Red swimsuits. Slow-motion running. That pulsing theme song. If you grew up in the nineties, you couldn’t escape it. But honestly, when you think about who played in Baywatch, your brain probably defaults to two specific people: David Hasselhoff and Pamela Anderson. It makes sense. They were the faces of the brand. Yet, the show ran for eleven seasons and spawned a spin-off and a movie, meaning the revolving door of actors was actually massive.
The casting wasn't just about looks, though that obviously played a huge role in the show's global syndication success. It was about a specific kind of athletic charisma. Before it became a punchline for "jiggle TV," Baywatch was actually a struggling NBC drama that got canceled after just one season. It was "The Hoff" who bet his own money to bring it back into first-run syndication. That move changed TV history. Without it, half the stars we associate with the sand and surf would still be unknown.
The Anchors: Hasselhoff and the Early Guard
David Hasselhoff was the soul of the show as Mitch Buchannon. He wasn't just the lead actor; he was the executive producer who kept the ship upright when the critics were ready to sink it. Mitch was the veteran, the father figure, and the guy who somehow survived every shark attack and boat explosion known to man. But he didn't do it alone in those early years.
Remember Billy Warlock? He played Eddie Kramer in the first few seasons. He brought a certain moodiness that balanced out the sunshine. Then you had Erika Eleniak as Shauni McClain. Their on-screen romance was the first "big" relationship of the series. People forget that Erika was a Playboy Playmate before the show, setting a casting trend that the producers would follow for the next decade.
Then there’s Gregory J. Bonann. He wasn’t an actor, but he’s the reason the show looked the way it did. He was a real-life Los Angeles County lifeguard. He made sure that even when the plots got ridiculous—like the time a tectonic plate shifted and trapped everyone in a cave—the way they held the rescue cans was actually accurate.
The Pamela Anderson Era and the Global Explosion
If you’re asking who played in Baywatch during its peak, you’re talking about 1992. That’s when C.J. Parker arrived.
Pamela Anderson didn't just join the cast; she became a cultural phenomenon. It’s hard to overstate how much her presence boosted the international ratings. By the mid-nineties, the show was being watched by over a billion people weekly across 140 countries. Think about that number. One out of every several people on Earth was watching CJ Parker run across a beach.
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But the mid-nineties cast was a powerhouse of 90s iconography:
- Alexandra Paul played Stephanie Holden. She was the "serious" one, often acting as a foil to Mitch. Unlike many of her castmates, she was a competitive endurance athlete in real life.
- David Charvet as Matt Brody. The French heartthrob who eventually moved on to Melrose Place.
- Yasmine Bleeth as Caroline Holden. Originally just a guest star, she became so popular that she stayed for years.
- Nicole Eggert as Summer Quinn. She came over from Charles in Charge and brought a younger, "girl next door" energy to the beach.
The chemistry worked because it felt like a family, albeit a very tanned, very fit family. They spent fourteen hours a day in the sun. It wasn't just acting; it was physical labor.
The New Blood and the Hawaii Pivot
As the show moved toward the late nineties, the original stars started to peel away. The producers needed fresh faces to keep the "syndication engine" running. This gave us Gena Lee Nolin (Neely Capshaw), who played the show's first real "villain" lifeguard. She was the one you loved to hate.
Then came the "Baywatch Hawaii" years.
By season ten, the production moved to Hawaii because costs in Los Angeles were skyrocketing. This era introduced a very young Jason Momoa. Long before he was Aquaman or Khal Drogo, he was Jason Ioane. He was barely twenty years old, and you can see the raw potential even then, despite some of the cheesy dialogue he had to deliver.
The Hawaii years also featured Brooke Burns as Jessie Owens. She was a former ballet dancer who brought a different kind of physicality to the role. But the magic was starting to fade. The world was changing, and the "slow-mo" formula was getting a bit tired.
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Why the Casting Was Smarter Than People Admit
People love to bash Baywatch for being shallow. But the casting directors, including Susan Glicksman, were geniuses at finding people who could handle the "Triple Threat" of the beach: looking good in a suit, performing basic stunts in the water, and handling the intense fame that came with the job.
It wasn't just about being a model. You had to be able to swim. You had to be able to handle the cold Pacific water, which is notoriously freezing even in the summer. Jeremy Jackson, who played Mitch’s son Hobie, literally grew up on that set. We watched him go from a little kid to a teenager over the course of nearly 100 episodes. That kind of longevity is rare in television.
There were also the cameos. You’d see professional wrestlers like Hulk Hogan or musicians like Little Richard popping up in random episodes. It was "event television" before that was even a term.
The 2017 Movie: A Different Roster
When Hollywood decided to reboot the franchise in 2017, the question of who played in Baywatch got a modern answer. They went for massive star power.
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson stepped into the sandals of Mitch Buchannon. Zac Efron played a disgraced Olympic swimmer named Matt Brody (a nod to David Charvet’s character). Alexandra Daddario took over the role of Summer Quinn, and Kelly Rohrbach stepped into the legendary red suit of C.J. Parker.
The movie took a comedic, "meta" approach. It poked fun at the very things that made the show famous, like the fact that nobody ever seems to actually run at a normal speed. While the movie had a mixed reception, it proved that the Baywatch brand still had legs—mostly because of the iconic characters established by the original cast.
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Actionable Takeaways for Fans and Collectors
If you're looking to dive deeper into the history of the cast or want to revisit the show, here is how to do it right:
- Check the Credits for Direction: Many of the actors, including David Hasselhoff and Gregory J. Bonann, directed episodes. Seeing the show through their eyes gives you a different perspective on the "Baywatch look."
- Look for the Spin-offs: Don't miss Baywatch Nights. It's a bizarre private investigator spin-off starring Hasselhoff that eventually pivoted into paranormal territory. It’s a cult classic for all the wrong reasons.
- The "Where Are They Now" Rabbit Hole: Many cast members transitioned into activism. Alexandra Paul is a dedicated environmental and political activist, while others like Donna D'Errico have stayed in the public eye through reality TV and social media.
- Streaming Strategy: Most of the original series has been remastered in High Definition. However, due to licensing issues, much of the original iconic 90s music was replaced with generic synth tracks. If you want the true experience, look for the original DVD sets.
The legacy of the Baywatch cast isn't just about the beach. It’s about a group of actors who captured a very specific moment in global pop culture. They turned a show about lifeguards into the most-watched television program in the history of the world. Whether you watched for the rescues or the scenery, there's no denying the impact of those names on the call sheet.
To truly understand the show's reach, one should look at the international fan clubs that still exist today, particularly in Germany and the UK, where the cast members are treated like royalty. The show wasn't just a job for these actors; for many, it was the defining chapter of their careers that continues to pay dividends in the world of nostalgia and memorabilia.
Get your hands on the remastered series to see the stunts in 4K—it actually makes the physical work of the actors look much more impressive than it did on old tube TVs.
The actors who wore the red silk were more than just models; they were the faces of a global phenomenon that hasn't been replicated since. From the veteran leadership of Hasselhoff to the breakout stardom of Momoa, the casting was the secret sauce that turned a simple premise into an empire.