Desperate Housewives' infamous and “cringingly uncomfortable” plots, have been defended by a former star. The show was one of ABC’s most controversial and divisive 2000s dramas, but was also hugely popular, running for 8 seasons and 180 episodes, from its premiere in October 2004 to its conclusion in May 2012.
Throughout its run,the show gained notoriety for its silly, soapy, and often ridiculous storylines, some of which were met with derision, but others with critical acclaim. The show received many accolades early in its run, becoming notably more ridiculous as the seasons progressed, but former star James Denton has defended some of the show’s choices.
PerCollider, Denton, who portrayed Mike Delfino for the entire duration of the show’s run, hasdefended the show’s controversial and often cringeworthy story arcs and plot lines. He discussed how the show was ahead of its time and suggested that the series would often push boundaries intentionally.
He gave a couple of examples of infamous plots from the series and called them groundbreaking. He also mentioned how the show knew what it was doing, andwould deliberately make viewers uncomfortable to bring more attention to the showand get people talking about it.
Yes, yes, it was [ahead of its time]. And there were some cringingly uncomfortable [moments] for the actors, but the show knew what they were doing. It wasn’t out of apathy or coldness or lack of concern. [There were two storylines that were effective].
For example, when Alfre Woodard was on the show, and she had her son chained up in the basement, I read the script. I thought, that’s what we’re going to do.
And then there was a scene where Eva Longoria’s character Gabrielle made her daughter Juanita run behind the car to school because she thought she was overweight — and wouldn’t let her in the car.
Those kinds of things kind of make you — yeah, I don’t know if you would even [do that now]… It’s groundbreaking, but at the same time, it could be very offensive.
Even though, you know, the Alfre Woodard thing was very separate, and with her, there’s gravitas, but yes, there were times where us actors kind of cringed and go, ‘Well, all right, we’ll see how this goes.’ The show knew what it was doing. It made people uncomfortable, but that was the point sometimes."
What This Means For Desperate Housewives' Storytelling
In many ways,Desperate Housewiveswas ahead of its time, and it embraced its blend of comedy and soap opera-style drama throughout its run. AndDenton is right that the show pushed boundaries, and laid the groundworkfor some of the more serious and critically-acclaimedshows likeDesperate Housewivesthat have since followed.
Desperate Housewiveshas the most episodes in an hour-long drama TV series featuring all female leads.
The series also seemed to be very comfortable in its skin, and embraced its often far-fetched plot points with earnestness and emotional weight.Desperate Housewives' castdid their part in bringing many of these stories to life, andthe show managed to explore important topics, including betrayal, death, family, the economy, friendship, and community.
Our Take On Desperate Housewives' Enduring Legacy
While aDesperate Housewivesreboot probably wouldn’t worknow,the show remains a ’00s cultural watershed, balancing critical acclaim, popularity, and preposterousness. The cringeworthy storylines served their purpose and helped to make the show a critical and commercial success during its run, with a global audience of 120 million at its peak.
As one of the most acclaimed classic TV shows of recent times,Desperate Housewivesstill has a place in the TV landscape, despite some of its more questionable story choices. A show that was unapologetic about its creative choices,Desperate Housewiveswill no doubt have influenced a lot of shows that have come after it.
Desperate Housewives
Cast
Desperate Housewives was a rom-com drama that aired on ABC for eight seasons between 2004 and 2012. The award-winning series follows Susan Mayer (Teri Hatcher), Lynette Scavo (Felicity Huffman), Bree Van De Kamp (Marcia Cross), and Gabrielle Solis (Eva Longoria), who discover dark secrets hidden in their quiet town of Fairview.
