the fourth season.
** Olivia Taylor's only real existence on the show was to essentially play Sherri Palmer to her mother Allison's David: The former is a corrupt, manipulative bitch family to the latter who is the President and very much a strong moral force for the country.
* Lucy replaced Kate in ''Series/NotGoingOut''.
* Dr. Jesse Travis replaced Dr. Jack Stewart in season 3 of ''Series/DiagnosisMurder'' although he was a very different character and it's generally regarded as a change for the better.
* When the actor who played him died, ''Series/DennisTheMenace'' replaced George Wilson with a made up "brother" named John; there never was a John Wilson in the original comics.
* ''Series/{{Dexter}}'' had James Doakes replaced after [[spoiler: his death in Season 2]] with another detective named Joseph Quinn in Season 3. Possibly {{lampshade|Hanging}}d if one considers [[Series/StargateSG1 a former]] {{Trope Namer|s}}...
* ''Series/{{CSI}}'' replaced two characters in the ninth season, with Ray Langston, and Riley Adams, though they seem to be the latter type, each having their own character traits.
** DB Russell is said to be a more straight version of this, because he has some similarities to Grissom, though not so close that it screams "Grissom Light".
** By comparison, ''Series/{{CSINY}}'' replaced Aiden Burn with another occasionally-sarcastic female character, who was even suggested to be in a relationship with the same character, at least until she was KilledOffForReal. Her other traits were added to a previously-existing background character, who occasionally takes Don Flack's place. Later, a new recurring female detective was brought into the series, and appears to be a Suspiciously Similar Substitute for the original Suspiciously Similar Substitute. She's even becoming Flack's new love interest.
* While the original ducklings still appear on ''Series/{{House}}'', their roles as, well, ducklings have been replaced. By Taub, Kutner and Thirteen, who are superficially similar to the original three characters. Their exact personalities don't line up but House admitted that he hired them based on the same dynamic he had with the earlier team. Interestingly enough for the trope, the previous actors didn't leave the show, they just added more cast members and reorganized the dynamic. For most of seasons 4 and 5 the new characters and Foreman were the team while Chase and Cameron went on to other departments in the hospital.
** Completely averted, character wise. While the dynamic of "Older Guy", "Younger Guy", and "Younger Girl" still existed, the characters filling each slot were completely different. Thirteen, the character suffering most from accusations of the like was actually as completely different from her predecessor as was possible.
** Played weird with Thirteen and Martha Masters. When Thirteen left Masters was brought in, and the trope was deliberately averted in both appearance and personality. When House goes and collects Thirteen on her release from prison, the trope is still averted because she keeps her old appearance and personality. Buy in the first episode after Masters leaves (and Thirteen is re0hired), she shows up with the exact same hair Master had.
* Kellie replacing Kate on ''Series/TheDrewCareyShow'' after Christa Miller left for a recurring role on ''Series/{{Scrubs}}''.
* ''Series/{{NYPD Blue}}'' is the master of this trope, having replaced Andy Sipowicz's partner ''three times''. Jimmy Smits replaced David Caruso when the latter decided he was too big to do the show. Rick Schroeder replaced Smits. Mark-Paul Gosselaar replaced Schroeder. Gosselaar and Schroeder are the best examples here, both having similar physical make-ups and similar character personalities.
* ''Series/{{Battlestar Galactica|Reimagined}}'' replaced Billy Keikeya with Tory Foster. This is actually the only Battlestar example. Given the improvisational nature of the series' writing it's unclear if Billy would have followed a similar arc to Tory, had Paul Campbell remained on the show.
** Well, at the very least, he ''probably'' wouldn't have slept with Anders and Baltar.
** This trope is played straight or averted, as the lack of similarity between the two characters is noted by Roslin and Adama in Tory's very first appearance.
* In ''TheGeorgeLopezShow'', Carmen is replaced with Angie's niece Veronica Palmero because of creative differences between Carmen's actress, Masiela Lusha, and George Lopez. Veronica is the same as Carmen, only more shallow and with a sadder story.
* In ''Series/{{Scrubs}}'', the character of Laverne was killed off, due to the writers being under the impression the 6th season would be the last. It wasn't. Cue Nurse Shirley, who is ''played by the same actress that played Laverne''! This is lampshaded when JD nicknames her "Laverneagain." The hospital's [[LoggingOntoTheFourthWall fake website]] uses the exact same picture for both nurses' profiles.
** It's actually a subversion, since what little personality the writers had a chance to give to her dialogue, and a good deal of the acting Aloma Wright did, was meant to create the impression of an anti-Laverne.
*** [[ShoutOut Laverne and Shirley]]?
** For the last season, the main character is JD and Elliot combined (narrator, daydreaming delusions, blonde, crazy, likes horses, bullied by Dr. Cox...) and Denise is also given some more obvious JD traits after he leaves. Denise and Drew sort of become the new Jordan and Dr. Cox.
* According to some, Kochanski was this for Rimmer on ''Series/RedDwarf''. Others thought Kochanski replaced ''Kryten'', while the latter became Rimmer's replacement.
** Also inverted - Rimmer is killed off in the first episode and replaced by a hologram, portrayed by the same actor. Hologram Rimmer was written out of the story in Series VII after Chris Barrie chose to leave the show. He returned in Series VIII to play the revived original Rimmer.
* After the death of Bea Benederet, the mother and hotel manager from ''Series/PetticoatJunction'', June Lockhart was cast as a new town doctor who took up residence in the hotel. Although she was clearly not the girls' mother, and the girls were all well into adulthood by that point, she carried on Benederet's function as motherly advisor, and the town's most sensible resident.
* After season 1 of ''Series/MissionImpossible'', team leader Dan Briggs was replaced by Jim Phelps. After season 3, Rollin Hand was replaced by "The Great Paris." Replacements were seamless, since the characters were constantly playing roles within the show, and were purposely written to show a minimum of personality outside their jobs.
** Jim was actually rather different in personality from Dan, a more friendly and avuncular sort whereas Dan was a hardass with a ruthless streak. Also, Dan sometimes supervised the missions remotely rather than joining them, whereas Jim was always part of the mission team. Jim was also more suited for romantic roles than Dan. However, Paris was an exact replacement for Rollin, with the exact same skill set (disguise, magic, cheating at cards, pickpocketing). In his first season (year 4), he was Rollin by another name, but in season 5, when the show got more character-driven for a time, he developed a distinct, more casual and "hip" personality.
** In addition, TheChick in the FiveManBand started out as Cinnamon, who was replaced by a parade of guest stars in Season 4, Dana in Season 5, and Casey in Seasons 6-7 (with Mimi briefly serving as a TemporarySubstitute). Averted somewhat with Casey, who was not just the femme fatale but also replaced Rollin and Paris as the team's makeup master, since budget cuts required reducing the cast size. The show also attempted to replace Willy with a doctor named Doug, but Willy was SavedByTheFans.
* Averted, kind of, in ''Series/{{Bones}}''. At the start of season 3 we were given recurring character Sweets, a young, clever psychologist. He became a regular with his name added to the opening credits at the end of the season when Zack, the young, clever anthropologist, left the show. Averted in that the characters don't have much more in common and that Sweets is very well-liked. Also averted in that Zach's in-universe role (anthropology student in the lab) is now pointedly rotated between five different guest characters, because everyone agrees that Zach is irreplaceable anyway.
** Sully could be seen as a variation of this trope. Booth had not left the series, but Agent Tim Sullivan was brought in as a replacement boyfriend for Brennan-but he was so much like Booth that the fans dubbed him "Booth Light".
* Seen repeatedly in ''Creator/GeneRoddenberry's EarthFinalConflict'', due to the show's unusually high cast turnover rate. In fact, the only character to last through all 5 seasons was series villain Agent Sandoval.
* ''Creator/GeneRoddenberry's Series/{{Andromeda}}''. The character of Tyr, a Nietzschean who could not be trusted was replaced by Rhade, a Nietzchean who could not be trusted. Tyr went on to become a complete wuss when the actor guest-starred in later episodes.
** The character of Doyle in the final season is also somewhat of a replacement for Lexa Doig's Andromeda when her role needed to be reduced due to the actress's pregnancy. Doyle provided a love target and protector for Harper, among other regular Rommie duties.
*** Doig similarly played a replacement doctor in ''Series/StargateSG1'', though her character was less-developed than the one she replaced, [[spoiler:Dr. Frasier,]] and the replacement was not immediate.
*** Doig's husband is also Michael Shanks, whose Daniel was SG-1's original character substituted for with Jonas Quinn.
* ''Series/{{Lexx}}'' couldn't get the actress who played Wist back, so they created a second gorgeous blonde [[ToServeMan predator]] with a childlike demeanor in Lyekka.
* ''Series/TheTick'' suffered from a number of poor copies meant to be substitutes when Fox failed to get the rights for any characters besides The Tick and Arthur. But given that it was Fox, no one was really surprised as the show's days were numbered from day one.
** Though, to give credit where credit is due, Bat Manuel is one of the funniest television characters ever.
*** Even better the actor who played Bat Manuel in the live action version of The Tick played the Mayor in the Franchise/{{Batman}} movie ''Film/TheDarkKnight''.
* Arden replaced Chelsea as the AlphaBitch for seasons two and three of ''NaturallySadie''.
* Ashley's ultimate demise in ''Series/{{Sanctuary}}'' was particularly predictable because in the two episodes preceding it, they were already gearing up her replacement.
* In ''Series/TheThickOfIt'' series three has a new Minister For Social Affairs - Nicola Murray replacing Hugh Abbot. Her only points of difference with her predecessor are that she's a woman, and that she's not best friends with her main ministerial advisor. This is entirely justified, as the premise of the show is that all politicians are the same.
* On ''Series/{{Leverage}}'', Gina Bellman's pregnancy required a hasty write-off of Sophie before she started showing, so she was replaced for half a season by Tara Cole (played by Jeri Ryan).
