ABC/Andrew Eccles Are Susan and Mike really over? Who's bringing the big mystery? And what the beejezus are they gonna do now?
These are just a few of the burning questions on the minds of Desperate Housewives fans after the fourth season finale leapt forward five years and left our jaws dangling just above the floor. But wait, what's that I hear? Oh right, it’s the sound of angels singing, because the show is back in production over on the Universal lot, and inside sources are spilling on what's going down.
Even better, those "sources" are Desperate Housewives executive producers Bob Daily and Sabrina Wind, who kindly took the time to share some exclusive details with me on the new direction of the show, what the time leap means for the fierce fivesome (yes, I said five-some) and their hot male counterparts this season.
Here is the juicy scoop you need to know:
Neal McDonough Brings the New Mystery: Despite being banished in the latest season finale by the other four women, Edie (Nicollette Sheridan) will be moving back to Wisteria Lane at the start of season five and bringing with her a fine, steel-eyed specimen of a man: Neal McDonough (Boomtown, Tin Man). But he's hardly just a pretty face. Exec producer Sabrina Wind revealed, "Edie and Neal's character carry the new mystery with them." I'm hearing that his storyline is just plain crazy, wacky and unbalanced. In short: Just the stuff good DH stories are made of. Holler!
Susan Definitely Has a New Man, (Sorry Mike!) Regarding Gale Harold (Vanished, Queer as Folk), who plays Susan's (Teri Hatcher) new man, executive producer Bob Daily says, "He just shot his first scene today and Marc [Cherry] said it went great." Said Wind, "And it wasn't an easy scene to start with...it involved a little skin." Note: If you are offended by the notion of Harold in his Skivvies in a hot love scene, please, check your meds.
Mike Is Back: James Denton will remain a series regular, but his future was a bit dodgy for a while. Wind explained: "Because of the writers' strike, we didn’t finish last season until May 10, so we tried to give the writers as much flexibility as possible to decide what next year is going to be, and not trap them by picking up the actors contracts too early. So a lot of them really didn’t know and Jamie Denton was among them." Wind and Daily said that Andrea Bowen (Susan's daughter Julie) will be back occasionally but not as a series regular. "That's a hard thing she’s fantastic," says Daily.
Gaby Is the New Lynette: Gabrielle (Eva Longoria Parker) is now the full-time mom who is overwhelmed with the responsibilities of parenting. "I would say Gaby's life has changed the most," said Daily. Still, Wind said, "Gaby's never gonna have a crying on the soccer field moment [like Lynette] 'cause that's not who Gaby is. She could go through the same problems, but she's going to bring Gaby to it which will be the fun part."
It's a Good Thing for Bree: Bree (Marcia Cross) is "Martha Stewart right at the beginning before she became a national phenomenon," revealed Wind. And Daily added: "When you tune into the first episode, you will see she is on the verge of publishing her first cookbook. She is going from being a local celebrity to potentially being a celebrity on a bigger scale. And her son is sort of her right-hand man slash consigliore. He’s like Tom Hayden in The Godfather for her."
As for her love life: "One of the things we'll be answering in the first couple of episodes is how did Orson (Kyle MacLachlan) and Bree end up back together again," teased Daily. Well, that's easy. True love and obsessive-compulsive disorder conquers all, right?
Lynette and Tom Have a Hot Mess of Double Trouble: "Lynette’s primary drive is going from being the mother of troublemakers to potentially juvenile delinquents to potentially incarcerated." The new storyline is likely to develop a tween-girl following, thanks to the casting of the Scavos' evil twins, Max and Charlie Carver. "They really do look like young Matt Damons," Wind said.
There Will Be More Questions: "What's kind of fun," said Wind, "is that there’s not enough time in one episode to fill in the backstory of everyone’s lives in five years, so we only answer as many questions as we have time, and there will be more questions." You know what that means: You'll have to watch.
Excited about the addition of the insanely hot Neal McDonough? Delighted by Gale Harold's hotness even though it might mean bad things for Susan and Mike? Post your hopes, fears and speculation about Desperate Housewives season five in the comments.
P.S. Just remembered I'll see the cast and crew on Thursday at ABC's press day and party, so comment below with any more questions and I try to get you more answers.