Line #22 Trivia/DesperateHousewives


1	* CaliforniaDoubling: The series was meant to be set on the East Coast but was obviously filmed on a set, [[Ride/UniversalStudios Universal Studios Hollywood]]'s [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonial_Street Colonial Street]] more precisely.
2	* CreatorBacklash: After Creator/FelicityHuffman was sentenced to only two weeks in jail for her part in the Varsity Blues college admission scandal, Creator/RicardoAntonioChavira angrily called it the same kind of "white privilege" he saw during the show's entire run, though he didn't go into any specifics.
3	* TheDanza: Rex's bastard son Sam Allen (season 6) was played by and actor named Sam Page.
4	* DawsonCasting:
5	** John, the gardener in season one who only ''just'' turns 18 that season was played by the 26-year-old Creator/JesseMetcalfe.
6	** Inverted, thanks to the TimeSkip. Danielle and Julie are now several years older than their still-teenage actresses.
7	* DirectedByCastMember: Creator/TonyPlana, who plays Alejandro Perez, directed the season 8 episode "Witch's Lament".
8	* FakeNationality:
9	** FakeAmerican: Creator/JonathanCake is an English actor and played American police Detective Chuck Vance.
10	** Fake Canadian: Creator/GaleHarold is American. His character, Jackson Braddock, is revealed to be Canadian.
11	** FakeRussian: Irina Korsakov (season 6) was played by Creator/HelenaMattsson, who is Swedish.
12	** {{Subverted}} with Gabrielle Solís, Mexican in origin and played by Creator/EvaLongoria, of Mexican ancestry.
13	* FollowTheLeader: The idea for the series is said to have been inspired by ''Film/AmericanBeauty''. (What's funny is in that movie, the story is told from the husband's POV.)
14	* HostilityOnTheSet:
15	** Creator/TeriHatcher did not get along well with her co-stars, and it got to the point that [[http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2141549/Desperate-Housewives-feud-finally-open-Teri-Hatchers-left-off-crews-farewell-gift-cast.html her name was absent on the stars' farewell gift to the crew]]. When Creator/EvaLongoria got her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in April 2018, Creator/MarciaCross and Felicity Huffman were there, but not Teri.
16	** In April 2010, Creator/NicolletteSheridan sued Creator/MarcCherry for twenty million dollars on charges of assault and battery, gender violence, wrongful termination, and "intentional infliction of emotional distress". She said that Cherry created a hostile working environment, and behaved unprofessionally towards her on and off-set.
17	* IronyAsSheIsCast: While Gaby in the show is depicted as a bad cook, Creator/EvaLongoria in real life published a cookbook in 2011. The inverse is the case with Bree: Bree is a talented cook, whereas Creator/MarciaCross has said that cooking is one of her weaker spots.
18	* LifeImitatesArt: In the SeriesFinale, [[spoiler: cancer claimed Karen [=McCluskey=] -- as it would Kathryn Joosten (who played her) a few weeks after it aired.]]
19	* MidDevelopmentGenreShift: The series originally started as a comedy pilot, and was rejected by every network, including Creator/{{Lifetime}} and Creator/{{HBO}}. [[Creator/AmericanBroadcastingCompany ABC]] expressed interest, and it was retooled to its trademark format of a dark comedy and drama.
20	* TheOtherMarty:
21	** Sheryl Lee portrayed Mary Alice Young in the original pilot for ABC, but she was replaced soon after and the pilot was reshot, when the producers decided she was not right for the part and chose Creator/BrendaStrong instead.
22	** Michael Reilly Burke portrayed Rex Van de Kamp in the original pilot, as Creator/StevenCulp was unavailable at the time. It was when the pilot was reshot that Marc Cherry was able to give the role to Culp. In spite of this, Burke can be seen in the background of some scenes in the final cut of the pilot.
23	* QueerCharacterQueerActor: Bob Hunter is played by Tuc Watkins, who came out of the closet in 2013.
24	* RecycledSet: The whole backlot street set built for the series, [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonial_Street Colonial Street]], has been reused for plenty of productions, from TV shows to films, with modifications to remove the "essence" of Wisteria Lane.
25	* TheRedStapler: La Perla saw a sales boost from its appearance on the show due to its wide audience and the association of its lingerie with the glamorous lifestyle depicted.
26	* StarMakingRole: The series helped raise the profile of several people, including Creator/EvaLongoria, Creator/FelicityHuffman, and Creator/AndreaBowen.
27	* WhatCouldHaveBeen:
28	** Creator/JuliaLouisDreyfus was considered for Susan Mayer. Creator/CourteneyCox was also considered, but Marc Cherry didn't ask her, because at the time she was pregnant with her daughter Coco, and had expressed interest in taking some time off to raise the baby.
29	** Creator/JeriRyan was considered for Gabrielle.
30	** Susan was almost written off the show in season 5, due to Creator/TeriHatcher's HostilityOnTheSet with pretty much everyone.
31	** After Season 5, Creator/MarcCherry briefly considered making a SpinOff series that would star Karen [=McCluskey=] and her sister Roberta.
32	** Creator/MichelleRodriguez turned down the role of Gabrielle in this show, to do ''Series/{{Lost}}''. When Creator/EllenDeGeneres asked her why on her chat show, Rodriguez joked: "Because if you're not a housewife, then what's the point?"
33	** Creator/MirandaRichardson turned down a significant guest part in the second season.
34	** Creator/AlexKingston auditioned for the role of Bree.
35	** Carlos was originally going to be paralyzed by the tornado rather than blinded, hence the ominous shot of his legs in a vulnerable position after he’s knocked out.
36	* WriteWhatYouKnow: When Bree learns that her son Andrew is gay, she tries to convince him she's fine with it by telling him "I would love you even if you were a murderer." This is what the show's creator Marc Cherry was told by his own mother when he came out of the closet to her. Moreover, Bree herself was ''heavily'' inspired by Marc's own mother.

Context Trivia / DesperateHousewives