When the “iCarly” gang reunite for the Paramount+ revival, they will be short one character: the titular Carly’s BFF Sam Puckett.
In a new interview with Entertainment Weekly, “iCarly” star Miranda Cosgrove explained how the show will be addressing the absence of actress Jennette McCurdy, who announced her retirement from acting earlier this year.
“Definitely, we touch a lot on the whole relationship with Sam and where Sam’s at in the pilot episode,” Cosgrove told EW.
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“And then we mention her a little bit throughout the season, so we’ll definitely explain that on the show,” she added.
In a different interview, Cosgrove told ET that even though Sam won’t be seen, she’s still a big part of Carly’s life.
“And Carly very much still loves Sam and always will. And we all really wanted Jennette to be a part of the show in real life. But she’s just doing other things and we’re really happy for her. But yeah, we’re definitely going to touch on that in the show,” she explained.
Jerry Trainor, who is reprising his role as Carly’s older brother Spencer, also addressed McCurdy’s absence from the show.
“The pilot touches on [Sam’s absence]. It will be addressed, but it’s not something that we go too deep into just because we just want to respect Jennette’s wishes,” Trainor told ET.
“She’s decided to move on from acting and she’s doing great in her own world and we’re super proud of her,” he added. “And she’s part of this family forever. But that sort of gives us space to get new characters in and have new unexpected storylines and voices.”
McCurdy made the revelation in March during an episode of her “Empty Inside” podcast, citing deeply personal reasons for the retirement.
“I quit a few years ago because I initially didn’t want to do it. My mom put me in it when I was six and by sort of age, I guess, 10 or 11, I was the main financial support for my family,” she said.
“And it was very much the pressure of my family [not having] a lot of money, and this was the way out,” she continued. “Which I actually think was helpful in driving me to some degree of success, because I don’t think I would have been as ambitious if I didn’t know that it was for my family.”
The “iCarly” revival premieres on June 17.
