On the West Wing, why was Josh's assistant given so much screen time?
On the West Wing, all the president's support staff (Leo, Toby, CJ, Josh) have assistants. Josh Lyman's assistant Donna Moss has the most screen time and is the only one who is listed in the opening credits as a full cast member.
Why?
Was it something about the actress? Or the character's position in the West Wing?
Best Answer
Because the producers saw the potential for a "will they, won't they"-relationship. Quoting Wikipedia:
The chemistry between Janel Moloney and Bradley Whitford, who portrayed Josh Lyman, caught producers' attention early in the series. After seeing Moloney and Whitford perform together in the pilot, Aaron Sorkin added a scene in which Donna argues with Josh to change his shirt before attending a meeting, eventually convincing him by saying, "All the girls think you look really hot in this shirt". Although Mandy Hampton was originally intended to be Josh's romantic interest, by the end of the show's first season the character was written out and the role taken over by Donna.
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Who gets the most screen time in The West Wing?
On the West Wing, all the president's support staff (Leo, Toby, CJ, Josh) have assistants. Josh Lyman's assistant Donna Moss has the most screen time and is the only one who is listed in the opening credits as a full cast member.Who had the most lines in West Wing?
But while Bartlet doesn't have the most lines in the show, it turns out he speaks the most words of any character. Also worth noting \u2014 Josh Lyman spoke ~10,000 words more than CJ, ~18,000 more than Toby, and around 20,000 more than Sam or Leo!Why did Donna leave The West Wing?
After returning to work at the White House, Donna again felt her job limited and finally resigned to work as senior aide to Will Bailey, Vice President Bob Russell's campaign manager for the 2006 presidential election, placing her in direct conflict with Josh\u2014who had resigned his own White House position to run Matt ...Where did Moira Kelly Go West Wing?
Career. Kelly left the show after the first season after producer Aaron Sorkin decided that her character had played its story out and that Janel Moloney served as a better foil for Bradley Whitford. Her character was not mentioned on the show again, leading to the term Mandyville.The West Wing - Josh Lyman and men on Mars
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Answer 2
To me, Donna served as a representative for the average, outside-the-Beltway person on the show. She was a mechanism by which complicated or obscure information that would be known to the other characters could be discussed (and therefore explained to the viewer in plain English). Closely related to that, she was also often the voice of "everyman", questioning the impact of high-minded policies.
The romantic tension between her and Josh was also a great and subtle addition to the overall story.
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