2016’s Greatest TV Comebacks

From the Chicago Cubs’ World Series win to a few of our old favorites returning to TV, 2016 was chock-full of comebacks. Here is our Top 5 TV Comebacks of 2016 list.

No. 5. Damon Wayans

Damon Wayans Sr. is maybe the most successful of the Wayans siblings. Still, he was curiously absent from the small screen in the years following the 2005 cancellation of his sitcom, My Wife and Kids. But in 2016, Wayans bounced back in Fox’s adaptation of the Lethal Weapon film series. He’s stepping into the shoes first filled by Danny Glover in 1987.

No. 4. Dave Chappelle

Dave Chappelle’s return to comedy was both hilarious and poignant. Nearly 10 years after most of us last saw him in the spotlight, Dave proved that he’s still got it as he said goodbye to a few of our Chappelle’s Show favorites in a Walking Dead-inspired Saturday Night Live sketch.

No 3. Louie Anderson

Baskets is … a puzzling show to say the least. In what star Zach Galifianakis calls “a slapstick drama,” he cast ’80s standup mainstay Louie Anderson as his … mother? But Anderson is great. So great that he won a Primetime Emmy for Best Supporting Actor.

No. 2. Winona Ryder

This Gen X queen never went away entirely, but it wasn’t until Ryder showed up in Stranger Things that we remembered all over again why we loved her. And it looks as if she’ll be making a return for Season 2, so grab your Eggo waffles: It’s time to return to the Upside Down.

No. 1. Mandy Moore

Mandy Moore was a TV staple for anyone who was watching TRL on MTV in the early aughts.

But after marrying musician Ryan Adams in 2009, Moore’s career took a back seat. The marriage ended in 2015, and Moore struggled to return to work. She said, “It’s sort of a soul-crushing thing to be a part of pilot season, year after year, and for things not to move forward.”

But this year has given Moore the upswing she’s been looking for. She’s landed praise for her role in NBC’s This is Us as a baby boomer mother of three. It’s not likely to go anywhere soon, and it has broken Moore out of pilot season prison.

So, who do you think had the biggest comeback of 2016? Was there anyone we left off our list? Let us know on Facebook or in the comments below.

Check out the most viral late-night moments of 2016:

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