Unscripted moments are a fact of life in the entertainment industry, even if a writer can write the dialogue, and a director can direct the actors, the latter tend to work on the fly for a variety of reasons. They either forget their line or get caught up in the moment. They could also figure out what the character could do or just have a permission to improvise in the situation. In movies, these led to some iconic moments. The Top Gun kiss happened because Cruise totally forgot his line and just went with it, and other movies such as Thor: Ragnarok were heavily improvised.
Television makes for a riper landscape for those unscripted moments. Actors spend more time on set and more time in the characters. On some television sets or in reads, improvisation is actually encouraged. Often times, things said during those moments usually make it in to the final cut of the episode. The work can definitely get to the actors from time to time, which can lead to improvisation or breaking character. The latter can lead to some truly excellent gag reels, while the former can lead to some truly iconic television moments.
With that in mind, let’s count down some classic unscripted moments on television. Some of these became running gags and others tugged at our heartstrings, but they all are certainly memorable.
Here are 15 Unscripted Scenes That Made It Onto TV Shows.
15. Network Connectivity Problems (Parks & Recreation)
NBC’s beloved seven season long show, Parks and Recreation, had one of the most hilarious casts on television. Improvisation was actively encouraged on set by the creatives behind the scenes, and sometimes, it could lead to trouble with studio execs. One example would be the time Chris Pratt actually got naked on-set to get a genuine reaction from Amy Poehler.
Speaking of the Guardians of the Galaxy star, Pratt is responsible for an improv that series creator Michael Schur considers the funniest line on the show. In the season three episode “Flu Season”, Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler) is sick with the flu. Dim but lovable, Andy Dwyer types in her symptoms in the computer, which leads to the iconic line: “Leslie, I typed your symptoms into this thing up here, and it says you have network connectivity problems.”
Admittedly, it’s a pretty hilarious line and an excellent example of Pratt’s improv skills. As Michael Schur said of the line, “I’m not kidding, as a writer, it made me furious! I’m still really upset and angry. He did it once, the camera happened to be on him once and I think it’s the funniest joke that’s ever been on our show.” If a joke is so good that the creator of the show gets angry over it, then you definitely keep it in.
14. Abby Called Out (Broadchurch)
Fans loved the three series long show Broadchurch – what wasn’t there to love? Compelling mysteries, stellar performances, tight writing, and amazing chemistry propelled the show into something truly special across both sides of the pond. We’ll just agree to never talk about the American remake Gracepoint or David Tennant’s American accent ever again.
While series one focused on the hunt for the criminal responsible for Danny Latimer’s life ending, the second series continues the story by focusing on the trial and the fallout. Fans are introduced to junior barristers Abby Thompson (Phoebe Waller-Bridge) and Ben Haywood (William Andrews), who were both present during the trial of Joe Miller, with Abby representing Joe originally. Over the course of the second series, Abby romance Olly Stevens. which allowed her to learn vital information about Ellie Miller lending Lucy Stevens money during series one. She then used the information to her advantage at the trial.
Following that, in the seventh episode of the series, Abby and Ben had the rare on-screen moment together.
Ben ultimately expresses his utter distaste of Abby with, “Abby, I wanted to say… I think you’re a truly horrible person.”
According to Andrews on Twitter, showrunner Chris Chibnall allowed him and Waller-Bridge to improvise during the scene. That’s when the line came out.
13. Dean Winchester’s Catchphrase (Supernatural)
Going thirteen seasons strong, it’s no surprise that Supernatural tends to have its own inside jokes. Like NCIS, Psych, and other shows on the list, an improvised moment turned into its own running gag. As many fans know, Dean Winchester (Jensen Ackles) tends to use the phrase “son of a b—h” a lot. It’s become so associated with the character, that during “ScoobyNatural” when the characters went through their own catchphrases, Dean just had to let his loose as well. Believe it or not, the moment itself happened fairly naturally on set.
Way, way back in season three of the show during the episode “Bad Day at Black Rock”, Dean gets so fed up with the run of bad luck due to Sam (Jared Padalecki) losing a cursed rabbit’s foot, that he just screams “son of a b—h.” Padalecki admitted that it surprised him so much that he had to turn away so the camera wouldn’t catch him laughing. Since then, the phrase has been associated with the character, complete with YouTube montages.
Another excellent improvised moment that didn’t make it in the show proper but did make it onto the gag reel is when Ackles lip syncs to “Eye of the Tiger” in the season four episode “Yellow Fever”. Where else can you see a grown man play his leg like an air guitar but on Supernatural?
