Worst TV Dads: Dan Scott, Hiram Lodge, and the 10 worst dads on television
By Mads Lennon
Who are the all-time worst TV dads?
Watching television is a great way to escape from real-life, but sometimes our favorite shows might still have characters we dislike. There are a lot of bad fathers on TV, so we thought we’d take a look at some of the worst TV dads out there.
These are male characters that may have added to the central conflict of the series but treated some beloved characters quite terribly.
10. Worst TV dads: Frank Gallagher
More from Editorial
- Show Snob’s Premiere Review: Watch, Pass, Wait and See (December 4, 2023)
- 5 Female Marvel characters we want to see return to the MCU
- Show Snob’s Premiere Review: Watch, Pass, Wait and See (November 27, 2023)
- 5 TV Show Advent Calendars you’ll want this holiday season (2023)!
- Show Snob’s Premiere Review: Watch, Pass, Wait and See (November 20, 2023)
The entire plot of Shameless basically revolves around the fact that Frank Gallagher is a terrible dad. He is an absent alcoholic scam artist that cares about himself and little else. Despite having a huge family, he is rarely there to support his children.
The majority of that responsibility falls squarely on his daughter Fiona’s shoulders.
If not for Fiona, there is a good chance that some of the Gallagher children would not have even made it into adulthood.
9. Worst TV dads: Dan Scott
One Tree Hill has been off the air for a while now, yet Dan Scott is still memorable for being one of the absolutely worst TV dads and just an all-around terrible person.
Many fans were sick of Dan’s inclusion in the show, especially as he continued to be involved for all nine seasons. Dan was only a “villain” in the first four years of the show.
He abandoned his son Lucas Scott, never paid any attention to him, and flat-out emotionally abused him on multiple occasions. He did severe damage to his “chosen” son, Nathan, too.
The cherry on top of his years of manipulation and cruelty was when he ultimately shot and killed his brother, Keith, because he wrongly believed Keith had tried to kill him by setting fire to his dealership.