* Carried out with style by British fantasy show ''{{Hex}}'', where new girl Ella, an experienced witch, shows up at the start of the second season and by the end of the second episode has [[spoiler: [[ItMakesSenseInContext stabbed original lead witch Cassie]] and taken her place as the show's main character.]] She goes on to have an almost identical doomed relationship with [[AllGirlsWantBadBoys demon spawn Malachi]] that Cassie had with demon Azazeal in the first season. To round things off, Malachi is Cassie and Azazeal's [[SoapOperaRapidAgingSyndrome magically-aged]] son.
* ''Series/DropTheDeadDonkey'' replaced Alex, the one sensible person in the Globelink office, with Helen, a virtually identical character, at the end of the second series. Both of them even had one-night stands with Dave (despite Helen being a lesbian).
* Averted in ''MutantX'', which saw Lexa replace Emma at the start of the final season after [[spoiler: Emma's death in the previous finale.]] Counts as an aversion because, rather than the new character being designed to fill [[SuperheroSpeciation the superpowered gap in the team]] the old one had left, telempathic Emma was replaced with light-manipulating Lexa, whose personality, loyalties, and storyline were radically different to Emma's.
* On ''Series/TheCosbyShow'', when Rudy got too old to be the Cute Little Kid, [[CousinOliver a step-granddaughter was written into the cast to fill the role.]] Unlike other examples, Rudy stayed.
** To quote Wyatt Cenacc on ''Series/TheDailyShow'': "WHY WOULD YOU THROW RUDY UNDER THE BUS?! SHE'S STILL THE SAME RUDY!!"
* Really head-spinning example from THE PAPER CHASE: When the study group is formed during the pilot episode, one woman is included. In the very second episode, that character's place in the study group, with no explanation, has been taken by another woman, Logan, who remains a major character throughout the series.
* On ''Series/MythBusters'', Kari Byron went on maternity leave, and was replaced by Jessi Combs for a few months. The original Build Team was Kari, Tori, and ''Scotty'' (WrenchWench) who left the show under "personal reasons" and was replaced by the now better known Grant. And there is also Christine, a "Mythtern" before the Build Team came into play, who directly assisted Jamie and Adam and had a certain resemblance to Scotty.
* [[Series/CriminalMinds Emily Prentiss and David Rossi]] were replacements for Elle Greenaway and Jason Gideon respectively. Both characters were initially hated by many fans, but gained pretty good fanbases the longer they remained on the show.
** The trope is played straight with Prentiss, but not Rossi. WordOfGod from creator Ed Bernero on the "About Face" commentary says they wanted to make him as least like Gideon as possible, so they made him an egotistical wannabe rock star of a profiler who doesn't really "do" teams, and the first thing he does is [[TakeThat shoot a bird]]. Jason Gideon was part ornithologist and part birdwatcher. Many times throughout MandyPatinkin's run you would hear and see references to his characters' love for birds. A TakeThat indeed!
*** And now, since JJ's departure, there will be another new character joining the team--meet Ashley Seaver , FBI cadet and [[spoiler: based on previews, the daughter of a serial killer]]. Yes, she does look like JJ superficially, but whether is she a good, distinct, well-drawn out character in her own right (despite the physical similarities) or a Scrappy Mary Sue copycat replacement will be determined soon when her first episode airs.
*** Subverted by the fact that the majority of the fanbase disliked Seaver prompting the return of JJ (and Prentiss who left at the end of last season).
* Speaking of ''{{Profiler}}'', for that show's final season, exit Ally Walker, enter Jamie Luner.
** Exit off-screen nemesis Jack, enter off-screen nemesis Damian Kennasas.
* A few from ''Series/{{Neighbours}}'', though the straightest examples may be Tom Ramsay replacing his brother Max, and Oliver Barnes being hastily written in to replace his brother Will/Sebastian, even taking over his whole character arc.
* In the final season of ''Series/WaitingForGod'', Jane's [[BonnieScotland Scottish]] grandfather, Jamie, came in, after the actor playing [[DirtyOldMan Basil]] died.
* Besides TheOtherDarrin, Roger Davis, ''Series/AliasSmithAndJones'' replaced the character Clementine "Clem" Hale with Georgette "George" Sinclair. Probably a case of the writers recycling scripts already written for the other character.
* The German soap opera ''AllesWasZahlt'' originally dealt with Diana Sommer, who was a plucky blonde delivery girl turned up-and-coming figure skater. In the first episode Diana was sort of hit by a car... which led to the ''MeetCute'' introduction to her boyfriend Julian. After Julian [[spoiler: died]] and the actress playing Diana decided to leave the show, a new character was introduced: the plucky blonde circus performer turn up-and-coming figure skater, Stella. Upon arriving in town her car broke down, which meant she almost got rear-ended by her immediate love interest, Lars. It wouldn't be so bad if Stella and Lars were bearable, but unfortunately, they're not.
* Mrs. Greenlaw for Mrs. Hall on ''Series/AllCreaturesGreatAndSmall''.
* Carla Borrego for Maddie Magellan in ''Series/JonathanCreek''.
* Agent Shaw on ''Series/{{Chuck}}'' seems pretty similar to [[spoiler:Bryce]] from Seasons 1 and 2. They're both romantic rivals to the lead character, they both [[TheMentor mentor]] him on how to be a spy, and they both are super spies.
* When Creator/{{Nickelodeon}}'s variety show ''Series/AllThat'' began, Katrina Johnson was easily the youngest-looking cast member and was mostly used to play a variety of little girl characters. In Season 3, with Katrina looking too old to pull off these roles, Amanda Bynes was added to the cast to fill the void. Katrina left the show entirely later in that season.
* ''Series/DesigningWomen'': Charlene was replaced by her sister Carlene, who was about as similar as you can get.
* Oddly played on ''Series/SavedByTheBell''. After losing Jesse and Kelly the producers introduced biker chick Tori who picked up Kelly's role as Zach's love interest. That still left a gap though, so rather than introduce new characters they transferred Jesse's brains and Kelly's popularity to Lisa who overnight leapt from average intelligence and popularity to straight A-student and homecoming queen.
** More so on ''Saved By The Bell: The New Class,'' most blatantly in their first season. The new youngsters were virtual carbon copies of their old-class counterparts: Scott for Zack (even breaking the Fourth Wall in the same way), Weasel for Screech, Tommy D for Slater, Linday for Kelly, and Megan for Lisa and Jessie (due to her being Weasel's unrequited crush, as well as the smart one in the group).
* ''Series/WhiteCollar'' introduced FBI agent Diana Barrigan in the pilot, but when the actress had other commitments, she was replaced without explanation by the character Lauren Cruz. (Who was subsequently re-replaced without explanation by Barrigan in season 2).
** Diana took a job in Washington, DC because it's where her girlfriend was from, and decided to come back to New York. Lauren left with no explanation.
* ''Series/CharliesAngels''. At the end of Season 1 Farrah Fawcett left the series and her character, Jill Munroe was replaced by her kid sister Kris. The show's ratings soared after that.
* Subverted in ''Series/NCISLosAngeles''. Originally the team was to be headed by agent Lara Macy, played by Louise Lombard, but after apparently she didn't test well with audiences in the pilot, she was replaced by Hetty Lange, played by Linda Hunt. They are nothing alike.
* In ''Series/MidsomerMurders'', DCI Barnaby was replaced by... DCI Barnaby (his cousin, who had the same rank and personality, but was played by a different actor). Also, he had already changed his sidekick twice.
* In the second season of ''InTreatment'' Luke and Bess, a couple whose divorce was harming their son, were clearly substitutes for Jake and Amy in the first season. This is because, in the Israeli series the show is based on, the corresponding couple's arc continued into the second season.
* In the {{retool}} of ''Series/SquareOneTV'', Kate Monday was replaced by Pat Tuesday on the ShowWithinAShow ''Mathnet''.
** The Season 2-4 recasting of ''ThreeTwoOneContact'': Miguel=Marc, Robin=Trini, Kathy=Lisa.
* Played with on ''Film/{{Tremors}}: The Series'' when Michael Gross was unavailable for shooting. The female scientist who appeared in the episode was given a personality Suspiciously Similar to Gross's Burt Gummer, a similarity which was Lampshaded by the other characters, although she didn't perform his usual in-universe functions of shooting or blowing up monsters.
* ''Series/SabrinaTheTeenageWitch'' had Dreama replace Valerie and Brad replace Libby in season 4.
** Valerie herself replaced Jenny in season 2.
* Annie replaced Fi as the protagonist in the final season of ''Series/SoWeird''. Like Fi, Annie had paranormal encounters which she posted on a website. The "twist" was that she was a [[IdolSinger singer]].
* Averted and played straight by ''Series/TheRedGreenShow''. The marina owner changed from the reasonably-built but lazy Glen Brachston to the overweight and ''lazier'' Dwight Cardiff. However, they averted this with the role of animal control officer: the original one, Garth Harble, loved animals, while replacement Ed Frid was terrified of them.
* On ''Series/HomeImprovement'', Heidi replaced Lisa as the Tool Girl on the ShowWithinAShow ''Tool Time'' in season three. Lisa was a FlatCharacter and Heidi started out as one but she eventually had some CharacterDevelopment.
* ''Series/{{Primeval}}'' had Sarah Page, who [[spoiler: was killed because her actress couldn't continue acting for the show]], and was replaced by Jess Parker. However, their roles are very different; Sarah was an expert in mythology and ancient cultures, while Jess is a techie and team coordinator.
** Sarah in turn replaced Jenny Lewis, who was an alternate-timeline duplicate of Claudia Brown, played by the same actress but with a completely different personality and role, an inversion of the typical Suspiciously Similar Substitute.
** The series has also been through three different leading men and two different tough-guy supporting men. Only three cast members have stayed with the show through its entire run.
*** The leading men are a particularly interesting example of this. With the first switch the authors went for a genuine attempt to not make the substitute suspiciously similar, and in fact the character changed the entire tone of the series. When this second leader was in turn switched out they brought in a replacement that was suspiciously similar to leading man number one, up to and including his accent. The tone of the series also switched back, becoming particularly obvious when number two reappeared for one more episode.
***** I hope you just mean they both have accents. Matt's Northern Ireland is not anything like Cutter's Scotland.
* Creator/EllenDeGeneres seemed to be this when she replaced Music/PaulaAbdul on ''Series/AmericanIdol'' except with zero knowledge of the music industry. She even managed to be less useful than TheScrappy Kara [=DioGuardi=].
