Kirk Cameron’s ‘Fuller House’ Guest Appearance Has Ramifications for the TGIF-verse

Fuller House is back on Netflix with the first half of Season 5, and the hit family sitcom is even more of a family affair thanks to one guy: Kirk Cameron. That’s right, the Kirk Cameron guest stars in an episode of Fuller House Season 5, in an episode directed by his sister Candace Cameron Bure!

But here’s the thing, and I feel downright ancient typing this: Fuller House has attracted a whole new generation of teen and tween viewers, audiences that are probably way more familiar with DJ Tanner (a.k.a. Candace Cameron) than Mike Seaver (a.k.a. Kirk Cameron). Wild, right? But hey, that’s to be expected since Growing Pains doesn’t have a sequel series on Netflix (yet?!). Here’s everything you need to know about Kirk Cameron’s Fuller House appearance, including info on Growing Pains (which you can stream!) and his previous role on Full House (where he played someone totally different!).

What does Kirk Cameron do on Fuller House?

Minor spoilers for Season 5 ahead, people! You ready? Kirk Cameron appears in Episode 5×8, “Five Dates with Kimmy Gibbler,” wherein he goes from being a fun pop culture reference to an actual character in the story. At the beginning of the episode, Kimmy doubts if she’s really ready to get remarried to Fernando, especially since they’ve been re-engaged for years. After all, she says, the longest relationship she’s had after Fernando is with her Kirk Cameron poster. That’s when DJ, played by Cameron’s IRL sister, gets in the zinger, “I never understood why Kirk Cameron was such a big deal.”

In order to figure out if Fernando really is the one, Kimmy arranges a night of speed dates—and ends up literally bumping into Kirk Cameron! The two hit it off instantly, but all it does is prove that Kimmy belongs with Fernando. This leaves a presumably upset Kirk Cameron doing doughnuts in his Ferrari outside of the Fuller home.

Who is Kirk Cameron?

Kirk Cameron was quite possibly the teen heartthrob of the ’80s sitcom scene thanks to his starring role on ABC’s Growing Pains. He played cool high schooler Mike Seaver on the sitcom from 1985 to 1992, hitting the big time a few years before his little sister landed a role in Full House.

Cameron became a born-again Christian halfway through Growing Pains‘ run, and stepped out of the Hollywood spotlight after the sitcom ended. Over the last 20 years, though, he’s re-emerged as a major evangelical figure, starring in faith-based films like the Left Behind trilogy and Fireproof.

Is Kirk Cameron married?

Yes. Even though he plays a single (and ready to mingle) version of himself on Fuller House, he’s been married to actor Chelsea Noble since 1991. He’s so committed to his wife that he refuses to kiss anyone else onscreen; Noble actually served as the stand-in for Erin Bethea, who played Cameron’s onscreen wife, in the final scene of Fireproof wherein the leads kiss. If Kirk Cameron and Kimmy Gibbler had hit it off, they would not have kissed unless Noble donned the character’s neon green blouse and bacon scarf.

Is Kirk Cameron Jason Bateman?

A number of characters confuse Cameron for Jason Bateman, star of Netflix’s Arrested Development and Ozark. Why? Because Bateman was a competing teen sitcom heartthrob on The Hogan Family, which ran from 1986 to 1991.

Wasn’t Kirk Cameron already on Full House?

He was! Kirk Cameron appeared in the Season 1 episode “Just One of the Guys” where he played… DJ’s cousin Steve?! Whoah baby!

What does this mean for the TGIF universe?!

It means that Kirk Cameron exists as two different characters in the Full House-verse, and now I’m kinda mad at the writers for not having DJ say, “I never understood why Kirk Cameron was such a big deal. He just looks like my cousin Steve.” Of course this is just one of the many, many doubles running around in this sprawling shared universe.

Where can you stream Growing Pains?

If you want more Kirk Cameron, you’ll be stoked to learn that you can stream Growing Pains Seasons 3, 5, and 6 on Amazon’s Prime Video.

Stream Fuller House on Netflix

Stream Growing Pains on Prime Video