Seinfeld featured so many memorable guest-stars but as it turns out, not every guest felt welcomed on the show. Let's take Brad Garrett as an example, the actor revealed that he got very little from Jerry during his time on the show, and same held true throughout his career following his one-off appearance on the series.
As it turns out, there was another major Seinfeld character who didn't feel the love from Jerry or Larry David for that matter. We'll take a look back at which recurring guest-star was shocked by his invite for the finale. We'll also detail his reaction, and how he completely messed up the return that was supposed to be a surprise.
Larry David Made His Return For The Finale And Did Things His Way
Seinfeld's final episode aired on May 14th, 1998. As expected, the sitcom surged in the viewership department, bringing in 41.3 million viewers for its final episode. That number nearly matched the Super Bowl in the same year.
Adding to the anticipation of it all, Larry David was brought back to the series for the last episode, ensuring things would end the most 'Seinfeld way possible'. At the time, David had left the series for the two seasons. Nonetheless, he and Jerry always bonded, especially when it came to their sense of humor.
“Larry and I were so good together, if we both thought something was funny, that was good enough for us. If it can get through those two filters, and we both think that’s funny, I wouldn’t even care if it wasn’t funny.”
Executive Producer Alec Berg admitted that David's return caused major changes behind the scenes, especially given the way things were running since his departure.
Berg revealed with Variety, "There definitely was a little bit of an adjustment from those of us on the show who had been very much in charge of certain things for the last couple of years. Larry just showed up and was like, ‘I’m going to the job the way I always did the job.'"
He continues, "It’s like a husband had left the house for two years, and the kids had to take care of everything, and then the husband came back, and the kids are like ‘Oh, Dad’s back and I guess he’s going to do those things that Dad does, and we don’t have to do those things anymore.’ But it was just awesome that he was back.”
Along with David's return, others were also approached for a comeback. Among them was none other than Larry Thomas.
Larry Thomas Yelled With Excitement When He Was Offered To Return For The Finale, Thinking Jerry Seinfeld And Larry David Hated Him
The Soup Nazi was among the names extended an invite to the Seinfeld finale. The actor behind the role Larry Thomas could not believe that the offer was extended. Like many others on the show, Larry Thomas thought both Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld weren't fans of his work.
Thomas details the moment with Variety, “I was convinced that Larry and Jerry didn’t like me [after my first appearance because they never had me back]."
"I was at my old day job as a bail bondsman and a court investigator and I was in court in Glendale and my manager called me and she goes, ‘So would you be available to do the “Seinfeld” final episode?’ And I just yelled and everybody was looking at me. ‘What?’ ‘Yeah, they called and they want you to play the Soup Nazi again.'”
The role on Seinfeld was life-changing for Thomas. Although he didn't enjoy massive residuals, he was able to make six-figures off various Cameo requests. Not too shabby!
Larry Thomas Blew The Surprise Despite Larry David Wanting To Keep It A Secret
It didn't take long for Thomas to anger those behind the scenes... In truth, it really wasn't his fault. After his agent signed the deal for his return, they were contacted by publications confirming his guest-starring role. The media was trying to get info about the finale, while those behind the scenes wanted to keep it a secret. Larry David himself wanted the cast to sign a confidentiality agreement, so the finale wouldn't leak. However, once Thomas was made aware, it was already too late...
He recalls, "As soon as my agent hung up she got a call from Entertainment Weekly asking ‘Is your client going to back for the “Seinfeld” finale as the Soup Nazi?’ and she said yes. And then she called [casting director Marc] Hirschfeld’s office and he said, ‘Oh, by the way, this is going to be a major industry top secret. Larry’s going to have to sign a confidentiality agreement. No one is to know he’s coming back for the finale.’ So before even being told of Larry David’s big secret, we blew it right off the bat."
On the first day back, Larry David reminded everyone to keep the details a secret, and Thomas couldn't help but to turn bright red knowing that the EW headlines pertaining to his return were about to be made public...