* Reviews of ''Series/TheXFactor'''s new judges Kelly Rowland, Tulisa, and Gary Barlow recall up their respective predecessors, Dannii Minogue, Cheryl Cole, and Simon Cowell. Some reviewers even noted that Tulisa even physically resembled Cheryl in terms of looks and personality.
* ''UpstairsDownstairs'' replaced Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Richard and Lady Marjorie Bellamy, with Georgina, the daughter of a couple killed in the Titanic disaster alongside Lady Marjorie. The changeover wasn't immediate, and demure, idealistic Elizabeth had a very different character to the louche Georgina, but Georgina filled the same role, so it may count. Lady Marjorie's role went through two changes as well, with Hazel and then Virginia Bellamy taking over the position of mistress of the house. Downstairs, after Emily's [[spoiler:suicide]], the show also went through a handful of identikit kitchenmaids before settling on the hapless Ruby.
* On Fox's ''Series/NewGirl,'' the character of "Coach" (Damon Wayans, Jr.) appears only in the pilot. By the time the second episode rolls around, we instead have "Bishop," (Lamorne Morris) another young, handsome, goateed, athletic African-American roommate. The switch is given something of a HandWave, with the explanation that Bishop is the "real" roommate, and that Coach was just subletting while Bishop was off playing pro basketball in a Latvian league. The actual reason for the switch is that Wayans shot the pilot while his ABC show ''Happy Endings'' was on the cancellation bubble, and between the pilot being shot and the show being picked up as a full series, ABC decided to renew ''Happy Endings''...Which did the same for Wayans' contract.
* Leonard Rossiter's final role on UK television was as a supermarket manager in the dreadful sitcom ''Tripper's Day''. After his death, he was replaced by BruceForsyth and the show was renamed ''Slinger's Day''. This was even worse than the original but was somehow renewed for a second (six-episode) season and crossed the Atlantic to become ''Check It Out''.
* Averted in ''Series/TwinPeaks'', when KyleMacLachlan talked the producers out of turning teenage sexpot Audrey Horne into the love interest for his character, Agent Dale Cooper. Instead, they introduced HeatherGraham as Annie ... a formerly suicidal former nun. Definitely not a teenage sexpot.
* Amy Amanda Allen was put on a bus and replaced for ten episodes by Tawnia Baker on ''Series/TheATeam''.
* One episode of ''ElChavoDelOcho'' featured Don Ramon's cousin Don Roman. Roman practically did and suffered like his cousin did in a similar episode.
* Mitchell, a reformed vampire with a troubled past who's sworn off blood and lives alongside a werewolf and a ghost, was killed off at the end of Series 3 of ''Series/BeingHuman''. Series 4 replaces him with Hal... a reformed vampire with a troubled past who's sworn off blood and lives alongside a werewolf and a ghost.
** At the same time, George, the resident werewolf, also left. His role in the house was replaced by another werewolf who had almost nothing in common with George. The reason? Tom, his replacement, had been a recurring character since the start of the third series. Zero new characterization was required.
* Put-upon straight man, oftentimes OnlySaneEmployee, and Leslie's original love interest Mark Brendanawicz leaves ''Series/ParksAndRecreation'' at the end of Season 2, the same time put-upon straight man, OnlySaneEmployee, and Leslie's love interest Ben Wyatt joins the cast.
* In ''Series/{{Misfits}}'' when Nathan left, due to actor Robert Sheehan not wanting to continue to Series 3, he is replaced by Rudy, and equally mouthy character who like Nathan has the habit of saying outrageous things for shock value (or perhaps because he just doesn't think before he speaks). Subverted slightly in that Rudy has a literal dual personality; he splits into two different Rudys. The 'other' Rudy is more tactful and caring.
* A rather tragic example occurred in the final season of ''Series/NewsRadio'' (and the only example in the whole series- the other character who left was simply PutOnABus and never replaced). Max was brought in to take over the role that had been filled by Phil Hartman as the over-egotistical Bill McNeil. Unfortunately shortly after the completion of season 4, Hartman was the victim of a MurderSuicide by his own wife, and for the final season Jon Lovitz joined the cast in a similar role as Max. Incidentally Lovitz had been a close to Hartman and joined the cast because he wanted to pay homage to his friend.
* ''Series/{{Bedlam}}'' replaces Jed, [[ISeeDeadPeople a man who sees ghosts and works to put them at rest]] and investigating the house's mysteries, with Ellie, a girl who can see ghosts, investigating what happened to Jed.
* The final season of ''Ballykissangel'' introduced the elderly farmer and pub regular Louis Dargan (Mick Lally) after the death of Birdy Sweeney, who played elderly farmer and pub regular Eamon Byrne. Unlike Eamon, however, Louis was never important to the plot and never spoke an intelligible sentence.
* In season 3, many of ''Series/{{Glee}}'' 's original cast (and the one's with the largest, most vocal sub-fandoms) graduated and became recurring characters. In their place is a league of hip, young freshman replacements which suspciously resemble the first generation of glee clubbers;
** Mary Rose is just like the original Rachel Berry; Heterosexual, caucasian, skinny, pale brunette with a wailing broadway voice is made the captain and lead singer of the ''New Directions''. She also has a crush on a member of the football team who seems to be completely out of her league and is dating a nasty blonde cheerleader who hates her, which causes ominous {{wangst}} . Not to mention how despite her being unpopular the football player has a strange affinity for her, and how Rachel is the main protagonist season 1-3, whilst Marley is the main protagonist in season 4.
** Kitty Wylde and Quinn Fabray's similarities are even lampshaded in the series; They're both (for at least a brief time) head cheerleaders, both caucasian, heterosexual and blonde with a strange, inconceivable hatred for the main heroine (see above) who has never done anything to them. They are both popular but implied that their "friends" don't ''really'' like them (Quinn's falling out with Santana/Kitty saying she really just wants friends). They're also dating the football player as a obvious RomanticFalseLead, but seem to be using them for popularity at the best of times and get jealous and possessive over them even talking to other females in a purely platonic sense. It isn't helped by the fact that Kitty ''worships'' Quinn and constantly gushes about how she wants to be just like her. Or the fact that Sue dubs Kitty "A young Quinn Fabray, except not pregnant, manically depressed and in/out of a wheelchair", which crossed the DudeNotFunny territory for some veiwers with experiences of that nature. They both have high, wispy voices too.
** They don't even try and hide the similarities between Puck and Jake; Both from a broken home in which they didn't know their father, they both play/ed for the football team and have a big reputation as trouble makers and womanizers (To the point where Unique feels it necessary to break into a improv Britney Spears number to prove it). They both have strong, baritone voices and start off dissing the glee club and disputing it, before slowing warming up to the idea of singing and dancing on stage. They both are implied to see themselves as losers and both have a below average IQ and are popular. Oh yeah, and [[spoiler: They're half brother.]] This is later deconstructed when Jake says he doesn't just want to be seen as a failure because his brother was, and that there's more to him than his genes. He's having a tough time it proving, though.
** Unique/Wade is a big fan of both Kurt and Mercedes, so it's a good job the fandom refers to her as their lovechild from the future. When it comes to Unique being like ''Mercedes'', they share body-shape and race, as well as having "Big belter" Whitney-esque voices and their main superlative being "Sassy diva". And being TheLancer to the main heroine of the series (Rachel/Marley). They both campaign for more solos throughout their airtime too, often claiming that their voices are neglected. When it comes to Unique being like ''Kurt'', they have both suffered prejudice and bullying over their sexual orientations (Kurt is gay and Unique is transgendered), as well as auditioning for a big role in the annual Mckinley musical and for some reason or another not getting to do it. They also act as a PetHomosexual to Rachel/Marley. They both show explicit interest in fashion and style, and are quite eloquently spoken for teenagers.
* In ''Series/HouseOfAnubis'' KT came in after Nina had left (as Nathalia quit to focus on school work.) Many fans had this reaction at first, considering both of them are from the United States, were raised by a grandparent, and [[spoiler:have a destiny to do with Ancient Egyptian Mythology]]. Some of the ''characters'' even seemed to believe this at first.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Music]]
* Brian Johnson was brought into the band Music/{{ACDC}} after Bon Scott's death primarily because he had a voice very similar to Scott, making him a substitute of a sort. Notable for the fact that, unlike most established bands, their popularity ''increased'' with the singer change.
** Well, not surprising, considering the album they wrote about Bon Scott's death ''Back In Black'', has been considered one of the greatest albums in rock history.
* When Vince Neil had a falling out with the rest of Music/MotleyCrue, John Corabi came in to replace him. He was picked largely because his voice had an extremely different tone to Vince's, and Nikki Sixx, the primary songwriter, wanted to try a different direction. The album they recorded together didn't sell very well, and Vince returned to the band not long afterwards. Nikki has stated that they briefly toyed with the idea of having two singers, as John became a close friend during recording.
* Randy Meisner was the bass-player and high-voiced backing vocalist in the band Poco. He left to join what would become Music/{{Eagles}} (filling the same role) and was replaced by Timothy B. Schmitt, whose distinctive features were also the high vocals, long hair and slight ''metrosexual'' vibe. When Randy left Eagles, guess who replaced him? The fact they're both introverted serious family men (as opposed to other band members who were party animals in their time) helps a lot too.
* Music/DeepPurple's career is characterised by many line-up changes, but avoided any Suspiciously Similar Substitutions. Instead, they recruited new members with their own distinctive sound, resulting in significant changes in the style of the band's music from one line-up to the next.
* Music/JudasPriest's Rob Halford left the band in 1992, and was replaced with Tim "Ripper" Owens in 1996, who had ironically sung in a Judas Priest tribute band, who sounded nearly identical to Halford in some songs. Owens parted amicably with the band, and Rob Halford re-joined them. This story was the inspiration behind the movie ''Film/RockStar''.
** Also, when Tim went to join Iced Earth, a few casual fans thought that Rob had joined the band.
* Averted when ''Series/AmericanIdol'' contestant Chris Daughtry declined band Fuel's offer to replace their lead singer in favor of having his own band, Daughtry. Daughtry has recorded several huge hits since.
