--- description: One member of the Tanner brood will be conspicuously missing. title: Here's Why Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen Won't Be Back for Fuller House image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltda4fd3dedaa35785/698877d3a988caa6106b5f9d/olsen-twins-fuller-house.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Newsfeed](/tag/time-section-newsfeed/) ## Newsfeed Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Here's Why Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen Won't Be Back for _Fuller House_  by [Megan McCluskey](/author/megan-mccluskey/)  ## Megan McCluskey Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Staff Writer Jan 6, 2016 5:49 PM CUT  Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Olsen attend the Dw by Kanye West Ready to Wear Spring / Summer 2012 show during Paris Fashion Week at Lycee Henri IV on October 1, 2011 in Paris, France. Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Olsen attend the Dw by Kanye West Ready to Wear Spring / Summer 2012 show during Paris Fashion Week at Lycee Henri IV on October 1, 2011 in Paris, France.Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images  by [Megan McCluskey](/author/megan-mccluskey/)  ## Megan McCluskey Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Staff Writer Jan 6, 2016 5:49 PM CUT You miss your old familar friends, but waiting just around the bend…there’s the Feb. 26 premiere of [Fuller House](http://time.com/4153286/watchtrailer-fuller-house-release-date/ "undefined"). The cast of the beloved ’90s sitcom will be back together for 13 episodes — although one member of the Tanner brood will be [conspicuously absent](http://time.com/3895026/full-house-revival-fuller-olsen-twins/ "undefined"). Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, who shared the role of Michelle in the original _Full House_, announced in May that they would not be returning for the spin-off. But as disappointing as it is that the youngest Tanner sister won’t be around to utter her signature [catchphrases](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ff6ghp7iTA "undefined"), it’s nice to know the reasons behind the Olsen twins’ decision. Number one on the list: they no longer consider themselves actresses. Mary-Kate and Ashley [grew up as child stars](http://time.com/3988305/full-house-john-stamos-olsen-twins/ "undefined"), but they haven’t appeared on screen since 2010. “Ashley said, ‘I have not been in front of a camera since I was 17 and I don’t feel comfortable acting,'” executive producer Bob Boyett told [PEOPLE](http://www.people.com/article/fuller-house-mary-kate-ashley-olsen-missing-john-stamos-dave-coulier "undefined"). “Mary-Kate said, ‘It would have to be me because Ash doesn’t want to do it. But the timing is so bad for us.'” **Read More:** [The Olsen Twins Aren’t Returning for the _Full House_ Revival](http://time.com/3895026/full-house-revival-fuller-olsen-twins/ "undefined") As an added factor, the 29-year-old twins have also turned to the fashion world and production conflicted with the design schedule for their two lines, The Row and Elizabeth and James. “Lori \[Loughlin\] was talking to me about the twins and said, ‘They just won a CFDA award,'” [John Stamos](http://time.com/3895097/john-stamos-heartbroken-olsen-twins-fuller-house/ "undefined"), who plays Uncle Jesse, said. “And I’m like, ‘Yeah, that’s like winning an Oscar.’ It was them and Tom Ford. I get where they’re at.” So how will Michelle’s absence be explained in the show? She’s off running her fashion empire in New York, of course. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4169471/mary-kate-ashley-olsen-fuller-house-absence-explained/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4169471/mary-kate-ashley-olsen-fuller-house-absence-explained/"},"headline":"Here's Why Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen Won't Be Back for Fuller House","datePublished":"2016-01-06T17:49:48.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:28:22.880Z","description":"They don't consider themselves actresses anymore","url":"https://time.com/4169471/mary-kate-ashley-olsen-fuller-house-absence-explained/","keywords":["Newsfeed","Television","Netflix","Full House","TV","fuller house"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltda4fd3dedaa35785/698877d3a988caa6106b5f9d/olsen-twins-fuller-house.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Megan McCluskey","jobTitle":"Staff Writer","url":"https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltda4fd3dedaa35785/698877d3a988caa6106b5f9d/olsen-twins-fuller-house.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Dw by Kanye West: Front Row - Paris Fashion Week Spring / Summer 2012","caption":"Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Olsen attend the Dw by Kanye West Ready to Wear Spring / Summer 2012 show during Paris Fashion Week at Lycee Henri IV on October 1, 2011 in Paris, France.","creditText":"Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4169471/mary-kate-ashley-olsen-fuller-house-absence-explained/","name":"Here's Why Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen Won't Be Back for Fuller House"}}]}] ```