What Happened To Sam’s Bar In The ‘Frasier’ Reboot? ‘Cheers’ Writer Tells All

Questions have arisen about the fate of the Cheers bar in the Frasier reboot, where Kelsey Grammer reprises his role as Dr. Frasier Crane. The first ten episodes of the revival series confirm that the beloved pub is now a pastime, even though Frasier is back in Boston.

Kelsey confirmed the writers have no intention of revisiting the bar, although they never explicitly stated so; however, it is still very much open on his podcast, Hollywood and Levine. “I’m not sure the guys who wrote Cheers would want us to go back to Cheers. It’s like, let’s let that be where it is. It’s a monument in the minds of television history,” he explained.

A reunion might not happen at the actual bar

In retrospect, showing Sam’s pub in the reboot could diminish its significance and water down its status as an “artifact.” If the characters were to reunite and bond over some liquor, it may or may not happen at the actual bar— which is unlikely to be run by Sam due to age.

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The 2023 remake made reference to Cheers on several occasions, and unless Kelsey can convince the writers to induce some nostalgia, fans can rather not expect it. “Frasier makes a couple of off-handed comments about Cheers, but you’re going, Cheers was so much a part of his life, how can he not be returning there? Did he hate it? Apparently not,” Kelsey wondered. “Sam’s still there, and Norm is still there, and Cliff, maybe Woody.”

Embracing change

The Frasier reboot has introduced a lot of hard changes, including the absence of Niles Crane, which nearly left a dent in the plot. In the same vein, the characters have grown older and undergone several life transitions, so passing time at a bar like they used to in their prime seems unrealistic.

The new plot also opens a fresh perspective to Dr. Frasier and his relationship with Frederick. Kelsey hopes to stretch the remake to at least a hundred episodes in a bid to uncover more about the preppy psychiatrist’s life. “There’s enough groundwork laid between these human beings; they are wonderful characters. I want to see where they go,” he told Variety last month, “and I want to see what happens to Frasier.”