Entertainment
Published January 29, 2024, 9:50 am ET
Al Bundy's mistake.
Ed O'Neill has revealed how he “messed up” in his feud with his Married…With Children co-star Amanda Bearse.
O'Neill, 77, played the role of Al Bundy on the offbeat Fox sitcom from 1987 to 1997. The cast also included Katey Sagal as his wife, Christina Applegate as her daughter, David Faustino as her son, Bearse as her neighbor Marcy, and David Garrison as Marcy's first husband.
O'Neill has been in a public feud with Bearse, 65, for years and recently told Fox News Digital, “Yes, the TV Guide thing happened, I wasn't sorry about that decision.”
He was referencing a recent appearance on his former “Modern Family” co-star Jesse Tyler Ferguson's “Dinner's On Me” podcast, where he elaborated on the origins of the feud.
He told Ferguson that it all started when the show got the opportunity to appear on the cover of TV Guide, but Bearse and David Garrison were left out because they were “the neighbors” on the show. They asked him to lobby them to do the cover and he refused.
Katey Sagal and Ed O'Neill in 1989. Getty Images Ed O'Neill in 2020. Getty Images
“If I were smarter, I would have said to them both – let me go [creator Ron Leavitt] and talk to him. That’s what I should have done,” he told the outlet. “But instead I said, ‘Hey, no. “This is not for us actors, this is for the whole show… the handles, the makeup, the hair… that might make our show last longer.” That's how I saw it. I didn't care if I was on the cover, I'd say, 'Why don't you leave me off the cover and say Al's stuck at work?'”
David Faustino, Christina Applegate, Amanda Bearse, Ed O'Neill, Ted McGinley and Katey Sagal. Getty Images Christina Applegate, Katey Sagal, Ed O'Neill and David Faustino. Corbis via Getty Images
He admitted that he made a mistake in that and that he also “messed up” when Bearse, who is a lesbian, wanted to get married.
“And back then it was a novelty, it was new,” O'Neill said, referring to the prospect of two women marrying each other.
“And she didn’t invite me to the wedding. And my feelings were hurt. And when I asked her about it, she said, “Well, it was a difficult decision.” And I thought, “Are you confusing me with Al Bundy?” I didn't say that, but that's how I felt. “What do you mean you think I'm a Neanderthal or something?” So I was angry. If I had to do it over again, I would have said, “Amanda, all the best.” It's your call, it's your wedding. But instead I lashed out hard and said a joke, but it was a mean joke. That’s my biggest regret about it, I didn’t handle it well at all, I know that.”
David Faustino, Katey Sagal, Ed O'Neill and Christina Applegate in 1996.
Getty Images Ed O'Neill, actress Katey Sagal, actress Christina Applegate, actor David Faustino, actress Amanda Bearse and actor David Garrison in 1989. Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images
He didn't specify what his “mean joke” was, but in an interview with the Television Academy in 2013, O'Neill elaborated on the incident.
He said when confronting Bearse about being left out of their wedding – along with co-star David Faustino: “[She said]: “This was a very difficult decision, but I just feel like if me and Becky came into a church in tuxedos and walked down the aisle, you would find it amusing and you and David would giggle and think it was funny. “I said, 'Amanda, what's funny about two women in tuxedos going to church?'” he continued.
“I started laughing and she said, 'See!' And I said, “Well, do you know why?” Because it's hilarious and I won't be the only one who doesn't think that.” But it was funny. She was wearing a little white tuxedo and I thought that was funny. But in other words, she may not have been wrong to exclude me.”
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