A Ted Danson Sitcom Was Originally Conceived As A 30 Rock Spin-Off

On the short-lived NBC sitcom "Mr. Mayor," Ted Danson played a wealthy businessman who finds himself serving as the mayor of Los Angeles. But before Danson landed the role, it was a part originally meant for a different handsome sitcom star: Alec Baldwin. When "30 Rock" came to an end, Baldwin's Jack Donaghy resigned as the CEO of the mega conglomerate Kabletown to find true happiness for the first time in his life. But there was a time when his story was meant to continue.

Back in 2019, The Hollywood Reporter revealed that "30 Rock" showrunners Tina Fey and Robert Carlock had crafted "Mr. Mayor" as a vehicle for Alec Baldwin to reprise his role of Jack Donaghy, this time facing off against his most powerful enemy yet: City Hall. Developed for the streaming service that would eventually become Peacock, the series would have followed Jack running (and winning) the election to be mayor of New York City, which would thrust him into a hilarious world of trouble that he would find himself responsible for fixing.

According to sources close to the production, Baldwin was in negotiations for almost a full year before ultimately pulling out of the project. Rather than let the show die, Fey and Carlock reworked the material for Ted Danson, who was wrapping up "The Good Place" at the time. Danson came on board to become the titular Mr. Mayor, Neil Bremer, and the rest is history.

"Mr. Mayor" sounds like it could have been one of the many fake TV shows and movies that popped up on "30 Rock," but the story of a rich businessman becoming the mayor of New York City was clearly inspired by the mayoral run of billionaire Michael Bloomberg — and slotting Jack Donaghy into the role was a natural connection. But when Danson took over, he refused to move to the Big Apple for the show. So, Fey and Carlock rewrote the script to keep Danson in Los Angeles instead.

Unfortunately, removing Baldwin's iconic Jack Donaghy left a void that the show wasn't quite able to fill. In Dave Nemetz's review for TVLine, he felt the show "plays like a rushed rewrite that doesn't quite fit." The show was criticized for acting as if "we should know who Danson's retired business tycoon Neil Bremer is, even though we don't." Ultimately, it aired for only two seasons and a Christmas special on NBC before it was canceled in 2022.

While we haven't seen Baldwin's Jack Donaghy again since the 2020 reunion special that (in true "30 Rock" fashion) doubled as a commercial for the network, Fey and Carlock are currently working with another "30 Rock" spin-off: Tracy Morgan's football comedy "The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins."