Why Topher Grace Left That ’70s Show

“That ’70s Show” went on for eight seasons, although most fans agree that not all of those seasons were created equal. Where exactly is the cutoff line between good “That ’70s Show” and bad “That ’70s Show?” Some say it’s around the point where Donna went blonde. Others say it was shortly after Kelso and Donna returned from California. Some say the decline started as early as mid-season 3, when Lisa Robin Kelly left the show. One thing’s clear, though: nobody cares much for season 8, because that’s the season where Eric (Topher Grace) isn’t in it. 

In a certain sense, Eric’s departure was inevitable. He was the smart, bookish member of the gang, someone who should’ve surely gone off to college shortly after season 5, but the show’s longevity had the writers jumping through hoops to explain why he was sticking around so long after high school in seasons 6 and 7. Red’s heart attack was a decent excuse for a few episodes, and the writers got some mileage out of Eric’s desire to take a gap year to discover himself, but after two seasons of this, it got sort of sad to see him still hanging out in his parents’ basement. 

So it mostly makes sense that Eric finally decides to leave Point Place in season 7, taking a teaching job in Africa that will keep him far away from the rest of the gang. If the show had ended there, it would’ve been a perfectly fine conclusion to his character. Unfortunately, there was an entire season left to go.

As tends to be the case in these situations, the reason Eric left had little to do with his overall character arc and everything to do with what was going on with the actor in real life. Throughout those first few seasons of “That ’70s Show,” Topher Grace had gotten a taste of acting in movies, but the demanding sitcom schedule severely limited the sort of roles he could take on. As one newspaper described it, “Grace is leaving the series to devote more time to his burgeoning film career.” The fact that the writing quality of “That ’70s Show” was already in clear decline likely helped push his departure along.

Almost immediately after Grace’s departure in the season 7 finale aired, Sam Raimi announced that he’d cast Topher Grace for a role in “Spider-Man 3.” It was the sort of announcement that strongly implied that Grace’s decision was already paying off, though it became less promising a few months later when it was revealed that Grace was playing Venom, a character many “Spider-Man” fans thought Grace was miscast for. 

Although “Spider-Man 3” has grown more appreciated over time, it was considered a disappointment back in 2007, especially in the context of Grace’s film career. As the growing fame of Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis seemed unstoppable in the late 2000s/early 2010s, Topher Grace’s surprisingly low-key film career was a point of contention among “That ’70s Show” fans who resented Grace for leaving the series. Granted, slow and steady wins the race: whereas other “That ’70s Show” cast members are now in prison or they’re going through PR nightmares, Grace has continued starring in fun, varied roles in projects like “Black Mirror,” “Blackkklansmen,” and “Home Economics.” He may not be an A-List celebrity, but his post-“That ’70s Show” career is still pretty impressive and shows no sign of slowing down soon, including an unrecognizable cameo in 2024’s “Heretic.”

As much as Eric’s departure seemed like the obvious point of no return for the series, especially with Ashton Kutcher’s character Kelso also leaving shortly into season 8, the cast and crew were still optimistic about the series’ future. “When they made the decision — which was completely, 100 percent fine, because after eight years I think it’s OK to say you want out — we looked at it and said, ‘Do we still have a show?'” said Fez’s actor Wilmer Valderrama, in the break before season 8. “And it’s such an amazing ensemble. Every single one of us has our character down, so we knew there were a lot of lines to explore.”

Publicly at least, it seemed fans were hoping for a situation sort of like “Cheers,” a show that could’ve easily floundered after Diane (Shelley Long) left but instead kept going strong for another six seasons. Josh Meyers, who would join the cast in season 8 as Eric’s quasi-replacement, also seemed hopeful that the series had plenty of life in it. “Last year everyone thought this would be the last season … but ratings will be the deciding factor,” Meyers said. “I can’t imagine these actors would not want to come back for another season because they’re making a lot of money. My mother read somewhere that Danny Masterson is making $15 million this season, so I’m not talking out of school.”

Notably, no one in the cast seemed to blame Grace for wanting to leave. In the interviews after his departure was announced, most of the cast and crew seemed supportive of the choice. For Mark Hudis, one of the show’s producers, he was impressed with how well Grace handled getting thrust into the national spotlight back in 1998. “Topher Grace did a magnificent job,” Hudis said in a May 2006 interview, released a few weeks before the series finale. “This was a kid who had almost no experience, except for school shows.”

For the most part, the characters on “That ’70s Show” reacted to Eric’s departure with business as usual. Eric was constantly mentioned, but the tone and setting of the series largely stayed the same, with everyone still hanging out in Eric’s basement and going about their regular lives. One of the most memorable Eric-related character beats in season 8 is when Red Forman finally admits that he misses his son; it’s an uncharacteristically tender moment, one that Red would be embarrassed to know got caught on tape for Eric to hear.

The biggest effect of Eric’s departure was that he and Donna broke up off-screen. They both realized that the long-distance relationship wasn’t working out and agreed to call it off for the time being. This paved the way for newcomer Randy (Josh Meyers) to swoop in as Donna’s new love interest, in a creative choice that very much did not endear Randy to longtime fans. This was the storyline that really underlined how weird it was to have the gang still hanging out at Eric’s house; it’s one thing for Donna to stop dating Eric, but why he is parading her new boyfriend around Eric’s parents, and why does Randy feel so comfortable hanging out in Eric’s home?

Although fans often blame the lack of Eric for season 8’s problems, season 8 was also capable of being bad for reasons that had nothing to do with him. Most damningly, the show threw away the beloved Hyde/Jackie romance to pave the way for the terrible Fez/Jackie romance, a decision that killed any goodwill the series might’ve had left. Outside of the always dependable Red and Kitty, pretty much every major character in season 8 felt like a caricature of their former selves. Well, everyone except Randy.

I for one kind of like Randy Pearson. Or more accurately, I like Josh Meyers, who much like his brother Seth Meyers has always had a certain affable charm that smooths over the jokes that don’t quite land. Don’t get me wrong, I’d have preferred if they’d kept season 7’s potential Eric-replacement Charlie around instead of throwing the guy off the water tower, but Randy on his own wasn’t that bad. If he’d been introduced earlier in the series, and if the writing had stayed high-quality, and perhaps if the writers hadn’t bothered writing any sort of romance with him and Donna, there’s a chance fans would’ve come to like Randy. 

Of course, none of that happened; Randy was left with the impossible task of having to rescue a spiraling series from certain doom, all while becoming an easy lightning rod for fans’ anger. It didn’t help that the script itself kept trying to insist that Randy was the coolest guy ever, even to the point of establishing that he’d dated every other girl in Point Place before he met Donna. A lighter touch probably would’ve gone a long way there. 

And despite Josh Meyers’ early interviews expressing hope for the series, it seems he quickly became aware that his character wasn’t popular. “I did the last season of ‘That ’70s Show’ that a lot of people don’t like me because of,” he said in a 2022 interview. “They were like, ‘You stole Eric’s girlfriend,’ and I was like, ‘No, no, no, Topher Grace went to go be in ‘Spider-Man 3,’ I just got a job, Donna’s not a real person, she’s a character…”

So, what’s Josh up to these days? Well, he’s since gone on to star in lesser-known but still worthwhile TV shows like “The Awesomes” and “Red Oaks.” These days, you’ll most likely see him playing California Governor Gavin Newsom on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” or showing up as himself in the annual Thanksgiving episodes of “Late Night With Seth Meyers.” He may not have been a perfect replacement for Topher Grace, but that was never a fair expectation for him in the first place.