Rob Lowe and his son John Owen have often collaborated on various projects in the entertainment industry. However, it was his other son, Matthew, who found himself on one of his father’s most iconic shows, “The West Wing.” Despite this unique opportunity, Matthew did not catch the acting bug. In fact, he felt “annoyed and uncomfortable” during his scenes on the political drama.
Matthew shared his experience on his father’s SiriusXM podcast, “Literally with Rob Lowe.” He admitted that while he remains a huge fan of “The West Wing,” his time on set was less than enjoyable. Rob Lowe, who played deputy White House communications director Sam Seaborn for the first four seasons, left the show in 2002. His character was written out with a storyline involving a run for Congress in California.
“I think I’m actually your biggest fan in the family of ‘The West Wing.’ I’ve seen it multiple times,” Matthew said. Rob responded, “You are in it. Oh, you are in it,” to which Matthew added, “It’s my claim to fame. It’s the famous episode, right?”
Rob assured his son, “Not only are you in ‘The West Wing,’ you are in, arguably, one of the top five episodes ever made. It’s a lot of people’s favorite episode.” The episode in question is “Noël,” a Christmas episode where Richard Schiff won an Emmy for his performance. Matthew was only a child when he appeared in this episode.
Matthew joked, “Don’t give it away too much. I want to see if the viewers can even figure out which one’s me,” before asking his dad how old he was during the filming. Rob guessed, “Seven?” Matthew confirmed, “I’m really young. I have a vivid memory of that day.”
He added, “I remember being really, really annoyed and uncomfortable because I had to wear dress shoes, and they were really tight. That’s my little snippet memory of that day, and also playing chess with Martin Sheen.” Rob responded, “I mean, that’s a pretty cool memory. You got to play chess with President Bartlet.”
Last year, Rob Lowe revealed that he left “The West Wing” due to feeling “undervalued” on the series. He explained during an appearance on Stitcher Studios’ “Podcrushed” that he felt unappreciated and sandbagged by some of his colleagues. “Whenever I talk to actors who complain about their relationships on their shows, it happens,” he said. “It happens in any workplace.”
Lowe added, “They would make your hair stand up, and there are some stories I wrote about in my book. I purposely didn’t share half of the other ones because it would make the people involved look so bad.”
At the time, Lowe’s exit was marketed as amicable and attributed to his character’s storyline fizzling out. “So, I did not have a good experience,” he said on the podcast. “Tried to make it work and tried to make it work, and then what happened was, my kids were getting to a certain age where I could see them having first girlfriends or friends and being in a relationship that was abusive and taking it.”
He continued, “It’s so popular, it’s so amazing, it must be amazing, but I know what it’s like, and if I couldn’t walk away from it, then how could I empower my kids to walk away from it?”
Lowe also reflected on the moment he left and how it affected him. “I walked away from the most popular girl at school, but I also knew that it was a super-unhealthy relationship, and it was the best thing I ever did,” he noted.
Despite feeling “undervalued” on set, Lowe appeared in two episodes of the final season. He also joined the cast for an HBO special in 2020.
Rob Lowe’s experience on “The West Wing” and his son’s discomfort during filming highlight the complexities of working in the entertainment industry. While the show remains a beloved classic, the behind-the-scenes experiences of its cast members tell a different story.
