Q and A: Week of July 23

Roselyn Sanchez of Devious Maids

Q: Now that “Desperate Housewives” is over, what will Marc Cherry do next? — Miranda T., via e-mail

A: Marc Cherry has never been one to gather moss, so his rolling stone is heading to Lifetime, where he’s developed a new series called “Devious Maids.” Originally developed for ABC, Lifetime will air the series in 2013, and it will star Ana Ortiz, Judy Reyes, Roselyn Sanchez, Grant Show, Mariana Klaveno and Susan Lucci.


To piggyback off an idea I got from Annie Potts when I interviewed her earlier this year, I think Lifetime would be remiss if they didn’t see the potential of grabbing up the recently canceled ABC show “GCB” and pair it with “Devious Maids.” As Annie told me: “If we were paired with ‘Devious Maids,’ we’d have the great American equivalent of ‘Upstairs, Downstairs’ — the rich and righteous in Dallas and the maids of Beverly Hills. What network executive wouldn’t see home run written all over that?”

Q: Please tell me if “Sanctuary” will be back with new episodes in Syfy. — Marlies W., via e-mail

A: Syfy announced in May that the science-fiction drama would not return for a fifth season. Series star Amanda Tapping took to Twitter to address the show’s cancellation: “To all the fans of Sanctuary, we love and adore you. Thank you for the love and support.”

Q: I loved seeing Eric Mabius on “Franklin and Bash” earlier this year, and I wondered what else I can see him in? — Jeanna M., Baltimore

A: Aside from recently starring in the Hallmark Channel movie “How to Fall in Love” and making a guest-starring turn on “The Client List,” he co-stars with indie queen Parker Posey in the Sundance Festival hit “Price Check.” When I spoke with Eric recently, he told me all about the movie.


“You’re going to laugh your ass off. I think IFC bought the film. It’s a dark comedy centering on this guy I play (Pete Cozy), who gives up his dreams of being a music A-and-R guy. He moves to the suburbs of Long Island and accepts a marketing job at a small chain of grocery stores. He has a wife and a child, and is trying to pursue the ÔAmerican Dream.’


“Parker Posey’s character, Susan, is put in charge of this section of grocery stores. Nobody in the office cares about his job. Susan comes in and shakes everyone’s universe up. She is so quintessential Parker Posey. She is brilliant, and she’s so funny. It’s a lot of fun.”

Q: Will there be a “Fifty Shades of Grey” movie? — Tina T., Sarasota, Fla.

A: Universal Studios and Focus Features bought the rights to the “Fifty Shades” trilogy in March, and have brought “The Social Network” producers Mike De Luca and Dana Brunetti on board to help bring the runaway-hit book to the big screen. There is no word yet on casting or a release date.

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Q and A: Week of March 5

Annie Potts, Leslie Bibb (photo by Karen Neal/ABC)

Q: I love Annie Potts in just about everything I see her in, and her new show “GCB” is definitely included. Where does she get her inspiration for the fun and eclectic characters she portrays? — Ginny W., via e-mail

A: For her role of Gigi Stopper, Annie found inspiration from a dear friend, the late Dixie Carter, whom she starred with on “Designing Women.” I spoke with Annie recently about “GCB” — which I agree is a must-see — and she told me how she formed the character of Gigi: “I have lovingly borrowed from Dixie Carter. Were she still alive, the role would have been hers and should have been, but since she took early leave, I just decided to play it like her. I think that she would approve.

“Dixie was sensationally beautiful, religious, Republican, conservative and had two daughters whom she worshipped. She always had stockings on, and she was immaculately groomed all the time. Even if I went over there to her house early in the morning, she always looked good. And she was always in the pew on Sunday. I think that’s the way Gigi is.” See for yourself, and check out “GCB” on ABC Sundays at 10 p.m. ET.

Q: Will Noah Wylie’s new show, “Falling Skies,” be back for another season? It was my favorite new show of last season. — Frankie A., Charlotte, N.C.

A: “Falling Skies” will return to TNT this summer as part of its exciting original summer-programming lineup. “Lost” alumnus Terry O’Quinn will join Noah for at least two episodes, playing a mentor of sorts for Tom Mason.

Q: I loved “Wedding Crashers.” Will Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn make another movie soon? They are so good together. — Alec. D., via e-mail

A: A lot of people agree with you, including the dynamic comedy duo themselves: Owen and Vince have signed on to co-star together in the new big-screen comedy “Interns,” where they’ll play two middle-aged men forced to re-evaluate their careers after being laid off. It follows their resulting struggle to reclimb the corporate ladder.

Dear Readers: Because I get tons of letters asking about “The Waltons,” I wanted to share this programming information with you. The Hallmark Channel will air “A Walton Easter” on Saturday, March 31, at 6 p.m. ET/PT, 5 p.m. CT. The television movie, which originally aired in 1997, takes place in 1969, where John-Boy (Richard Thomas) is now a married New York TV news anchor and is writing a new book. When John-Boy and his very pregnant wife, Janet (Kate McNeil), join his family for the celebration of his parent’s 40th wedding anniversary, John-Boy yearns to move back to the mountain, which conflicts with Janet’s wishes to stay in New York.

Immediately following, enjoy “A Decade of the Waltons,” a family special that highlights the greatest moments from “The Waltons,” and is hosted by Earl Hammer Jr., creator and narrator of the original show.