12. The Animal Cracker Speech (Buffy: The Vampire Slayer)
Part of the undeniable genius of Buffy the Vampire Slayer was definitely in the show’s amazing writing. The writing was so good and so compelling that they did a virtually dialogue-free episode that’s considered to be one of the best TV episodes ever made. Even with such strong writing, it doesn’t mean that the cast wasn’t allowed to ad-lib from time to time. One of the strongest moments came from Oz (Seth Green) and Willow (Alyson Hannigan) in the season two episode, “What’s My Line? (Part 2)”.
During the exchange, Willow checks in on Oz, who hurt his arm. The scene is supposed to end with the line, “You have the sweetest smile I’ve ever seen.”
Green and Hannigan kept the scene going with a diatribe on how the monkey cracker is the only one that has clothes.
Up to and including Green using a French accent for the monkey and capping the scene with, “All monkeys are French. You didn’t know that?” The entire speech is so wonderfully weird, and pure Seth Green, that the final line is often quoted by fans of the show. It also proves that the reason the writing worked so well on Buffy, is because they had actors who knew how to make it work. Now the real question remains, do animal crackers have more animal clothes or is the monkey still mocking them with his monkey pants?
11. The Psych Pineapples
For fans of the USA Network comedy-crime caper Psych, searching for the hidden pineapple is part of the fun. For those uninitiated, in nearly every episode of the show there is a pineapple hidden somewhere in the episode, which has actually become a game within a very irreverent show. Now, the origin of the pineapple, however, is rooted into something that series star James Roday came up with on the fly during the pilot.
In the episode, Shawn prepares to drive to a lakeside cabin. As one of his signature quips, he grabs a pineapple and asks if he should cut it up for the road, and the rest was history. That one moment of improv spawned a seven season and a movie long gag – there’s even a website dedicated to finding the pineapple in Psych episodes.
Given the comedic nature of the show, it’s not a surprise that the cast would goof-off around the set too. In addition to the ad-lib that became a running gag, James Roday and Dulé Hill inspired the classic episode “American Duos” by goofing off on set. Creator Steve Franks witnessed the moment, which immediately led to him penning the episode. It certainly makes a person long for the “blue skies” days of the USA Network.
10. Danny Pudi’s Nicolas Cage Improv (Community)
Danny Pudi is easily one of the most hilarious actors working in comedy today. Given the amount of talent in the field, it is no easy feat. While Pudi’s comedic skills can be easily seen throughout the industry, nowhere are they better showcased than in the cult favorite sitcom, Community. Given the creatives behind the camera and the talent on-set, it’s no surprise that improvisation tended to happen, which led to one of the show’s best moments from Pudi’s character, Abed.
In the episode “Introduction to Teaching”, Abed takes a class focusing on the career of everyone’s fave scenery chewer, Nicolas Cage.
When he does a presentation on the actor, Abed does it while acting like Cage himself, complete with overdramatic speaking and acting totally crazy.
Though the crazy could be explained, as Abed watched Cage’s entire filmography to figure out if the man is a “good or bad” actor. Everyone in the class looked totally stunned, given the unscripted nature was probably 100% percent genuine on their part.
Given that the show is known for its bizarre comedic moments, this one certainly takes the cake. It’s almost like watching an ancient Greek tragedy play out, except a thousand times more hilarious. No one could come to a consensus on whether Cage is a good or bad actor. The world may never know.
9. Stefon Covering His Mouth (Saturday Night Live)
By the very nature of its program format, Saturday Night Live lends itself to improvisation. Over the course of rehearsals, planning out the skits, or even live on air, SNL has the unscripted worked into its very being. Like the Psych pineapples, it can lead to a running gag that fans love for years and years to come.
While Bill Hader is wowing us all with his criminal turned actor on HBO’s Barry, his start, like many, came from SNL. Hader’s most famous and popular character came in the form of Stefon, the city correspondent on Weekend Update. Known for his flamboyant personality, outlandish descriptions of clubs, and his eccentric manner of dress, Stefon was an immediate fan favorite. When Hader officially left SNL, it ended with Stefon marrying Seth Meyers (who created the character with John Mulaney).
One important character quirk for Stefon, however, is that he always begins his segments with his hands covering his mouth. According to Hader, this was more of a method of self-preservation. He never really knew what the final product for Stefon was going to be until on-air. Covering his hands over his mouth was a way to compose himself before speaking. Though, Hader said that he always had a hard time keeping in character during the segments, and based on how hilarious they were, we can’t blame him.
