page_title: Life of Brian (Family Guy)
section_title: Production
hierarchical_section_title: Life of Brian (Family Guy) / Production
caption_attribution_description: 100401-N-0696M-202 Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff hosts a USO tour in the region with celebrities James Gandolfini and Tony Sirico from HBO's "The Sopranos", New Orleans Saint Jon Stinchcomb and actress Rose McGowan. (DoD photo by Mass Communication Specialist Chad J. McNeeley/Released)
context_page_description: "Life of Brian" is the sixth episode of the twelfth season and the 216th overall episode of the animated comedy series Family Guy. It aired on Fox in the United States and Canada on November 24, 2013, and is written by Alex Carter and directed by Joseph Lee.
  The episode revolves around the death of Brian Griffin, after being struck by a car, and the family coping with the loss by adopting a replacement dog, Vinny.
context_section_description: In November 2013, Family Guy writer Steve Callaghan told E! about why they decided to kill off Brian in the episode, saying: "Well, this was an idea that got pitched in the writers room and it sort of caught fire, and we thought it could be a fun way to shake things up. As soon as this idea came up, we started talking about what the next couple episodes could be and we got very excited about the way this change will affect the family dynamics and the characters." He also explained why they decided to kill off Brian and not one of the other characters, saying: "It seemed more in the realm of a reality that a dog would get hit by a car than if one of the kids died. As much as we love Brian, and as much as everyone loves their pets, we felt it would be more traumatic to lose one of the kids, rather than the family pet."
  He also discussed how the other Family Guy actors reacted when they heard Brian would be killed in the episode, saying: "I think they were glad it wasn't them. [Laughs.] I think they were surprised, as anyone would be and I think they were pretty stunned especially this far into the show. They were as shocked as anyone." He also explained why they decided to replace Brian with another dog, saying: "It felt like the way that this show was conceived by Seth all those years ago, was this entire family unit including the parents, kids and a dog. So by losing Brian, it felt like a void needed to be filled both comically, and also for the interpersonal relationships between all the characters. We felt that we needed to fill that role."
  He went on to explain why they decided to get Tony Sirico to voice Vinny saying: "I think it was Seth's idea actually to get Tony to come in. He's a big fan of The Sopranos and always loved Tony Sirico in particular and he thought it would be fun to write a character based around his voice and his personality and just who he is as an actor." He went on to discuss if he was worried about the backlash from Family Guy fans, saying: "I'm not, only because our fans are smart enough and have been loyal to our show for long enough, to know that they can trust us. We always make choices that always work to the greatest benefit of the series."
  In January 2014, Seth MacFarlane spoke about how he was surprised by the fan reaction after Brian was killed off, saying: "It surprised all of us. We were all very surprised, in a good way, that people still cared enough about that character to be that angry. We thought it would create a little bit of a stir, but the rage wasn’t something we counted on."
caption: Tony Sirico guest-starred in the episode.
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