Why Kevin James Believed Everybody Loves Raymond Would Be A Flop

It’s pretty obvious in retrospect that “Everybody Loves Raymond” had an exceptionally good run on CBS, with the Ray Romano-led family sitcom airing for nine seasons between 1996 and 2005 and winning 15 Emmys (while being nominated for many more). Viewers clearly remember it fondly today, considering the massively high ratings the “Everybody Loves Raymond” reunion in 2025 scored. Not everybody was so optimistic back in the series’ earliest days, though. Romano himself thought the TV show had a terrible title, and even his fellow standup comic Kevin James — who would go on to strike his own success as the lead of “The King of Queens,” and was actually a writer on “Raymond” at one point — didn’t think the show was going to succeed.

Why? Simply enough, James thought Romano’s presence was quite antithetical to the performers in other hit sitcoms at the time. “I couldn’t believe it, because he’s such a low-energy guy,” James revealed in an interview with the “Sibling Revelry with Kate Hudson and Oliver Hudson” podcast (via People). “Sitcom guys were, to me, like the big, wacky [characters]. I’m like this, this is death. It’s not gonna happen.'”

History has shown that James’ prediction was completely wrong, and he’s happy about that. In fact, the “King of Queens” star believes that “Everybody Loves Raymond” paved the way for his show becoming a success in its own right, and Romano’s performance as Ray Barone inspired his portrayal of Doug Heffernan.

“The King and Queens” and “Everybody Loves Raymond” both follow relatively normal families as they deal with regular life. It’s a formula that many sitcoms have followed in the past. What’s unique about “Raymond” and “King of Queens,” though, is how neither of these leads are at all larger-than-life, boisterous figures like, say, Archie Bunker of “All in the Family.” That’s to say nothing of how different they are from the stars of other popular 90s sitcoms like “Friends” or “Seinfeld.” They’re very low-key leads, and perhaps that’s why CBS eventually decided to have both shows be set in the same universe, with Romano and James’ characters occasionally showing up in each other’s sitcoms.

That said, James noted that his “King of Queens” character could have turned out differently, which is why he studied Romano’s performances on “Everybody Loves Raymond” for tips on how to conduct himself on the small screen. “He was so good on his sitcom, and the way he threw things away, I was like, ‘Wow. I have to watch him and learn from him, because I’m gonna be too big on camera,'” James recalled in the aforementioned podcast interview (via People).

This approach worked out quite well for James and his colleagues, as “The King of Queens” was a hit that is still being celebrated over 25+ years later. Unfortunately for fans, Kevin James has ruled out a series revival, as it wouldn’t work without the late Jerry Stiller, who played his character’s father-in-law, Arthur Spooner, throughout the show’s nine seasons. As of this writing, there are no plans for an “Everybody Loves Raymond” comeback series, either.