Editing Gary Coleman (section)

=== 1987–2010: Hiatus and return to acting ===
When ''Diff'rent Strokes'' was cancelled in 1986 due to low ratings, Coleman went on a hiatus and just like his Diff’rent Strokes co-stars struggled with finding acting roles.

From thereon, the majority of Coleman's adult roles were single appearances in television episodes.<ref>{{Cite web |date=June 1, 2010 |title=Gary Coleman: Child star of the television sitcom 'Diff'rent Strokes' |url=http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/gary-coleman-child-star-of-the-television-sitcom-diffrent-strokes-who-faced-legal-and-personal-1987910.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616042138/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/gary-coleman-child-star-of-the-television-sitcom-diff-rent-strokes-who-faced-legal-and-personal-problems-in-later-life-1987910.html |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |access-date=August 23, 2020 |website=The Independent |language=en}}</ref> He played himself in ''[[The Ben Stiller Show]], [[The Jackie Thomas Show]], [[Sherman Oaks (TV series)|Sherman Oaks]], [[The Parent 'Hood]], [[The Wayans Bros.]], [[The Naked Truth (TV series)|The Naked Truth]], [[Shasta McNasty]], [[The Simpsons]], [[My Wife and Kids]], [[The Hughleys]], [[Baby Bob]], [[The Parkers]],'' and ''[[Drake & Josh]].'' Shows where he played a character were [[227 (TV series)|''227'']], [[Martin (TV series)|''Martin'']], ''[[Unhappily Ever After]]'', ''[[The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air]]'' (his last appearance as Arnold Jackson), ''[[Married... with Children]]'',''[[Homeboys in Outer Space]]'', ''[[The Jamie Foxx Show]]'', ''[[The Drew Carey Show]]'', ''[[The Rerun Show]]'', ''[[Son of the Beach]]'', and ''[[Robot Chicken]]''.

Coleman also played roles in television films these are ''[[Like Father, Like Santa]]'' (1998), ''[[A Carol Christmas]]'' (2003), and ''A Christmas Too Many'' (2006).

In films, Coleman played himself in ''[[S.F.W.]]'' (1994),<ref>{{Cite web |title=S.F.W. |url=https://www.tvguide.com/movies/sfw/cast/2030278277/ |access-date=2024-06-16 |website=TVGuide.com |language=en}}</ref> [[Dirty Work (1998 film)|''Dirty Work'']] (1998),<ref>{{Cite web |title=Dirty Work |url=https://www.tvguide.com/movies/dirty-work/2030080073/ |access-date=2024-06-16 |website=TVGuide.com |language=en}}</ref> ''Shafted!'' (2000),<ref>{{Cite web |title=Shafted! |url=https://www.tvguide.com/movies/shafted/2030286844/ |access-date=2024-06-16 |website=TVGuide.com |language=en}}</ref> ''The Flunky'' (2000), ''[[Frank McKlusky, C.I.]]'' (2002), ''[[Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star]]'' (2003),<ref>{{Cite web |title=Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star |url=https://www.tvguide.com/movies/dickie-roberts-former-child-star/cast/2030131593/ |access-date=2024-06-16 |website=TVGuide.com |language=en}}</ref> ''[[The Great Buck Howard]]'' (2008), and  ''[[Midgets vs. Mascots]]'' (2009).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Midgets vs. Mascots |url=https://www.tvguide.com/movies/midgets-vs-mascots/cast/2000283169/ |access-date=2024-06-16 |website=TVGuide.com |language=en}}</ref> Films where he played a different character were ''[[Fox Hunt (video game)|Fox Hunt]]'' (1997),<ref name="boxoffice">{{cite magazine |author=Kwinn, Ann |date=April 1997 |title=Special Formats: ''Fox Hunt'' |url=https://archive.org/details/jandecboxoffice1997boxorich_201403/page/n439/ |magazine=[[Boxoffice Pro|Boxoffice]] |publisher=Associated Publications |page=192 |volume=133 |issn=0006-8527 |number=4}}</ref> ''[[Church Ball]]'' (2006),<ref>{{Cite web |title=Church Ball |url=https://www.tvguide.com/movies/church-ball/cast/2030104886/ |access-date=2024-06-16 |website=TVGuide.com |language=en}}</ref> and ''[[An American Carol]]'' (2008).<ref>{{Cite web |title=An American Carol |url=https://www.tvguide.com/movies/an-american-carol/cast/2000121056/ |access-date=2024-06-16 |website=TVGuide.com |language=en}}</ref>

From 1996 to 1997, Coleman had a recurring role as the voice of Kevin in the animated show ''[[Waynehead]]''.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Perlmutter|first=David|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FMFTDwAAQBAJ&q=waynehead&pg=PA684|title=The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows|date=May 4, 2018|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|isbn=978-1-5381-0374-6|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Wayans Doesn't Believe Warner Bros.|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1997-04-21-9704210041-story.html|access-date=August 23, 2020|website=chicagotribune.com|date=April 21, 1997 |language=en-US}}</ref>

