The Dark Tale of Michelle Tanner in Fuller House: A Theory

The Absence of Michelle Tanner

Fuller House floated the idea that Michelle is already dead, but the youngest Tanner daughter may have never had the chance to grow up at all, as she could've actually died in the original Full House finale. Played alternately by Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Michelle Tanner was one of the fan-favorite characters from the late '80s/early '90s family sitcom. So, many were understandably disappointed when she didn't show up in Fuller House.

Michelle throwing her hands up in Full House

Refusing to recast Michelle, Fuller House was forced to come up with an excuse to explain her absence. Since the Full House franchise put a lot of emphasis on the importance of family, the sequel had to find a justifiable excuse for Michelle not coming back home while all of this was happening. The producer mined inspiration from the Olsen Twins' real-life job, revealing that their sitcom character is now based in New York where she runs her fashion empire.

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen in Fuller House

How Fuller House Handled Michelle's Absence

During its first few seasons, Fuller House referenced Michelle Tanner from time to time. But, as the show went on, and it became clear that Mary-Kate and Ashley were set on not revisiting the role, the show also gradually stopped mentioning her. The most interesting reference to the character, however, was an indirect one. In Fuller House season 5, episode 1 Danny (Bob Saget) made a statement saying: “It's so nice to have three daughters again” while talking to DJ, Stephanie, and Kimmy, implying that Kimmy had taken Michelle's spot in the family. There was never any clarification about this, but a separate theory builds on the idea.

Michelle and Uncle Jesse on Full House.

The theory claims that Michelle didn't actually get the chance to grow up because she died in the Full House finale, as opposed to just dying recently. In the original show's final arc, Michelle suffered a head injury when she fell off her horse. It resulted in her amnesia, and the rest of the series' run revolved around the Tanners trying to make her remember. In the end, however, she did seem to recover. The theory suggests that Michelle Tanner didn't actually get better.

Jesse and Becky with baby Pamela in Fuller House season 2, episode 13.

What The Fuller House Stars Have Said

When Fuller House first started up, Michelle Tanner's absence was the source of some drama, but the explanation for why she didn't return is pretty simple. Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen haven't acted for years and are instead fully invested in the fashion industry, where they run multiple clothing brands. John Stamos has said that the Olsen twins' Fuller House absence was blown way out of proportion and that it was perfectly logical that they didn't want to reprise their roles given their other obligations and accomplishments. The twins themselves have stated that they now prefer to be out of the spotlight, which is also understandable.

With Fuller House finished, there's no way to address the disturbing Full House theory that Michelle actually died — at least for now. But if anything, it demonstrates the extent of fans' disappointment about the Michelle-shaped hole in the Netflix spin-off. However, it's unlikely that this theory will ever be officially addressed either in the show or by its creators in light of its decidedly grim nature.

Fuller House DJ, Steph, Danny, Joey, Becky, and Joey breaking the fourth wall