* Music/PhilCollins got to replace Music/PeterGabriel in Music/{{Genesis}} mostly because their voices were so similar. Maybe subverted since they quickly turned away from prog rock in favor of pop.
** Not that quickly; they spent the next half-decade recording prog albums with the occasional hit single, and didn't transition fully to pop until Phil Collins launched his solo career.
* After Mick Jones got fired in 1983, Music/TheClash brought in two guitarists to replace him. One of them, Nick Sheppard, [[CelebrityResemblance looked enough like Jones that they could easily have passed for brothers]]. Jones had the last laugh, as the new Clash lineup broke up after only one album while his new group Big Audio Dynamite was an instant success.
* Subverted with Music/TheNewPornographers. Kathryn Calder serves as the female lead vocals on tour, but only when Neko Case (also a member, but a major solo singer in her own right) isn't available to tour.
* After Music/TheFall's frontman Mark E. Smith and keyboardist/girlfriend Julia Nagle had a major falling out in the late 1990s, tensions between the two intensified, with the two first breaking up and then Nagle leaving The Fall ca. 2001. Suspiciously Similar Substitute -- and Smith's eventual third wife -- Elena Poulou became The Fall's keyboardist in late 2002.
* David Gilmour started out as this during his first weeks with Music/PinkFloyd in order to cover for the increasingly unstable Syd Barrett. After Barrett's departure, Gilmour was originally supposed to continue playing guitar the way Syd used to; this lasted until about late 1968 when the band started shifting its musical direction.
* Music/GunsNRoses has had [[RevolvingDoorBand many members come and go over the years]] since the dissolution of the "classic" lineup, but many of the replacements were very different from their predecessors. For example, Music/{{Buckethead}} is very, very different from his predecessor Slash. However, 2009 rolls around and their newest guitar player wears a top hat, smokes while playing, plays a Les Paul, and is known for his bluesy style.
* Music/{{Sublime}} singer Bradley Nowell died of a drug overdose shortly after their breakthrough hit. The band tried to reform over a decade later with sound-alike Rome Ramirez, causing a major argument and eventual legal battle with Nowell's family: The family thought no one should tour under the Sublime name, and the band wanted to finally get to play for all the fans they gained since 40oz to Freedom was released. Eventually the settled on calling the band "Sublime with Rome."
* Arena-rock über-group Music/{{Journey}} is enjoying something of a career resurgence, largely in part to having hired Philippines-born singer [[AscendedFanboy Arnel Pineda]] to handle lead vocal duties. And while Pineda looks not-a-lot like their former powerhouse tenor Steve Perry, their similarity in vocal tone is [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4EvRZBJIKf4 undeniable]].
* After blonde bassist/vocalist Peter Cetera left brass-drenched band Music/{{Chicago}} in 1985 to embark on a solo career, Chicago responded by hiring sandy-haired singer/bass player Jason Scheff to replace him. Didn't hurt that Scheff's vocal tone was a near [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lO8dVXTHiBw cut-and-paste of Cetera's]], either. And when Chicago's next few singles included the pseudo-Cetera-sounding "Will You Still Love Me?" and "What Kind Of Man Would I Be?" many casual fans didn't even notice the switch.
* Current Music/{{Yes}} vocalist Benoït David sounds quite a lot like erstwhile Yes vocalist Jon Anderson. This probably isn't surprising since they plucked him out of a [[AscendedFanboy Yes tribute band]]. Trevor Horn, who handled lead vocals on the band's 1980 album ''Drama'', also sounds rather similar to Anderson.
* Country music group Shenandoah had a hard time holding a lead singer after Marty Raybon left. However, one of the replacements was Jimmy Yeary, who sounded uncannily like Raybon.
* Though there were guitarists between them, [[Music/BlackLabelSociety Zakk Wylde]] appeared to be this for Randy Rhoads when he started playing with Music/{{Ozzy|Osbourne}}: both having long blonde hair, white Les Pauls, and great technical prowess. Wylde's distinct Bullseye guitar design came about as an attempt to visually distinguish himself from Rhoads.
* When rotund lead guitarist/songwriter Randy Bachman left The Guess Who, he was replaced by rotund lead guitarist/songwriter Kurt Winter.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Newspaper Comics]]
* ''[[Comicstrip/RobotManAndMonty Monty]]'' was once called ''Robotman'', but the syndicate wanted the creator Jim Meddick to [[LongBusTrip remove]] the Robotman character[[hottip:*:The syndicate was tired of receiving complaints that ''this'' Robotman was far from the friendly cartoon character of * ''Robotman And Friends'', of which the comic was ''technically'' a SpinOff]]. That done, fast-forward several years, and Monty is befriended by the mysterious eccentric scientist Doc-and his robot sidekick E. B. So far there's no sign that the syndicate wants to dump this new robotic character.
* Originally in ''ComicStrip/ForBetterOrForWorse'', Lynn Johnston had intended to pair off Elizabeth with Christopher Nichols, but when that family was placed under embargo for reasons she took his design, slapped freckles and glasses on him, and created Anthony Caine, her [[CreatorsPet Wesley]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:ProfessionalWrestling]]
* Mr. Saito to Professor Tanaka as Mr. Fuji's tag team partner.
* [[Wrestling/KiaStevens Amazing Kong]] debuted as a suspiciously similar substitute to Wrestling/AjaKong.
* Epiphany debuted as a suspiciously similar substitute to Wrestling/BethPhoenix.
* Wrestling/MuhammadHassan and Davari were suspiciously similar substitutes to Rodney Mack and Theodore Long.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Radio]]
* Comedian Artie Lange replacing Comedian Jackie "The Jokeman" Martling on ''Radio/TheHowardSternShow''. Somewhat averted in that while the two did have similar hobbies and character traits, Lange was specifically hired as an on air personality, whereas Jackie was only sometimes on air, with his main job as writer.
* Jack Allen from ''Radio/AdventuresInOdyssey''. After addressing the ReplacementScrappy issue head-on by openly admitting that he could never replace Whit... he replaced Whit. He was generally well-received, though, and after resolving some storylines that hinged on "Whit's" presence, he developed into his own character.
* In ''Radio/TheNavyLark'', Troutbridge's Number One in the first season, Dennis Price, was replaced by Stephen Murray in all the following seasons. They were different characters, but shared some of the same knowledge and responses.
* In ''Radio/TheJackBennyProgram'', there were several cast changes over the years: Bob Crosby for Phil Harris; Dennis Day for Kenny Baker.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Roleplay]]
* In Roleplay/DinoAttackRPG, Stromling!Palmer was created to fill the role of a powerful Stromling leader, very shortly after Stromling!Zachary's HeelFaceTurn and Ahua's death. [[ReplacementScrappy It did not go over so well with the other players]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
* ''Very'' common in roleplaying games when a PlayerCharacter [[KilledOffForReal dies]] [[BackFromTheDead (and isn't brought back)]]. In the mildest case, the character will be replaced by one of about same level as the deceased (and even this can strain WillingSuspensionOfDisbelief if the characters are peerless world-saving heroes). Often, there is pressure on the player to create a character who can fill the same party role that's been vacated. (And then there are players who will just rub out the name on their old character sheet and reuse everything else...)
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Theater]]
* Not exactly an apt trope for plays, but there's a very similar feeling in ''Theatre/{{Othello}}'': Brabantio, father of Desdemona, has a role in the first act, then does not follow when the action moves to Cyprus; then in the last act Gratiano, his brother, shows up to announce Brabantio is dead and generally stand in for him as a Venetian authority figure. Heightened in some small productions where the two characters are played by the same actor.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Video Games]]
* In ''VideoGame/ModernWarfare 2'', Ghost takes up Gaz's position from the first game, right down to sharing a voice actor.
** People originally even suspected they were one and the same character. This was later disproven in canon.
** ''VideoGame/ModernWarfare 3'' has Sgt. Wallcroft, who was a minor [=NPC=] in [=MW1=] but is now yet another Gaz clone.
* Colt in ''MonsterRancher 2'' can be resumed as one 12 year old Holly with a tomboy hairstyle.
* ''VideoGame/{{Tekken}}'' series: Roger Jr. replaces Roger. Hwoarang replaces Baek (who then returns). Jin Kazama replaces his father Kazuya (who then returns, Jin getting a different fighting style). Combot replacing Mokujin for ''Tekken 4''. Devil Jin replacing Devil Kazuya (debatable). Asuka replacing Jun Kazama. Christie replacing Eddy (who returned in ''Tekken 6''). Julia Chang replacing her foster mother Michelle Chang. Forrest Law replacing his father Marshall Law (who then re-replaces his son in the next game). Each Jack-bot is the newest model (though apparently with the same mind transferred over).
** This is mostly justified on the basis that ''Tekken 3'' takes place 19 years after the previous game and that some of the characters were attacked by Ogre.
** Azazel is reminiscent of True Ogre, [[SNKBoss but much tougher]].
* In ''VideoGame/SuikodenII'' we have [[spoiler: Boris Wizen]], who shares the Tengou Star with his father [[spoiler: Ridley Wizen]] and will take his place if he dies in the Dunan Unification War. The player can indirectly decide who (s)he wants to keep: When [[spoiler: Nanami asks you to run away in Tinto]] you can decide whether or not you want to do it. If you do, [[spoiler: Ridley]] will be killed as a result and you will also see a few additional cutscenes, including the introduction of the new [[spoiler: Kobold General]]. The only differences here are the looks and personalities.
* At the end of the GBA version of the first ''VisualNovel/AceAttorney'' game, Phoenix's assistant Maya leaves to undergo spiritual medium training; she returns in the next game. When a DS remake of the first game was released, they added an extra case to it - but they couldn't bring Maya back, as one of the cases in the second game revolved around her reunion with Phoenix. So a new character, Ema Skye, became Phoenix's assistant for that one case. When the fourth game substituted the entire cast (including Phoenix), Ema replaced [[SympatheticInspectorAntagonist Dick Gumshoe]] as the police detective who is routinely run into and switches between the main character's foil and friend.
