‘Fuller House’ Fans Freak Out As Kirk Cameron Plays Someone Besides Cousin Steve In Season 5 Guest Role
Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers for the Fuller House episode “Five Dates With Kimmy Gibbler.”
Fuller House fans have strong opinions about Kirk Cameron’s cameo on the show’s final season. On Season 5 of the Netflix hit, Kirk, the real-life brother of series star Candace Cameron Bure, turns up in a guest role. But he isn’t back as the Full House character he previously played in the original 1980s sitcom.
Instead, Kirk appears in the eighth episode of Fuller House‘s final season as himself. In the “Five Dates with Kimmy Gibbler” episode, Kirk is referenced as Kimmy (Andrea Barber) expresses doubt on remarrying Fernando (Juan Pablo Di Pace). In one scene, Kimmy breaks the fourth wall by saying the longest relationship she’s had aside from Fernando is with her Kirk Cameron poster back in the day.
“I never understood why Kirk Cameron was such a big deal,” Candace Cameron Bure’s D.J. Fuller says.
A night of speed-dating culminates in a run-in with the former Growing Pains star, and Kimmy finds the answers she has been looking for.
But some Full House fans are demanding answers themselves. Diehard fans recalled that Kirk played Tanner cousin Steve in the 1988 Full House episode “Just One of the Guys.” On Twitter, some viewers reacted to Kirk’s character switcheroo for Fuller House.
Kimmy going on a date with Kirk Cameron…I guess we're ignoring the fact that he played the Tanner's cousin ironically named Steve? LMAO #FullerHouse
— Nikki ??????? (@starlightbeach) December 7, 2019
Correct me if I’m wrong, but wasnt Kirk Cameron “Cousin Steve” in Full House? Now he’s pulling up in Fuller House as himself? Guys, explain how cousin Steve is just forgotten like that
— Alex (@oatmilkslutclub) December 7, 2019
I love how they brought Kirk Cameron as himself on the show as if he didn't play their cousin in the original series. lmao. #FullerHouse
— Cassandra ? (@Cassandra2174) December 8, 2019
is anyone bitter that Kirk Cameron was on fuller house for…. Kirk Cameron and not idk
COUSIN STEVE
— Brianna Nicole (@briannanicollle) December 7, 2019
When I heard that Kirk Cameron was on Fuller House, I was excited to see what the Tanner's cousin was up to…
Spoiler alert!!! Instead of playing Cousin Steve, he plays himself. And I don't like it.
— Tara Marron (@TaraKMarron) December 7, 2019
Fans of ABC’s former TGIF lineup remember Kirk Cameron well. He played cool high school teen Mike Seaver on Growing Pains from 1985 to 1992. By the time his little sister Candace landed a role on Full House, he was a bona-fide teen idol, so Kirk’s guest role on the show as Cousin Steve was very memorable.
In an interview with TV Line, Candace Cameron Bure – the director of the “Five Dates With Kimmy Gibbler” episode – revealed that “a lot of names were going around” for Kimmy’s celebrity crush. The Fuller House star explained that she threw her brother’s name in the hat and everybody thought it was a “great idea,” but scheduling conflicts almost prevented it from happening. In the end, she was happy to direct her famous brother more than 30 years after they first worked together on Full House.
“We finally figured it out, and I could not have been happier that he did the show. It felt so full-circle with him doing an episode of the new series, having already done an episode of the original,” Candace said.
As for Kirk’s cameo as himself after already playing Cousin Steve in Season 1 of Fuller House, the actress said producers were willing to throw the dice on that one.
“Honestly, we didn’t even care,” the Fuller House star admitted. “I know he played Cousin Steve, but we’ve broken the fourth wall on our show so many times, and I think the fans will appreciate it more than they’ll [complain] about it.”