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Interview: Annie Potts Is a Good Christian B—

Annie Potts, photo by Bob D'Amico/ABC

Unless you've been living under a rock these past few weeks, you know that ABC's new hour-long comedy, soapy drama, "GCB" (short for Good Christian Bitches), is premiering this Sunday, March 4 at 10 p.m. EST. And I am also sure you can probably tell from the promos, that this is a show you don't want to miss. However, I want you to take it from me, as someone who has seen the first two episodes, that you definitely don't want to miss this one. I was thrilled to get to speak with series star Annie Potts ("Designing Women," "Pretty in Pink") recently about her new show, and she is just as thrilled to discuss it as I was to hear about it.

Celebrity Extra: I got to watch the press screener of "GCB" last summer when the network was promoting its new shows, and this show — along with ABC's "Revenge" — was my favorite of all the new series. Now, at long last, "GCB" is finally premiering. Has the wait been hell on you?

Annie Potts: I know! Well, I think that was as much agony as it was, it was a real compliment to us, because I think they’ve been saving us to put us in at just the right moment in time to ensure our success. I think that they think that we are great. They just have a lot of faith and hope in us.

CE: Plus, it's not like it's standard protocol to premiere new shows only in the fall. We now have summer premieres, spring premieres, etc., which really benefits the viewer with more choices. I love that!

AP: Me too. It's different now, like you said, especially with cable and stuff, with things  coming out all the time. I just started watching HBO's "Luck," which is fantastic, and PBS's "Downton Abbey." It's so last century to let everything premier in the same two weeks in September. It's nuts! It’s like the old-style warfare, where it’s like "Charge!" and the first 400 people in line are going to be massacred. There’s a better way to plan this. So, we think it’s a better mousetrap and hopefully will be a big success.

CE: After seeing the show, I cannot picture anyone else in the role of Gigi than you — it seems tailor-made for you and your talents.

AP: Thank you. I appreciate it. I felt the same way when I read it. It was like, “Oh, this is so my role.” Oh come on. Come on. Bobby Harling is an old friend of mine who wrote it — not that he wrote for me. I don’t mean to suggest that. He and I kind of came up around the same people, and he had, I think from the start, enormous confidence that I was going to be able to pull off Gigi in a way that was aligned with his vision of her. It has been really fun.

"GCB" stars Miriam Shor as Cricket Caruth-Reilly, Mark Deklin as Blake Reilly, Jennifer Aspen as Sharon Peacham, Leslie Bibb as Amanda Vaughn, Annie Potts as Gigi Stopper, Brad Beyer as Zack Peacham, David James Elliott as Ripp Cockburn, Kristin Chenoweth as Carlene Cockburn and Marisol Nichols as Heather Cruz. (ABC/BOB D'AMICO)

CE: I like that Gigi isn't your typical meddling mom. Everything she does for her child and grandchildren, you can see the motive of love behind it.

AP: Well, that’s kind of come out in the doing of her. I’m a mother myself, and sometimes mothers get a bad rap just because they’ve tried to do their job. Some people have more of a knack for it than others do, but almost all of it falls to, “My mother’s suffocating me.” Whatever. Its like: “Buck up. I’m the one who wiped your behind and put your meals on the table so I’m going to have a say about your life. Accept it.”

CE: What do you like about Gigi, and how do you relate to her as a mom?

AP: I love her great zest for life. She’s been alone for 18 years. But she hasn’t felt sorry for herself. Bobby Harling specializes in writing women who have tremendous depth — I mean, he is the "Steel Magnolias" guy! Gigi just has a real knack for life. 

I have lovingly borrowed from book of Dixie Carter for this. If she were she still alive, the role would have been hers and should have been, but since she took the early leave I just decided to play it like her. I think that she would approve. Dixie was sensationally beautiful, religious, Republican, conservative and had two daughters whom she worshipped. She always had stockings on, and she was just immaculately groomed all the time. Even if I went over to her house early in the morning, she always looked good — and she was always in the pew on Sunday. I think that’s the way Gigi is.

CE: While "GCB" is hilarious and fun, hour-long escape, I do love that it talks about hypocrisy of certain people, especially those who claim to be Christian but then don't act very Christianly toward their neighbor.

AP: It’s a great format to talk about hypocrisy. It’s tailor-made for that. Just the idea of Texas is an iconic one all over the world. They think Texas is synonymous with America. We’re big, we’re garish; it’s a cock-of-the-walk kind of thing. Texas has always represented America.  

Somebody was saying the other day that there was a migrant pygmy tribe in Africa that waited for its annual migration an extra two or three days so they could find out who shot J.R. 

Of course, it’s always fun when the rich get made fun of. Most of us think, “If we just had money, everything would be great.” And this proves, well, maybe not. And that makes everybody feel better. And that’s what entertainment is supposed to be — this is just flat-out entertaining.


CE: What is it like working with all those great people you have on the show?

AP: Everybody on the show is so talented and so relatable, and of course Kristin Chenoweth is a national treasure. Kristin has turned me on to "Toddlers and Tiaras." I watch it for acting tips — I like the women’s devotion to their daughters. It’s going to come out later that my character has been someone who trained people for pageants. So I have watched that to just see what happens in that world. And now, I am devoted to "Toddlers and Tiaras."

My hairdresser the other day asked me, “Oh, have you seen 'Revenge'?” and I said, “I haven’t seen that yet.” And she said: “Honey, it’s like peanut butter. It’s delicious.” And I believe that our show will thought to be delicious too. But maybe something more on the lines of peach cobbler.

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