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Many young actors would give anything to have a lead role on a hit TV show. But Richard Thomas, who spent five seasons playing John-Boy Walton on CBS’s The Waltons, feared that sticking with the show would eventually do his career more harm than good. Though Thomas had reservations about leaving his Walton family behind, he ultimately felt that it was a necessary move, he recently told his former co-star Judy Norton. 

Richard Thomas realized ‘it was time to move on’ from ‘The Waltons’ 

Richard Thomas, wearing glasses, as John-Boy Walton on 'The Waltons'
Richard Thomas as John-Boy on ‘The Waltons’ California | CBS Photo Archive/Getty Images

As the oldest son of Olivia and John Walton, John-Boy was an integral part of the Depression-era family drama. But after spending much of his early 20s portraying the bookish would-be writer, Thomas felt it was time to do something different. 

“In the infinite wisdom of a 26-year-old I decided it was time to move on,” the actor said with a laugh during a conversation with Norton for her YouTube channel.

“I did feel at that point in time that John-Boy had grown to a certain plan age-wise, and going to college, and all that, how much more could he have been that character? How much more was there for me to bring?” he went on to explain. 

The Ozark actor also feared that the longer he stayed on The Waltons, the harder it would be to shed the John-Boy image. 

“The other factor was, I wanted to have time to do other stuff, as everybody does, after a certain point. And I figured, I think maybe correctly – and it was weird at my age to have that insight – but I thought, ‘If I’ve done this show for five years, it’s gonna take 10 years to … accrue the amount of work that would balance the kind of influence that a series regular has,” Thomas said. 

Leaving ‘The Waltons’ was ‘very hard,’ Thomas told Judy Norton 

Black and white photo of Richard Thomas with Lynn Hamilton and Lloyd Nolan on 'The Waltons'
Richard Thomas as John-Boy Walton, Lynn Hamilton as Verdie Grant Foster, and Lloyd Nolan as Cyrus Guthrie on ‘The Waltons’ | CBS via Getty Images

Thomas said he had no regrets about his decision to quit The Waltons. But even though he was confident in his choice, leaving the show behind was difficult. 

“It was really rough,” he said. “It was very hard for me. I think it was hard for all of us.” 

After filming his last episode of The Waltons as a series regular, the Emmy winner fell seriously ill for several weeks, he revealed.  

“I think it was unquestionably the trauma of leaving the family,” he said.  

“I hated leaving. It was a decision that a part of me made in a kind of objective way,” he went on to say. “But actually experiencing it was not fun. I hated going. I hated saying goodbye to everybody.”

Thomas said it was strange to see Robert Wightman play John-Boy

Though Thomas left The Waltons in 1977, he did return as a guest star for a handful of season 6 and 7 episodes.

“I didn’t want anyone to get the wrong idea that I had left the show because I was somehow fed up or that there was a problem or that I had an attitude about it,” he told Norton. 

But Thomas had no interest in making a permanent return to The Waltons. So, in season 8, the John-Boy role was recast, with Robert Wightman stepping in to play the character. Thomas had gotten to know Wightman when the two made the TV movie No Other Love together and had no reservations about the recasting. Still, it was strange to see someone else play John-Boy. 

“I felt good about [Robbie Wightman] doing the part, but it is very peculiar when someone takes over your role,” he admitted. 

He also knew that audiences would have a tough time accepting Wightman as the new John-Boy. 

“I felt for Robert,” Thomas said. “I thought, it’s not going to be easy for him.” 

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