In 1997, Coleman voiced Kenny Falmouth in the video game ''[[The Curse of Monkey Island]]'', which gained him attention, being one of the first few major mainstream actors to appear in a video game.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Gary Coleman Dies|url=https://kotaku.com/gary-coleman-dies-5550406|access-date=August 23, 2020|website=Kotaku|date=May 28, 2010 |language=en-us}}</ref> The adventure game was critically acclaimed, considered one of the best of its genre and has a strong legacy due to its feel, graphics, and voice acting.<ref name="pcgtop50">{{cite journal |author=The ''PC Gamer'' Editors |date=October 1998 |title=The 50 Best Games Ever |journal=[[PC Gamer US]] |volume=5 |pages=86, 87, 89, 90, 92, 98, 101, 102, 109, 110, 113, 114, 117, 118, 125, 126, 129, 130 |number=10}}</ref><ref name="rogue">{{cite book |author=Smith, Rob |title=[[Rogue Leaders: The Story of LucasArts]] |date=November 26, 2008 |publisher=[[Chronicle Books]] |isbn=978-0-8118-6184-7 |page=56}}</ref><ref name="top100">{{cite web |author=AG Staff |date=December 30, 2011 |title=Top 100 All-Time Adventure Games |url=https://adventuregamers.com/articles/view/18643 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120604021011/http://www.adventuregamers.com/articles/view/18643 |archive-date=June 4, 2012 |work=[[Adventure Gamers]]}}</ref> Jeff Green of ''[[Computer Gaming World]]'' gave it a rave review and that Coleman "played wonderfully" a "shifty character."<ref name="cgw">{{cite magazine |author=Green, Jeff |author-link=Jeff Green (writer) |date=March 1998 |title=Monkey Shines (The Curse of Monkey Island Review) |url=http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_164.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000816005005/http://www.gamespot.com/adventure/monkey3/review_cgw.html |archive-date=August 16, 2000 |access-date=September 9, 2016 |magazine=[[Computer Gaming World]] |pages=152–153 |issue=164}}</ref>

Coleman ventured into politics, and in the [[2003 California recall]] election he was a independent candidate for [[Governor of California|governor]]. His campaign was sponsored by the free newsweekly ''[[East Bay Express]]'' as a satirical comment on the recall. After [[Arnold Schwarzenegger]] declared his candidacy, Coleman announced that he would vote for Schwarzenegger. Coleman placed [[2003 California gubernatorial recall election|8th in a field of 135 candidates]], receiving 14,242 votes.[[File:Postal 2 E3 2003.jpg|thumb|left|Coleman promoting ''[[Postal 2]]'' at [[E3 2003]]]]In 2003, Coleman portrayed a fictional version of himself in the video game ''[[Postal 2]]'', the second game in the [[Postal (franchise)|''Postal'' franchise]].<ref>{{Citation|title=Postal 2: Paradise Lost Expansion Releasing 12 Years Later - IGN|date=April 17, 2015|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2015/04/17/postal-2-paradise-lost-expansion-releasing-today|language=en|access-date=August 23, 2020}}</ref> Upon its release, the game received "mixed or average reviews" according to [[review aggregator]] website [[Metacritic]].<ref name="Postal 2 pc: 2003: Reviews">{{cite web |title=Postal 2 (pc: 2003): Reviews |url=http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/pc/postal2 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080518054308/http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/pc/postal2 |archive-date=May 18, 2008 |access-date=May 23, 2008 |publisher=[[Metacritic]] |df=mdy-all}}</ref> Over time, it gained a [[cult following]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Lili|date=December 17, 2019|title=Postal 2 is free on GoG. Why you should play it.|url=https://finalweapon.net/2019/12/16/postal-2-is-free-on-gog-why-you-should-play-it/|access-date=August 23, 2020|website=Final Weapon|language=en-US}}</ref>

In 2005, Coleman appeared in [[John Cena]]'s music video for his single "Bad, Bad Man" (from the album ''[[You Can't See Me]]'') and played himself as a villain taking [[Michael Jackson]] and [[Madonna]] hostage. The video was a spoof of 1980s culture, focusing on ''[[The A-Team]]''.<ref>[[You Can't See Me]]</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8Kt2jHnMh0 | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/G8Kt2jHnMh0| archive-date=2021-12-11 | url-status=live|title=John Cena Bad Bad Man |publisher=YouTube |date=December 15, 2006 |access-date=January 15, 2012}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

Coleman's final television role was a voice role in the animated series ''[[Robot Chicken]]''.

Gary’s final film role was as Gary in a direct to dvd film Midgets Vs. Mascots