** In the second ''VisualNovel/{{Ace Attorney Investigations|MilesEdgeworth}}'' game, you meet a reporter called Mikiko Hayami in the first case who seems to be this for Lotta Hart. [[spoiler:However, Lotta herself later shows up, and it turns out the two reporters know each other]].
* ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure'' introduced us to Gamma, a well-armed red and white humanoid "E-Series" Greek-letter-named robot created by Eggman, who over the course of the game decided to turn against Eggman. At the end of the game, Gamma died. A few years later, ''VideoGame/SonicHeroes'' brought back a whole bunch of characters, adding no new ones... except Omega, a well-armed red and white humanoid E-Series Greek-letter-named robot created by Eggman who had decided to turn against Eggman. Hmm...
** On the other hand, they are radically different in terms of personality: while Gamma was a conflicted and ultimately tragic character, Omega is a borderline mechanical psychopath that wants to obliterate his former master (and everything he built) and then ultimately take over. And [[RuleOfCool he talks like a]] [[Series/DoctorWho Dalek]].
** ''VideoGame/SonicBattle'' has a different Gamma substitute, "Chaos Gamma" -- a mass-produced model based on Gamma without enough intelligence to rebel against its master.
* The [[UpdatedRerelease Maniax Chronicle Edition]] of ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiIIINocturne'' chucks out [[VideoGame/DevilMayCry Dante]] in exchange for the series' own Raidou Kuzunoha. Consensus says it's an improvement.
** The main reason is that Raidou has the Pierce skill, an absolute necessity if you want to face the TrueFinalBoss (and honestly, at the point you recruit Raidou/Dante, that's the only thing ''left'' for you to do). Dante was cool, but his lack of Pierce, inability to ''get'' Pierce (because you couldn't fuse him with anything) and permanent consumption of one of your party slots reduced him to AwesomeButImpractical.
* The first print versions of ''VideoGame/PunchOut'' for the NES starred Mike Tyson as its final opponent. Eventually Nintendo's license to use Tyson's likeness in a game expired (and since he was no longer the undefeated world heavyweight champion, renewing the license was less desirable...and would become even less so when Tyson was convicted of rape a year later), so the 1990 reissue substituted Tyson with the fictional Mr. Dream, a white boxer with similar stats.
** The Wii installment has a boxer named Disco Kid. This was originally supposed to be a character named Kid Quick from the first arcade game, but as the staff updated his design, he changed so radically that they decided it would be easier to make a different character out of him. His files on the disc are still labeled "kid_quick."
** Piston Honda from the NES version was essentially a substitute for Piston Hurricane from the first arcade game. The SNES game brought back Piston Hurricane (along with other previously arcade-exclusive opponents), only to bring back Piston Honda (under the guise of Piston Hond'''o''') in the Wii installment.
* Kratos and Zelos in ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia'', with the latter replacing the former. They are almost identical in regards to combat: Zelos has lower stats and lacks a single spell that Kratos shares with Colette, but the two have slightly different attack animations that make Zelos better at using certain combos. However, this is {{averted}} with their personalities: Kratos is a no-nonsense NinetiesAntiHero who [[spoiler: spends much of the game even while absent trying to protect Lloyd]] and Zelos is a comical [[spoiler: on the outside]] ClassicalAntiHero and TheCasanova, who seems to need babysitting a lot.
* When Pey'j gets in trouble in ''VideoGame/BeyondGoodAndEvil'', his place in the party is taken by Double H, the soldier. Again, they have completely different characters, but effectively the same function, and only show up together for a brief time in TheVeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon.
* In the original ''VisualNovel/{{Snatcher}}'', the engineer Harry Benson dies. When it was reinvented as an RPG in ''VideoGame/SDSnatcher'', Harry provides all the weapons and ammunition to Gillian. To make sure the player could still buy weapons and bullets after Harry's death, a new character, Geoff, was added as Harry's apprentice. After Harry dies, Geoff takes over the weapons store.
* In ''VideoGame/{{Pikmin}} 2'', when your main {{Sidekick}} Louie goes missing after you complete the game's main mission, he gets replaced with the President of the Hocotate Shipping Company, who remains with you even after you rescue Louie.
* ''VideoGame/SakuraTaisen 2'' replaced Ayame Fujieda, the SexyMentor from the first game, with her younger sister Kaede (played by the same voice actress), since Ayame had [[spoiler:[[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence Ascended To A Higher Plane Of Existence]]]] at the end of the first game.
* The jump from NintendoGameCube to Wii caused a few problems with the ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'' games, so some characters were left out of Clash of Ninja Revolution. Zabuza's replacement was the shark-swordsman Kisame Hoshigaki. This was probably for the better. In Japan, meanwhile, Sasuke was replaced by his brother Itachi.
* In the ''[[VideoGame/SoulSeries Soul Calibur]]'' games, Maxi replaces Li Long (from the prequel, ''Soul Edge'') as the game's [[EpicFlail nunchaku]] user, after Li's [[spoiler:defeat at the hands of Cervantes]]. Li has only returned as a bonus character in ''Soul Calibur III''.
** Cassandra replaces Sophitia in ''Soul Calibur II'' (though Sophitia can be unlocked in the home versions), and Yunsung/Yun-seong replaces Hwang in spirit and general appearance, although doesn't have exactly the same moves. It's also notable that in this game the unlockable character Assassin DOES have the same moves as Hwang, and his fellow unlockable Berserker has those of Rock, however neither of these characters are canon to the story and so were probably included due to fan service (and their use in Story mode). Kilik replaces Seung Mina officially although both characters are still available, and his moves have become more unique by III.
** In the Korean versions, Misturugi was replaced by Arthur, a Caucasian samurai with the same moveset. He was then available in ''Soul Calibur III'' as a bonus character.
** Olcadan in ''Soul Calibur III'', as a replacement for Charade who was a replacement for Edge Master. Bonus points: each one is a DittoFighter, so they ''already'' act like other characters.
** They were also hinted to be the only characters ever able to fight the other to a draw, neither having ever lost a fight.
** It's worth mentioning that when ''Soul Calibur'' was in development, Creator/{{Namco|Bandai}} wished to completely overhaul the roster and only include a couple of characters from Soul Edge/Blade. Eventually, however, all the characters barring Li Long and Han Myong returned for the home version (Soul Edge was renamed Inferno). Li Long returned later anyway. As a result some of the characters in Soul Calibur start off closer to clone characters than they are originally (Kilik, Astaroth, etc) but end up becoming different later on.
* ''VideoGame/ViceProjectDoom'': Your character's informant that they talk to at the end of each stage will leave partially through the game. A stand-in will fill in for her. You find out where your original informant went as the game progresses.
* Each major entry in the ''VideoGame/ApeEscape'' series replaces the previous KidHero with a new one. In ''Ape Escape 2'', Spike gets replaced by his cousin Jimmy (though he can be unlocked as a secret character). Jimmy gets replaced by Kei and [[DistaffCounterpart Yumi]] in ''Ape Escape 3''. Meanwhile, their aunt Aki replaces both the professor ''and'' Natalie in their roles. Dr. Tomoki takes over Jake's role as [[BigBad Specter's]] dragon. However, all of them have distinct personalities.
* Due to him being an obvious [[CaptainErsatz ripoff]] of Tetsuo Shima from the ''Manga/{{Akira}}'' manga (or because SNK just don't plain like him), K9999 from ''[[VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters The King of Fighters 2001]]'' was kicked out in the UpdatedRerelease of ''KOF 2002'' (''Unlimited Match'') and replaced by "Nameless," whose fighting style is fundamentally identical to K9999's as well as his backstory, being cloned from Kyo and K Dash. While K9999 is a complete jerk, Nameless' story makes him [[TheWoobie rather sympathetic]] (thanks to his MoralityPet Isolde).
** Vice and Mature's original role as Rugal's secretaries was taken over by Aya and Hermoine in ''The King of Fighters '98''.
* In ''VideoGame/StreetFighterAlpha'', Guile, the Air Force lieutenant searching for his missing friend, is replaced with Charlie, another member of the Air Force. Though in-universe, it's the other way around; ''Alpha'' is a prequel to ''Street Fighter II'', so it would thus make Guile a replacement for Charlie (and, in fact, Charlie is the "missing friend" Guile is searching for in [=SF2=]).
** Remy from ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII'' is a much less confusing example, using Guile/Charlie's moves but coming after them both in and out of universe.
* In ''[[VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcomClashOfTheSuperheroes Marvel vs. Capcom]]'', the developers couldn't use Comicbook/IronMan due to licensing issues, despite being previously featured in ''Marvel Super Heroes'', so they simply [[PaletteSwap recolored his sprite]] from that game to make Comicbook/WarMachine. When Capcom was able to use Iron Man again for ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom2'', they gave War Machine the moveset of his "Hyper War Machine" counterpart from the previous game in order to [[DivergentCharacterEvolution distinguish him]] from Iron Man, who used War Machine's regular moveset from the previous game (which in turn, was based on Iron Man's move set from ''Marvel Super Heroes'').
* The heroes of ''VideoGame/GoldenAxe III'', Kain Grinder and Sarah Barn, look and fight similarly to Ax Battler and Tyris Flare, respectively (though the U.S. version still mistakenly refers to them as Ax and Tyris). Sarah even gets Tyris' repertoire of fire magic. Gilius Thunderhead is the only character from the previous installments to return in that game, though not as a playable character.
* ''VideoGame/FireEmblem 7'' - full circle, actually. Nils is the not so SpoonyBard in the introductory campaign of ''Fire Emblem 7'', then he's replaced by Ninian, his sister. But then [[spoiler:Ninian kicks the bucket, so Nils replaces her in the final battle]].
** [[VideoGame/FireEmblemTellius Danved is definitely not Devdan.]]
** From one game to the next half the cast will be this for the previous game. There's a set of archetypes that are well known in the fandom such as the two (occasionally three) cavaliers and the [[CrutchCharacter Jeigan]].