8. Oscar And Michael Kiss (The Office)
It’s safe to call The Office one of the greatest comedies of the 21st century. It’s perhaps the rare Americanization of a British show that actually surpasses the original. It will not surprise fans, or even the casual viewer, that the actors did improv things on the show. In fact, many of their interview segments were ad-libbed by the cast.
One of the best-known moments of the show, however, comes from the season three opener “Gay Witch Hunt”.
In the scene, Michael Scott (Steve Carrell) attempts to shut down accusations that he’s homophobic by kissing openly gay employee Oscar (Oscar Nunez) on the mouth.
What transpires is a kiss between two people so awkward, it definitely gives the audience flashbacks to their own first kisses.
The script originally called for Michael to kiss Oscar on the cheek. Carrell, however, suggested that Michael should kiss Oscar on the lips. As Paul Lieberstein, who played Toby on the show, described, “One take, Steve just won’t let Oscar turn away. He got closer and closer.” With that, comedy history was born in all of its awkward glory.
7. The Gibbs Slap (NCIS)
A lot of running jokes through shows just seem to start with a bit of improvisation, don’t they? Here’s another one from that category of unscripted yet perfect bits: the “Gibbs Slap” from NCIS. The fifteen-season long series has had a lot of bits over the years: DiNozzo’s (Michael Weatherly) references to movies, Ziva’s (Cote de Pablo) confusion over idioms, Ducky’s (David McCallum) wandering stories, just to name a few. Nothing, however, is quite as visceral and as on point for a character as when Gibbs (Mark Harmon) gives a quick smack on the back of someone’s head when they’re off-topic/being annoying. DiNozzo usually gets the slap.
So how did the Gibbs slap come into being? It’s an answer straight out of the series. Apparently, Michael Weatherly was being annoying on-set and Mark Harmon just cuffed him on the back of the head to get him to focus.
The creatives liked it so much that they kept it in with the take, and then added it in future episodes of the show. Seasons later, it’s so integral that when USA advertises the NCIS marathons, it’s a focus of a promo. The head slaps have tapered a bit since Weatherly left the show back in season thirteen. We’ll always love them, though.
6. Moira Queen’s Final Words (Arrow)
Arrow has had a lot of passings over the years that have gutted audiences. Few have the sheer raw emotion as the passing of Moira Queen (Susanna Thompson) at Deathstroke’s (Manu Bennett) hands.
During the first rehearsal for the episode, “Seeing Red”, Susanna Thompson threw in the line, “Close your eyes, baby” when Moira stands to sacrifice herself.
In an interview with Give Me My Remote, Thompson recalled the heartbreaking addition to the script. “I knew he could shoot Moira at any time. The last thing I wanted was for Thea to see that. She’s right there. I was just going over it and over it in my head, prior to getting to the set several days in advance, and I thought, “This is what she would say. And I’m not going to tell anybody, I’m just going to do it.” And the first rehearsal I said it, Marc Guggenheim [Arrow creator] told our script supervisor, “Keep it, keep it, I love it. Keep it.”
The fans probably didn’t love it because they were all straight-up sobbing at that point. Although it was a powerful capper and an emotional final line to a complex, morally ambiguous character who loved her children.
5. Literally Everything The Janitor Said On Scrubs
Like many of the comedies on this list, Scrubs represents a bit of a masterclass on keeping composure during the silliest moments. With the unnamed Janitor (Neil Flynn), however, audiences get a masterclass on improvisation. The character was only meant to appear in the pilot, but Flynn was so amazing in the world, and so funny, that the role was immediately expanded.
More surprisingly, at least to those with a background in film/television, Flynn was given complete and unfettered control over what the Janitor said. Everything that the Janitor said through the show’s eight seasons, plus one guest appearance in season nine, was all Flynn’s doing.
Props definitely need to be given for Flynn. Nearly everything that the Janitor did was equal parts weird and hilarious, but sometimes surprisingly touching. It sounded so natural and part of the show that, without being told this fact, no one would have guessed otherwise. Even when Flynn moved on to ABC’s The Middle following Scrubs’ end and had to go on a set script, he still brings a lot of laughs with him. With The Middle ending this year, audiences can only hope that Flynn will appear on screens again very, very soon.
