There’s one character in Shameless who has been played by several different actors. Hint: He’s the youngest Gallagher.
The Showtime dramedy Shameless chronicles the lives of the Gallaghers. With a decade of being on-air, fans see each character grow up with their very eyes. However, fans are surprised to hear that one member of the Gallagher family is played by five different actors.
That’s right, Liam Gallagher is played by five different actors over the course of the series. Liam is the youngest member of the Shameless cast, as well as the little brother of the family. In the show’s first two seasons, a set of twins plays the character. Brennan Kane Johnson and Blake Alexander Johnson take turns playing the role for these first episodes.
After Season 2, the casting directors decide to give the part to another pair of twins. Brenden and Brandon Sims play the Gallagher boy for the next five seasons. The casting directors decide to switch actors in an effort to age-up the part for storyline purposes. This transition is difficult for Shameless fans to notice, myself included. The team does a great job.
In the show’s four final seasons, the production team picks its final Liam Gallagher. Christian Isaiah plays the role as he begins to enter puberty. In the final seasons, the character is between 11 and 13 years old. The 14-year old actor plays this stage of Liam’s life convincingly.
Christian Isaiah’s Time on ‘Shameless’
The oldest actor behind Liam Gallagher says that he learned a lot from his time on Shameless. Christian Isaiah describes the show’s cast as “one big, happy family.”
“I have personally learned a lot from the cast as actors and learned that you don’t have to be born into a family to be a family,” he says.
The actor tackles more complicated storylines in the last few seasons of the show. As the only African-American member of the Gallagher clan, Liam finally meets other members of his biological family. While he decides to stay with his immediate family members, the actor wishes he could have explored more of these issues.
“I think my storyline has been great, but I would probably have Liam doing more about his heritage,” he says. “I enjoyed the different looks when Liam was trying to figure out who he was.”
All in all, he thinks his character learns some important life lessons too.
“I think [Liam] learned that he is different from his family that he was raised with, but he knows they love him.”
Catch a full interview with Christian Isaiah below. He tells even more stories about the Shameless cast.