* In the PSP Game ''VideoGame/JeanneDArc'', [[spoiler:Liane is burned at the stake in Jeanne's place, and replaced by Cuisses]], who is, thankfully, virtually the same. (Because [[spoiler:Liane]] was probably one of your healers)
* The first two partners in ''VideoGame/PaperMarioTheThousandYearDoor'', Goombella and Koops, are similar at first to the first two in the original ''Paper Mario'', Goombario and Kooper, having the same attacks and abilities- except upgraded. Also, unlike Kooper, Koops actually has a ''personality''. After that though, the partners are all new, although [[spoiler: Admiral Bobbery has the same abilities as Bombette (who is also a Bob-Omb) and Vivian's field ability is functionally identical to Bow's]].
** In ''VideoGame/SuperMarioLand'', Princess Daisy took up the "[[DamselInDistress kidnapped princess]]" role Peach normally has in other Mario games.
*** Peach herself was sort of a substitute for Pauline, the damsel in ''VideoGame/DonkeyKong'', except she's one of the few examples to overshadow her predecessor. When they brought back Pauline in the GameBoy version, they had to dye her hair color to brown to distinguish her.
*** Pauline's recent revival in ''Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis'' could possibly count as a {{subver|tedTrope}}sion of this trope, since she's ironically replaced Peach (replacing your replacement?) as Mario's main woman in the game (even despite having Mini-Peaches and not Mini-Paulines). Probably very few younger gamers knew who Pauline was, meaning ''she'' was ''Peach's'' replacement... [[NostalgiaFilter in their minds.]]
**** Some Japanese fans actually consider the ''[=DK94=]'' version of Pauline to be a different character from the Pauline in the original 1981 arcade game, since the original Pauline was actually named "Lady" in Japan.
*** And in the same vein, Foreman Spike from ''VideoGame/WreckingCrew'' was Mario's original rival, an irritable tough guy with crazy facial hair and a grudge. Yes, essentially a prototype version of Wario and Waluigi; ''VideoGame/MarioKart DS'' even lampshades this by having Waluigi's default kart, the Gold Mantis, be Spike's steamshovel.
* In ''VideoGame/DonkeyKong64'', the playable characters Tiny and Chunky Kong are almost identical in form and function to Dixie and Kiddy Kong from ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry 2'' and ''3'' respectively.
* In ''VideoGame/TheLastRemnant'', [[spoiler: after Emma's HeroicSacrifice, her daughter Emmy immediately comes to replace her as one of the Four Generals of Athlum.]]
* From ''VideoGame/PokemonRubyAndSapphire'' onward, ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'' games feature Pokémon that are somewhat similar (or substitutes) of already existing Mons. Example: Instead of Caterpie, Metapod, Butterfree, Weedle, Kakuna, and Beedrill as Bug-type Mons that evolve from worm-like creatures with a cocoon stage in the middle, we get Wurmple (essentially Weedle, with same stats and attacks) which can evolve into Silcoon, then Beautifly (similar to Butterfree) or Cascoon, then Dustox (a Poison-type like Beedrill, but a moth).
** Also, Seviper replaces Ekans and Arbok in Hoenn games, due to the latter two not being native to Hoenn.
** All the playable trainers of the main series, are, of one gameplay point of view, near identical between themselves. And more male trainers have the appearance reminiscent of Red, the original Player Character.
*** Lampshaded in the Generation II games and their remakes: The final battle between the player character and Red, despite being the final epic battle of the game, features no dialogue, as the player characters rarely speak.
** And more obviously, each game features different monsters filling certain gameplay 'slots'; the Fire/Water/Grass starter trio, rodenty Normal-type and bird Flying-type ComMons, and so on.
** And every new generation introduces a new cute electric species with colored cheeks.
** Also there's Team Magma/Aqua stealing Team Rocket's spot as the antagonistic gang... then Galactic in gen IV and Plasma in V. The fact they always carry the "Team" prefix (or the "Dan" suffix in Japanese) doesn't help to hide this trope's invocation.
* While ''Final Fight 2'', the straight-to-{{S|uperNintendoEntertainmentSystem}}NES sequel to ''VideoGame/FinalFight'', kept Haggar from the original game, it also replaced Guy and Cody with Guy's sister-in-law Maki and South American swordsman Carlos respectively. While their techniques have many aesthetic differences from their predecessors (i.e: Carlos uses his sword for his special attack instead of a spinning jump kick), they're the same and they even have the same abilities (Maki can do an off-the-wall jump kick, while Carlos can stab enemies with a knife).
* Lampshaded in the intro of ''VideoGame/{{MegaRace}} 2''. Lance tells his assistant, "You're fired," then turns to the camera and says, "Just kidding, folks. You'll be seeing Charlene, or somebody surprisingly similar, throughout the show. Believe me, you won't tell the difference. ''I'' won't, and I should know."
* In ''[[VideoGame/DeadOrAlive Dead or Alive 2]]'', Bayman from the original game was replaced by another character named Leon, who had the same moveset. When Bayman was brought back in later versions, he and Leon were given different movesets.
* ''[[VideoGame/{{Contra}} Contra: Hard Corps]]'' for the SegaGenesis substituted the traditional ''Contra'' heroes of Bill Rizer and Lance Bean with four new characters. Among the cast includes Sheena Etranzi (a female commando), Brad Fang (a cyborg werewolf), Browny (a tiny robot), and Ray Poward (a standard male commando). Guess which of these characters is most like Bill Rizer (hint: it's not the woman, the werewolf, nor the robot)...
* In ''VideoGame/SamuraiWarriors'', perky {{ninja}} girl Kunoichi got replaced by Nene, the wife of Hideyoshi Toyotomi. They meet up briefly in a gaiden battle in ''VideoGame/WarriorsOrochi 2'', and Kunoichi {{lampshade|Hanging}}s said replacement: "Well, if it isn't my SpiritualSuccessor!" (And those are her exact words).
* According to WordOfGod, Roxas from ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'' was made one of these on purpose in ''358/2 days'', due to worries that people might be uncomfortable playing through the whole game with a character who plays too differently from Sora. So his stats, abilities, and magical capabilities were Sora-fied. This, however, is justified, since Roxas and Sora are essentially the same person anyway.
* Everytime [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda Link]] get's an ExpositionFairy who actually ''is'' a [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin fairy]], she will be this to the original ExpositionFairy herself, [[StopHelpingMe Navi]]. Although Tatl is considerably less helpful. "It's a bombchu! you don't know how to defeat them?"
** There's also Maladus, the main villain of ''Spirit Tracks'', who greatly resembles the normal main villain of the series, Ganon.
* Nu-13 was killed off at the end of ''VideoGame/BlazBlueCalamityTrigger'' by falling into a dead time-stream. ''VideoGame/BlazBlueContinuumShift'' introduced Lambda-11, who re-uses Nu's sprites and rebalanced versions of Nu's moves. Justified because both characters are mass-produced robot clones.
** ''Continuum Shift'' later reveals that [[spoiler: Lambda-11 actually has Nu's soul.]] Expect this trope to happen again if a sequel to ''Continuum Shift'' is announced, because [[spoiler: Lambda also dies in the end of ''Continuum Shift''.]]
*** To our surprise, ''VideoGame/BlazBlueChronoPhantasma'' subverted this this trope [[spoiler: by bringing back Nu-13 exactly the way she was in Calamity Trigger. Unfortunately for those who liked Lambda-11's character development, thanks to Continuum Shift's True End, is null and void. Because you can hardly carry that kind of stuff onwards when you're a cyborg and your brain gets resetted to factory settings thanks to being destroyed... And then self-regenerated. This later bit of information [[ShrugOfGod is yet to be explained properly]]...]]
* In ''[[VideoGame/RivalSchools Project Justice]]'', LargeAndInCharge school principal Raizo doesn't make a playable appearance, the storyline explanation being that he was hospitalized thanks to an assassination attempt on his life. When that assassin (Kurow) becomes playable, his movelist is Raizo's own, with a few completely new moves thrown in to differentiate the two.
** You'd think a white-haired and feral man-mountain and a gray-haired 15-year old with Freddy Krueger's gloves wouldn't be too similar. You'd be not-right.
* ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfDragoon'' replaces [[spoiler: Lavitz with Albert after the former's death]] and also replaces Shana with Miranda later on. Functionally, they're almost identical, having the same additions and spells with a few minor traits. Although to some, Miranda is a ReplacementScrappy.
** That would be because Miranda has nothing really unique about her compared to Shana sans her personality, which is rarely expressed or see after the conclusion of the Mille Saseau arc in the game. Albert, on the other hand, is a significant supporting character with a distinct personality. Lavitz's Additions have of the speed of a MightyGlacier while Albert's Additions are more of a LightningBruiser type.
* In ''VideoGame/BaldursGate 2'', [[spoiler: Imoen, a red haired human thief/mage is captured early in the game. Luckily, Nalia, a red haired human thief/mage is one of the first [=NPCs=] encountered afterwards.]]
** Pash, it's not just appearance and class. The latter has the same cheerful personality and similar alignment as the former, allowing [[spoiler: Imoen to become a much darker character.]]
** In terms of party utility, [[spoiler: Yoshimo also counts as Imoen's substitute. He is also a thief-type class]], becomes available shortly before the need for replacement appears and right after he becomes unavailable, the original character returns.
* In the ''Franchise/DragonAge'' series:
** The late-game MutuallyExclusivePartyMembers in ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins'', [[spoiler:Alistair and Teyrn Loghain]], are both StoneWall-type Grey Warden warriors, making them almost identical gameplay-wise (though their personalities are markedly different).
** ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOriginsAwakening'' features a snarky, bitchy, forest-dwelling, human-hating mage as a party member. No, Morrigan doesn't make a comeback; it's only Velanna.
* ''VideoGame/EarthBound'' has Ness, who is Ninten from [[VideoGame/MOTHER1 the first game]] with a backpack; Paula, who is Ana with a different hair style; and Jeff, who is Lloyd with a school uniform. Somewhat done in ''VideoGame/{{Mother 3}}'' with Lucas taking over Ninten and Ness's roles, except he looks completely different, but completely averted with Kumatora, who is completely unlike Paula and Ana, except for somewhat similar PSI.
