Woody Harrelson became a popular face among the audience with his role as Woody Boyd in the 1982 sitcom series, Cheers. By 1999, when he returned for a guest role in the spin-off series Frasier, he had already become a Hollywood superstar. The True Detective actor owed it to Cheers, not just for launching his career, but also for saving his life from a bunch of Croatian gangsters.
Harrelson got playful with the wrong girls when he visited Croatia and became a target of their disgruntled boyfriends. Fortunately, one of these gangsters had watched Cheers and recognized the Now You See Me actor. They ended up becoming friends and having drinks together.
Cheers Saved Woody Harrelson’s Life
Woody Harrelson played the dumb-witted bartender, Woody Boyd, in Cheers and made his first appearance in Season 4. Woody Boyd later became one of the main characters throughout the show’s eleven-season run. Harrelson’s work on Cheers opened doors to acclaimed roles in movies like Natural Born Killers and The People vs. Larry Flynt.
During an interview with Playboy Magazine, The Hunger Games actor revealed that his television role literally saved his life. When he visited Dubrovnik in Croatia, The Edge of Seventeen actor got a little frisky with some “red-hot” girls, unaware that their boyfriends had ties to some Croatian gang. When they saw him with their girlfriends, they were pretty angry and things got tense between them.
However, one of the gang members recognized him from his role in the American TV series. The gang members were excited to meet a real actor and they went out for drinks together. Harrelson recounted the incident to Playboy Magazine (via contactmusic.com):
“These guys were coming down from the hillside. They were the toughest-looking motherf**kers you ever saw – some kind of Croatian judo gang or something – and they were coming down basically to kill me for being with these red-hot girls. They were ready to tear me apart, and it got mind-blowingly tense. But then one of these f**king guys recognizes me from American TV, so we end up going out for drinks with them. I swear if I had not been on Cheers, I’d have died right there on that beach in Croatia.”
Cheers was one of the most popular TV shows in America at the time and this incident shows that the series was also popular in other parts of the world. The series finale was watched by nearly 93 million viewers, which was 40% of the U.S. population at that time.
Woody Harrelson Thought His Career Was Over After Cheers
While Cheers was the breakout role for Woody Harrelson, he struggled to find another job during his time on the series. Harrelson feared that his career might come to an end following his tenure on the show. However, after nearly six years on the show, Harrelson landed roles in the movies, Doc Hollywood and White Men Can’t Jump. He also starred in the erotic drama, Indecent Proposal, during this time.
One of his most acclaimed roles came right after the conclusion of Cheers. He starred as a serial killer, Mickey Knox, in the 1994 film Natural Born Killers. During an interview with Garth Franklin, the No Country for Old Men actor talked about his challenging times during Cheers. Harrelson told Garth Franklin:
“So I was fortunately able to segue, but for awhile I thought, ‘Jeez, this is it’. And I felt that I could do so much more. I really wanted to express myself a little more. Not to say that “Woody Boyd” was not a great role!”
The sitcom that saved Woody Harrelson’s life, Cheers, is now available for streaming on Paramount+.