4. K.J. Apa Hurts His Hand (Riverdale)
Riverdale is a show that can be so weird, so bizarre, and so odd, that you’re almost convinced that there’s not really a script in play. In reality, the scripts for the show exist, or that’s what we’re told anyway. That doesn’t mean that some of the moments on show aren’t genuine. One of them was genuinely painful for one of the series stars. In the show’s season one finale, Cheryl Blossom (Madelaine Petsch) attempts to end her own life at the frozen Sweetwater River. When she falls through the ice, Archie Andrews (K.J. Apa) has to punch through the ice to pull her out, injuring his hand.
Apa didn’t actually punch through ice on set - it was a prop. However, he got so into the scene that he actually did genuinely injure his hand.
When speaking with TVLine, Apa had this to say about his injury: “That was a gnarly day of shooting, I’ll tell you that much. I wasn’t really punching the ice, but I got a little bit too excited. I was punching a foam mat … [that was] sitting on the ice. … It was cold, so I didn’t really feel it. It wasn’t until 20 minutes after that I realized I broke my hand. I didn’t tell anyone.”
In the future, someone would better make sure this boy tells people when he injures himself.
3. Holly Calls For Her Mom (Breaking Bad)
One of the adages of the entertainment industry is “don’t work with animals or babies.” It simply goes with the fact that both are just plain unpredictable to work with. Sometimes, however, the unpredictability ends up going in favor of good television. The peak of good television, according to pretty much everyone, is AMC’s Breaking Bad. The five-season long program had a lot of tear-jerking moments over the years and the last episodes of the finale fifth season definitely had tear ducts kicking into overdrive.
In “Ozymandias”, Walter White (Bryan Cranston) kidnaps his daughter Holly (Elanor Anne Wenrich) after attacking his wife Skyler (Anna Gunn). While he spends time with Holly, she says her first word “Mama” again and again. This leads to Walt crying as he holds Holly close. In the original draft of the script, Holly never said a word.
On the set, however, Elanor saw her mother standing off to the side, which was when she started calling to her mother. Kudos to Cranston, who worked off his young co-star and let the scene play naturally at that point. The moment itself ended up being an instant classic in the back-half of the praised fifth season. It always showed why Cranston kept on racking up the awards every year.
2. Patton Oswalt’s Parks & Recreation Filibuster
Pawnee, Indiana served as a reminder of just how weird public service can get at times. Anyone who has watched a filibuster on CSPAN knows, it gets pretty weird. While Leslie Knope’s rollerblade filibuster in season six is one for the ages, nothing can quite top when Garth Blundon (Patton Oswalt) filibustered a Pawnee City Council meeting in order to stop old laws from being repealed. Even though shows like The Office and Parks and Recreation did allow for some improv, actors tended to stick to the script a lot of the time.
That’s what makes it so amazing when Oswalt went on an almost nine-minute improv about a hypothetical Star Wars and Marvel crossover movie.
While Oswalt is pretty famous for being a huge sci-fi/comic geek, nothing quite showcases his knowledge of the lore like this monologue. The show had to cut it for time, but it’s available to watch online. For fans of both properties, it is mesmerizing to watch.
Honestly, it’s the pick-me up that we all need after Avengers: Infinity War messed with our feelings so much. Oswalt needs to either write the comic or make this movie, because even though it’s been almost five years since he pitched it, we’re still thinking about it.
1. Fitz’s Breaking Bad Reference (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.)
Let’s go back to a simpler time in the annals of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. before time travel, interdimensional portals, and Ghost Riders. For this unscripted moment, we’re revisiting season two, when Inhumans began to pop up with greater frequency on Earth. During this time, the team found themselves up against Daisy’s (Chloe Bennet) mother Jiaying (Dichen Lachman) and those within the Inhuman haven, Afterlife. The season two finale, “S.O.S.”, saw the Jiaying’s Inhumans square off against the Agents.
One of the plans involved the teleporter Gordon (Jamie Harris) boarding a S.H.I.E.L.D. ship in order to release Terrigen Mist through the ventilation system to incapacitate all the humans on board. Coulson (Clark Gregg), Fitz (Iain De Caestecker), and Calvin (Kyle MacLachlan) board the ship to stop him. On the ship, Fitz is able to inhibit Gordon’s teleporting powers with quantum field disrupters so that he can’t escape. When Gordon asked him how he did such a thing, Fitz’s answer is a simple Breaking Bad nod: “science, b—-h.”
The moment was so amazing that it won an Entertainment Weekly award for Funniest Moment in a Drama, according to producer Geoffrey Colo. While Gregg declared the line to be the “best ad lib in the history of television.” Unsurprisingly, it’s also a fan favorite.
What were some of your favorite unscripted scenes that made it onto TV shows? Let us know in the comments!