* In ''VideoGame/MortalKombat4'', Reiko replaced Noob Saibot early in development, although Noob could be found partially DummiedOut in the console versions. Kano was replaced by Jarek in the same game, who had mostly the same moves and fatalities, then Kano returned in ''Deadly Alliance'', only to be killed off and replaced by Kobra in ''Deception''.
* Similarly, Robo => Grobyc - they don't look nor sound anything alike, but fill the same character archetype (read "Grobyc" backward), complete with lack of magical ability - Robo is completely magic-inert (though lasers and tech-generated electricity count as [[DarkIsNotEvil Shadow]] attacks), while Grobyc can cast magic but sucks at it and has one of the weakest Element grids.
* Between ''Resident Evil 1.5'' and ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil2'', Elza Walker, John, and Linda were redesigned into/replaced by Claire Redfield, Robert Kendo, and Ada Wong, respectively. The "Hooked Man" prototype of ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil4'' had paranormally animated suits of armor, while the final version had Plagas-controlled armor suits, and Ashley replaced Sherry as the DamselInDistress.
* ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'' can have this depending on the player's actions in ''VideoGame/MassEffect1''. If Wrex survived the first game, he will appear on Tuchanka leading his clan. If he was killed, it will be his brother Wreav, offering the same quests and exposition (although his personality is notably different). Likewise, if you saved the colony of Zhu's Hope but let Shiala die, an unnamed human colonist will appear in her place on Illium to offer the same quest.
** Continues into the 3rd game for characters who died in ''2''. [[spoiler:Mordin]] is replaced by [[spoiler:another salarian named Padok Wiks (who appears regardless, but quickly vanishes if Mordin is still alive)]], [[spoiler:Grunt]] is replaced by [[spoiler:a generic krogan soldier]], [[spoiler:Miranda]] is replaced by [[spoiler:her sister Oriana]], [[spoiler:Tali]] is replaced by [[spoiler:Admiral Xen on the Dreadnought and Admiral Raan on Rannoch]], and [[spoiler:Legion]] is replaced by...[[spoiler:a backup copy of itself (who doesn't have memory of Shepard)]]. [[spoiler:Garrus, Jacob, Jack, Zaeed, Kasumi, Samara, and Thane]] simply have their parts skipped if they died. Joker will even [[LampshadeHanging insist on referring to]] [[spoiler:Padok]] as "Not-[[spoiler:Mordin]]". In some of those cases, the outcomes of various situations will be different with the substitutes than with the originals, often to the player's detriment.
** The most extreme ''Mass Effect'' example is the original Citadel Council. If left to die in ''Mass Effect 1'', they are replaced in ''Mass Effect 2'' by a "new" council that uses ''identical'' models. (Although a conversation with Udina in ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'' mentions the change of names if they were replaced.) Their personalities are identical, with the exception that the replacements despise you even more than their predecessors did, whereas the originals owe you their lives.
* ''VideoGame/AnarchyReigns'' gives us the Black Baron, former grand champion of the [[VideoGame/MadWorld Varrigan City DeathWatch]]. Oh wait, no, that's actually the Black''er'' Baron, a cyborg pimp who acts and fights just like the blackface battler.
* ''Franchise/ProfessorLayton and the Specter's Flute'' is a {{Prequel}}, and therefore set before Layton meets Inspector Chelmey or Don Paolo. So there's a different Scotland Yard inspector and deranged supervillain.
* Rena Hayami, the protagonist of ''R: Racing Evolution'', a simulation spinoff of the ''VideoGame/RidgeRacer'' series, bears a resemblance to Reiko Nagase from the main series.
* Galuf from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyV'' is replaced mid-game by his granddaughter Krile, who inherits all his experience, items and job mastery. Averted in all other ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' games.
* In ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'', when the Zul'Aman instance was retooled from a 10-man Level 70 raid to a 5-man Level 85 Heroic dungeon, the final boss, Zul'Jin, being canonically dead as of Cataclysm, was replaced by Daakara the Invincible. While Zul'jin started as a troll, then turned into a bear, eagle, lynx and dragonhawk in turn each time players took off 20% health, Daakara started as a troll, then switched to either a bear then an eagle, or a lynx then a dragonhawk, with mostly similar mechanics to Zul'jin's versions of the forms.
** In the Blackrock Depths instance, if players completed the quest to rescue Princess Moira from Dagran Thaurissan, she would be replaced by a Priestess of Thaurissan on subsequent encounters, who would also heal Dagran.
** In the updated version of Scarlet Monastery for Mists of Pandaria, Renault Mograine, [[spoiler:having been killed by the spirit of his father in the Ashbringer event]] is replaced by Scarlet Commander Durand as Whitemane's partner in the DualBoss battle.
* [[VideoGame/SaintsRow When Gat dies]] in the second mission of the third game, Shaundi, previously the FunPersonified OneOfTheBoys character from the second game, becomes the boss's borderline psychotic ally while Pierce, formerly the AmbiguouslyGay ButtMonkey, takes on Gat's role as the Boss's right hand man. While Pierce got to keep his personality, Shaundi had little to nothing of her former self left. Does it count as SSS if the replacement was an already existing character?
* Grobnar Gnomehands in ''VideoGame/NeverwinterNights2'' shares several qualities with Deekin Scalesinger from the expansion packs to the [[VideoGame/NeverwinterNights first game]], being an [[TheScrappy annoying]], diminutive SpoonyBard.
* In ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'', Pewee Piranha and Digga Legg from ''VideoGame/SuperMarioGalaxy2'' are suspiciously similar substitutes to Dino Piranha and Megaleg from the original ''VideoGame/SuperMarioGalaxy''. The former is even found in the same general point in the game as the latter, and defeated in nearly the same way. Also, the Topmen from Galaxy are the same thing as the Bullies from ''VideoGame/SuperMario64'', both being enemies defeated by being pushed off the edge of the platform. They even both have nearly the same boss battles in the ''VideoGame/MarioKart'' series!
* In ''[[VideoGame/YoshisIsland Yoshi's Island DS]]'', about half the bosses and a good few of the levels are nearly the same thing as their equivalents from the first game. The Big Burt Bros are the most obvious; they're just two smaller versions of Burt the Bashful, killed the exact same way and found in a level with roughly the same layout. Others include Bungee Piranha (which is very much like Naval Piranha, complete with a castle designed like a sewer system) and Bowser himself, who acts as a near identical replacement to both Hookbill the Koopa and the giant version of his baby self.
* In ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWars4'', gamers are introduced to three new units - the Gespenst, which resembles [=GM=]s, the Huckebein, which resembles a [[MobileSuitGundam Gundam]] and the Grungust, which is one part MazingerZ, one part {{Daitarn 3}}. They act as this trope once they make the jump to ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsOriginalGeneration''.
* In ''{{VideoGame/Rhythm Heaven}}'', the [[VolumetricMouth Choir Boys]] from Glee Club were {{Ensemble Darkhorse}}s, so for ''Rhythm Heaven Fever'', the mascot Marshal was based on their design, with Cam and Miss Ribbon added to make the use of this trope less obvious.
* In racing games developers typically substitute Porsche for RUF, due to Creator/ElectronicArts holding exclusive rights to the Porsche brand in videogames. RUF cars are tuned Porsches (like what Shelby is to Ford), with more power and a slightly different bodykit, but effectively identical to a standard Porsche visually. If you see a [[MutuallyExclusivePartyMembers RUF listed in a game's car lineup, it basically means there will be no Porsches in the game]]. The ''Videogame/ForzaMotorsport'' series featured Porsche in ''Forza 3'', but when ''Forza 4'' came around, Porsche was totally absent due to [[ExecutiveMeddling meddling]] from Electronic Arts, with only a trio of RUF [=911s=] replacing the 20+ Porsches missing. An expansion pack was later released which re-added Porsche, though Porsches were not featured in any other DLC. When ''Forza Horizon'' came out, Porsche was, yet again, absent.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Animation]]
* ''WebAnimation/HomestarRunner'' made fun of this trope when, on an episode of the ShowWithinAShow ''Cheat Commandos'', Gunhaver [[PutOnABus has to go on a secret mission to the moon for an undisclosed period of time]] (and if he ever comes back [[TheOtherDarrin his voice might be different]]), and is replaced by Agent Chimendez, who is [[SarcasmMode certainly not]] [[AuthorAvatar writer A. Chimendez implementing himself in the show]].
** There's also "Onion Bubs," and the various other versions used to replace "Original Bubs."
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Comics]]
* Lampshaded in ''[[WilliamBazillion The Chronicles of William Bazillion]]'' [[http://www.webcomicsnation.com/andrew/bazillion/series.php?view=archive&chapter=25371&mpe=1&fromwhich=1&direction=f here]].
* L.D., the ruthless wolf CEO of [=HerdThinners=] in ''Webcomic/KevinAndKell'', only seen as a pair of slavering jaws, died in the first year and was immediately replaced by R.L., a ruthless wolf only seen as a pair of slavering jaws.
* In ''Webcomic/{{Sonichu}}'', the character of Sandy is introduced almost immediately after the death of her mother Simonla. She had all of the same abilities as her, too.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Original]]
* ''{{Awkward}}'': The departure of Ernie and Henry resulted in new characters turning up to fill their shoes: Henry (the therapist) is replaced with Dexter (the sage), and Ernie (the douche) with Jermaine (the mega-douche).
* There's a Muppet Web tv show, [[http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/The_Muppets_Kitchen_with_Cat_Cora The Muppets Kitchen With Cat Cora]] that has Cora working with a new muppet, Angelo, an Italian chef. His role as a cook and his heavy Italian accent inevitably invite comparisons to the Swedish Chef (although Angelo speaks intelligibly and is actually competent), and viewer comments indicate that at least some see him as a ReplacementScrappy.
-->'''Beauregard''': [[LampshadeHanging Hey, didn't you used to be Swedish?]]
-->'''Angelo''': That's-a the other guy!
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* Capt. Murphy on ''WesternAnimation/{{Sealab 2021}}'', replaced by Capt. Shanks after the death of Murphy's voice actor Harry Goz. LampshadeHanging occurs when Shanks (who is actually voiced by Goz's son Michael) tells the crew (and, indirectly, [[NoFourthWall the audience]]) that he's a replacement, and if they don't like it, they can "go watch '[[{{anime}} annie-may]]'."
