If today it is difficult to imagine “Charmed” without Alyssa Milano in the role of Phoebe, the actress was not the first choice for the production. Discover the images of the unaired pilot with the one who was to play the character!
25 years ago almost to the day, October 7, 1998 to be exact, the American channel The WB broadcast the first episode of Charmed. The opportunity for viewers to meet Prue (Shannen Doherty), Piper (Holly Marie Combs) and Phoebe (Alyssa Milano) Halliwell, three sisters with powerful magical powers who formed the Power of Three.
For 8 seasons, viewers were passionate about the adventures of these witches who fought the forces of evil with the help of Leo (Brian Krause), their being of light.
At the start of season 4, following the departure of Shannen Doherty who completely disappeared from the series, Piper and Phoebe discovered the existence of Paige, played by Rose McGowan, a hidden half-sister, born from the union between Patty and his being of light.
A revelation which thus made it possible to reform the Power of Three following the tragic death of Prue. After this casting change, the Charmed adventure will continue for 5 additional seasons, the series bowing out in 2006 after 8 seasons.
And if today it is difficult to imagine that the witches could have been played by actresses other than Shannen Doherty, Holly Marie Combs, Alyssa Milano and Rose McGowan, the original casting of Charmed underwent some changes after filming of the pilot.
Alyssa Milano should not play Phoebe
In the hearts of all Charmed fans, Alyssa Milano was the perfect actress to play the character of Phoebe. And yet, the one who made herself known in Madame is Served was not the production’s first choice.
It was in fact actress Lori Rom who was originally supposed to star opposite Holly Marie Combs and Shannen Doherty. While she had filmed in the first pilot which was never broadcast, she ultimately decided not to star in Charmed, for personal reasons.
Following this withdrawal, producer Aaron Spelling contacted Alyssa Milano to reprise the role of Phoebe. The pilot was thus returned with the latter, and it was this episode that viewers were able to discover on October 7, 1998.
And for almost 25 years, no one ever got to see this alternate pilot…until today. Indeed, a video of the first scene of the series, in which the three sisters meet again for the first time after months of separation, was uploaded a few days ago on Tiktok by Bayreacts.
In this excerpt we can see the scene performed by Lori Rom, then the same passage performed by Alyssa Milano. If Lori’s talent is undeniable, Alyssa still brings depth and confidence to the character of Phoebe.
By viewing these images, we cannot help but say to ourselves that Lori Rom did well to withdraw to give her place to Alyssa Milano. One thing is certain, if she had stayed, Charmed would have had a completely different flavor, and would perhaps not have been marked by the departure of Shannen Doherty, who would have left the series following conflicts with the interpreter of Phoebe .
Charmed is broadcast every evening from Monday to Friday from 4:20 p.m. on 6ter. The series is also available in full on Prime Video, and the first 6 seasons are on Paramount+.