Married With Children Cast & Character Guide

Here’s a cast and character guide to beloved sitcom Married… With Children. Debuting in 1987, Married… With Children focuses on the Bundy family, consisting of parents Al and Peggy and children Kelly and Bud. The show’s decidedly non-PC approach to comedy was somewhat controversial at the time, but it also proved to be a hit with viewers. A lot of this was down to the chemistry of the cast, who worked hard to bring the miserable Bundy clan to life. The show ran for eleven seasons in total, coming to an end in 1997. Sadly, it was cancelled with little warning so a proper final episode wasn’t created.

Married… With Children was so popular the network tried multiple times to create spinoffs. The first was Top Of The Heap, which starred a young Matt LeBlanc (Friends) playing a character first introduced on Married… With Children. The show revolved around LeBlanc’s dimwitted Vinnie and his father getting involved in various schemes. The show was quickly cancelled, but was later retooled as Vinnie & Bobby, which kept LeBlanc but replaced Vinnie’s father with a new character called Bobby; this series lasted seven episodes. Other proposed spinoffs include a Friends knockoff called Enemies.

Here’s a guide to the Married… With Children cast and the characters they played.

Ed O’ Neill – Al Bundy

Ed O’Neill is best known these days for Modern Family, but it was his role as Married… With Children’s Al that made him a star. Al was once a promising athlete but is now a bitter shoe salesman stuck in an unhappy marriage with children who have no respect for him. He also loves TV and his Dodge. Despite his surly demeanor, he clearly still cares for his family.

Kathy Sagal – Peggy Bundy

Al’s wife is Peggy (Kathy Sagal, Sons Of Anarchy) who is obsessed with daytime TV and shopping and is best friends with neighbor Marcy. Peggy constantly insults Al about his job and overall appearance and like her husband doesn’t seem to be very happy in their marriage. Despite this, they remain together and she displays brief signs of affection for him.

Christina Applegate – Kelly Bundy

Kelly is Al and Peggy’s oldest child and is portrayed as a stereotypical “dumb” blonde. She also gladly takes Al’s money and dates a string of handsome dummies. She and her brother share a confrontational relationship too. Kelly was Christina Applegate’s (Dead To Me) breakout role.

David Faustino – Bud Bundy

David Faustino plays the youngest Bundy on Married… With Children, who is something of a sleazeball. His lack of charm leads to him creating a rapper alter-ego called Grandmaster B to woo the ladies – which is about as cool as it sounds.

Amanda Bearse – Marcy D’Arcy

Fright Night star Amanda Bearse plays Marcy on Married… With Children, the Bundys’ neighbor. Marcy is a bright feminist and career woman, which naturally makes her an enemy of Al. She was married to Steve when the show began, but following their split, she marries a new man called Jefferson.

David Garrison – Steve Rhoades

David Garrison played Steve on Married… With Children, Marcy’s nebbish husband. He’s a banker who befriends Al, despite his wife’s open hatred of the Bundy patriarch. Steve left Marcy during season 4 but Garrison made guest appearances in later series.

Ted McGinley – Jefferson D’Arcy

Ted McGinley (Revenge Of The Nerds) plays Marcy’s pretty boy new husband on Married… With Children following her divorce from Steve. Jefferson has little ambition in life and tends to manipulate Marcy for his ends.