* The ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' episode "Where No Fan Has Gone Before," having united ''almost'' all the ''Series/{{Star Trek|The Original Series}}'' original cast, gave us a Suspiciously Similar Substitute named "Welshy" who apparently replaced James Doohan for a musical reunion in the 22nd century. This was almost certainly a pointed comment on Doohan's refusal to participate, since the late [=DeForrest=] Kelley was just TheVoiceless and Welshy was quickly killed off. This was lampshaded in the episode's working title - "We Got Everybody But Scotty."
** {{Lampshade|Hanging}}d in the episode "Godfellas" with Helper, a Bender replacement that makes wacky noises.
** In another episode, Professor Farnsworth assumes Fry, Leela and Bender have died in the latest mission, prompting him to hire a nigh-identical trio.
--> '''Farnsworth''' ''(to the near-duplicates):'' "You'll be the captain, you'll be the delivery boy, and you'll be the alcoholic, foul-mouthed..." ''(notices regular crew standing in the doorway)'' "Oh! My friends - you're alive!" ''(to the near-duplicates):'' "Sorry about this. Check back in two weeks... a month, tops."
* Darby replacing Christopher Robin in ''My Friends Tigger and Pooh''.
* Lady Jaye and Scarlett are interchangeable in Sunbow's ''Franchise/GIJoe'' series, despite being written as very different characters in [[ComicBook/GIJoeARealAmericanHeroMarvel the Marvel comic]].
** Duke from the Sunbow series was essentially a carbon copy of Hawk from the Marvel comics, who was the originally established blond-haired leader of G.I. Joe. This change was done since at the time the animated series started, Hasbro was phasing out the original 1982 lineup and wanted to [[MerchandiseDriven promote the newer figures being released in 1983]], from which Duke was part of. Duke's character design even resembled the way Hawk was depicted in Sunbow's original TV ads for the ''G.I. Joe'' toys and comics ([[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXY8BMXDKSA see here]]). When a second Hawk action figure was released in 1986, he was introduced to the animated series during the year's season as Duke's heretofore unseen commanding officer, getting an AdaptationDyeJob in the process from blond to black hair.
** When Hasbro relaunched the ''G.I. Joe'' toyline in 2001, they wanted to bring back Roadblock into the lineup, but couldn't due to trademark issues with the character's name. So Heavy Duty, an already-existing separate character, was made into a virtual Roadblock clone. The ''Spy Troops'' CG animated series tried to [[HandWave explain away]] their similarities by claiming they were cousins.
* The octopus replacing the crocodile in ''[[Disney/PeterPan Return to Neverland]]''. It inexplicably starts ticking after it decides to eat Captain Hook.
* King Larry replacing King Louie in ''WesternAnimation/HouseOfMouse''.
** This was due to legal action when Gia Maione, the wife of original actor and now deceased entertainer Louis Prima, sued Disney for unauthorized use of her husband's persona because voice actor Creator/JimCummings' impression (as heard in ''WesternAnimation/TaleSpin'') was ''too dead on''. Part of the out of court settlement is that Disney could no longer use King Louie.
* Though the character existed before, Gil from ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' took Lionel Hutz's job as the family's lawyer after Creator/PhilHartman died.
** This trope is parodied in "Donnie Fatso", in which Fat Tony is replaced by his nearly identical cousin Fit Tony, who gains weight and is eventually called Fat Tony.
** In the DVD commentary to "Alone Again, Natura-Diddily", some of the writers joke that since they miss Maude Flanders, they should write an episode in which Ned gets remarried to a woman that looks and sounds just like Maude. In the 22nd-season finale, Ned begins dating [[spoiler:and by the next season has married]] Edna Krabappel.
** In "A Star Is Burns", C. Montgomery Burns hires Creator/StevenSpielberg's "nonunion Mexican equivalent", Señor [[ElSpanishO Spielbergo]], to direct the fictionalized biopic ''A Burns for All Seasons''.
* After Kenny died "for reals this time" in ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'', his spot as the fourth friend was filled by former minor character Butters. This is lampshaded as the other boys attempt to manipulate him by telling him that "Kenny would do" whatever crazy scheme they have in mind that week, going so far as to call him "Not-Kenny" when he resists. Butters is eventually "fired" as the fourth friend and the boys actually hold try-outs to fill the position. It is briefly filled by Tweek until Kenny eventually shows up ([[UnexplainedRecovery sans explanation]]) to reclaim his old spot.
** Indeed, he merely walks up to the boys from just offscreen, and announces that he was "hanging out", just after the boys have returned from Iraq after trying to give it Christmas.
** Unlike most other un-substituted SSS's, [[BreakoutCharacter Butters]] also managed to maintain an increased presence on the show, becoming somewhat of a MauveShirt.
*** The ever-GenreSavvy ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'' also lampshaded this with Chef's temporary replacement Mr. Derp in the episode "Succubus."
* When she was shoehorned into ''WesternAnimation/PinkyAndTheBrain'', [[CreatorsPet/WesternAnimation Elmyra Duff]] found a ReplacementLoveInterest in Rudy Mookich, a [[WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons Nelson Muntz]] {{Expy}} who was just as much of an asshole as [[ChuckCunninghamSyndrome Montana Max]], and Furrball and Byron were replaced by Mr. Pussy-Wussy and Mr. Shellbutt. Maybe ''that'', along with the other conflicts in relation to ''WesternAnimation/TinyToonAdventures'', was the real problem with ''WesternAnimation/PinkyElmyraAndTheBrain''...
* In a lampshade similar to the ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' one above, ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'''s PoorlyDisguisedPilot for ''WesternAnimation/TheClevelandShow'' was named "Jerome Is the New Black" as BlackBestFriend Cleveland gets PutOnABus to his own {{spinoff}}.
* Whizz The Robot became this in ''NoddyInToyland'', where he replaced Mr. Sparks the mechanic. He previously was not this in his introductory series ''SayItWithNoddy''.
* The AnimatedAdaptation of ''Series/TheDukesOfHazzard'' mirrored its non-animated counterpart in using Coy and Vance instead of Bo and Duke for one season only, though that season was its first.
* In the two-part, season 3 premiere of ''WesternAnimation/Ben10AlienForce'', Chromastone was destroyed and has been replaced with [[WesternAnimation/{{Ben 10}} Diamondhead]]. This could also count as DiscardAndDraw.
** This could easily be considered a reverse example, as Chromastone was something of this or an {{expy}} for Diamondhead in the first place.
*** A recent episode [[spoiler: brought back Chromastone and revealed his connection to the alien race Diamondhead comes from]].
** ''[[WesternAnimation/Ben10UltimateAlien Ultimate Alien]]'' introduces Fasttrack, who shares the exact same coloration and [[SuperSpeed powers]] as [=XLR8=], which is rather peculiar, as his existence could be considered redundant and unnecessary, considering Ben likely ''has'' [=XLR8=] in his Ultimatrix, as almost every alien he's had in the previous two series is unlocked. Though he seems to be somewhat stronger and Matt Wayne [[WordOfGod did say]] that Fasttrack is stronger. [=XLR8=], however, sees use in the ''ManOfActionStudios''-helmed ''[[WesternAnimation/Ben10GeneratorRexHeroesUnited Heroes United]]'' Crossover with ''WesternAnimation/GeneratorRex''.
*** Though the mentality behind making another very fast character (and similar substitutes in general) could be accepted if one were to consider the idea that of the million aliens connected to the Ultimatrix, it's highly likely that several of them naturally have the same powers. This circles back to why sets of 10 were created. [[FridgeBrilliance Variety without redundancy.]]
* In ''Mickey's Twice Upon a Christmas'', Max's girlfriend Mona is a semi-Jonas Quinn of Roxanne from ''WesternAnimation/AGoofyMovie''; she's actually voiced by the same VA, Kellie Martin. The plot at hand is that he's bringing his girlfriend from college home for Christmas to meet his dad. Roxanne obviously met Goofy before, so they came up with a new, suspiciously similar girlfriend character. (And, to be realistic, how many of you were still with your high school crush/sweetheart in college?)
* In the ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'' episode "Bushido," Goliath meets a clan of gargoyles living in Japan. They're led by a tall, deep-voiced gargoyle named Kai, and as it turns out later, they're actually being manipulated by a shifty Japanese businessman named Taro who's set himself up as the Gargoyles' benefactor. Sounds familiar... (Taro even turns out to have a kick-ass robot suit just like Xanatos, though his is built to look like samurai armor).
* In ''[[WesternAnimation/TotalDramaIsland Total Drama Revenge of the Island]]'', some of the new contestants are such to the original contestants.
** Brick is one to DJ, as both are [[GentleGiant strong, but sensitive]] guys.
** Dakota is one to Lindsay, as both are [[SpoiledSweet rich, spoiled]], {{dumb blonde}}s.
** Dawn is one to Bridgette, as both are pacifist, nature lovers.
** Jo is one to Eva, as both are jock-ettes; however, Jo is far less angry than Eva.
** Scott is one to Alejandro and Heather, as the three are arrogant, manipulative antagonists. [[spoiler:Scott even has a suspiciously similar end-of-season fate to Alejandro.]]
** Zoey is one to Beth, as both are nice but socially awkward girls.
** Mike is one to Izzy, as both have multiple personalities.
** Staci is one to Ezekiel, as both were voted off very early in the show.
* In ''WesternAnimation/DuckTales'' Launchpad [=McQuack=] and later Fenton Crackshell both acted in the role WesternAnimation/DonaldDuck had from the original Uncle Scrooge comics, namely being the other adult character working with Scrooge and the nephews who was also generally a little less intelligent. The writers of the show were worried that Donald's presence would outshine Scrooge and the nephews, which was why the two other characters were created and so they would serve as the fifth member of the FiveManBand in the first and second seasons. However, Donald did notably have a minor recurring role in the first season where he would properly retake his position from the comics in the few episodes he appeared in.
* Animated adaptations of ''Franchise/MyLittlePony'' are guilty of this.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Real Life]]
* [[http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-17244407 The leader of a British charity was replaced by his twin brother after he killed himself.]]
[[/folder]]
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