Desperate Housewives writer, consulting producer, and resident science geek Jeff Greenstein is reading about string theory for fun, but that doesn't meant the women of Wisteria Lane will explore new dimensions of space and time this season. Still, "the running joke in the writers room this year is that the five-year jump allows us to have everybody going to work in hovercrafts," the witty Greenstein revealed in a recent interview. "Yesterday there was a reference to Tom having been injured in the Robot Wars."
The intervening time actually hasn't been quite that eventful, but viewers already know from the season four finale that Susan is kissing someone other than Mike, Bree is channeling Martha Stewart, Lynette's terrible twins are terrible teens, and Gabrielle is an unglamorous mother of two. Season five will be set in that intriguing future.
"You'll see some flashbacks. Occasionally there will be some things you've missed that we'll have to explain. There's going to be some things you've missed that we're not going to explain so quickly," he commented. However, "we're not doing Lost. We're not slaves to flashbacks."
What else will he reveal? "I think people know that Edie will return and she will bring a mystery with her," he said cautiously.
"Carlos at the beginning of the season has been blind for five years, so he's relatively facile. When we last saw him, he was awkward and figuring out how to operate in the world. Now he's got it together and he's got a job and he's functional." Greenstein won't say whether a miracle cure is coming up ... but come on, it totally is.
The show is creator Marc Cherry's to spoil or not, though neither man is a fan of exposing key details. "We tried very much to protect the five-year jump, and then it got out. It made it a little less take-your-breath-away when we did it," Greenstein lamented, contrasting that to his own surprise at Lost's season-ending flashforward reveal. "That's what entertainment is all about: creating the oh-my-god moments. I do worry it robs from the experience if you already know that kind of stuff."
The Five-Year Gap: "It was born of the desire to reset the predicaments."
As consulting producer, Greenstein divides his working time between his own shows in development with ABC Studios and two or three days a week on Desperate Housewives. Currently working on episodes five and six, he feels the time jump has added creative energy to the writing team. "There are some really good surprises coming up," he promised. Just don't ask exactly what those are.
He will explain the rationale for the decision to hit fast forward. "When the show initially started, it depicted, in a somewhat heightened way, the lives of suburban women. No matter what gothic or soapy or over-the-top direction the show went, it always attempted to be grounded in the genuine experiences of women living in that world."
"We found that after four years in, we were looking to portray those predicaments once again. We didn't want to have to wait to show Gabrielle with children, or Bree in a thriving business, so we figured let's just jump ahead and do it. ... Let's see what Lynette is like with two 16-year-olds at home. That was something we didn't want to have to wait until season ten to start exploring."
The writers aren't the only ones to benefit from the creative renewal. "The five-year jump has allowed us to take this wonderful cast we have and put them through their paces. Eva Longoria is very beautiful. Having her play someone who is feeling unattractive after having two children, who feels like she's lost her luster, those are challenges for Eva. And good for her, she's great, she'll rise to the challenge," he continued. "That's true of everyone on the show. We're going to give them different kinds of things to do that build on where they've been in the past and yet enable them to stretch."
Article comments
1 - Maggie
Jeff's doing a great job, I love DH, though they could work on a couple aspects of the show. By the way, found the Desperate Housewives "starter kit" on ABC's site.
2 - Why Greenstein?
Does Marc Cherry not have anything intelligent nor believable to say? Can he not keep his stories straight?
Is Greenstein covering for Cherry?
This seems to be a foot in mouth disorder. Why else would ABC pull a nobody out of the woodwork to speak on the creator's behalf?
3 - Why Greenstein?
Does Marc Cherry not have anything intelligent nor believable to say? Can he not keep his stories straight?
Greenstein must be covering for Cherry.
There seems to be a foot-in-mouth disorder. Why else would ABC pull a nobody out of the woodwork to speak on the creator's behalf?
Is control-freak Cherry in hiding? Or has ABC silenced him?
It's so nice to see how incredibly wonderfully generous ABC is to men like Greenstein and are giving him development deals on a silver platter. He must be serving their needs very well indeed!
4 - Diane Kristine
Wow, so this is how conspiracy theories get started. ABC had nothing to do with it. I interviewed Jeff Greenstein because I heard him speak at the Banff World Television Festival and he was nice enough to agree to an interview with me. Check Google News for Marc Cherry and you'll see he had a whole lot to say during the TV critics press tour, and will probably have a lot more to say prior to the show's premiere at the end of September. I get bored of hearing from the same people about the same things all the time, so I love talking to other behind the scenes people.