The fourth season of ''
Desperate Housewives
''Desperate Housewives'' is an American mystery comedy-drama television series created by Marc Cherry, and produced by ABC Studios and Cherry Productions. It aired for eight seasons on ABC from October 3, 2004, until May 13, 2012, for a tota ...
'', an American television series created by
Marc Cherry
Marc Cherry (born March 23, 1962) is an American television writer and producer. He is best known for creating the ABC dramedy series ''Desperate Housewives'' and Lifetime series ''Devious Maids''.
Personal life Early life
Marc Cherry was ...
, premiered on September 30, 2007, on
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting
* Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...
. Filming for the series was interrupted by the
2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike in November 2007, after production on the two-episode tornado storyline wrapped. The first part, "
Something's Coming", aired on December 2, 2007.
"
Welcome to Kanagawa
The fourth season of ''Desperate Housewives'', an American television series created by Marc Cherry, premiered on September 30, 2007, on ABC. Filming for the series was interrupted by the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike in November ...
", the second part and the last episode filmed before the strike, was originally going to be aired after the strike's resolution,
but aired on January 6, 2008. Seven additional episodes were produced for the fourth season after the strike, the first of which aired on April 13, 2008. The final two episodes served as a two-part finale and were aired consecutively on May 18, 2008. A total of 17 episodes aired as part of the season, with one
recap special airing on September 23, 2007.
The series continues to focus on
Wisteria Lane
Wisteria Lane is a fictional street at the center of U.S. television drama series ''Desperate Housewives''. ''Desperate Housewives'' storylines primarily center on the residents of the street. The set for Wisteria Lane is located inside Universal ...
residents
Susan Delfino
Susan Delfino (née Bremmer and formerly Mayer) is a fictional character played by Teri Hatcher on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC television series ''Desperate Housewives''. The character was created by television producer and screenwrite ...
,
Lynette Scavo
Lynette Scavo is a fictional character from the American comedy drama television series ''Desperate Housewives'', which aired on ABC from 2004 to 2012. Developed by series creator Marc Cherry, Lynette was portrayed by Felicity Huffman. Lynette ...
,
Bree Hodge
Bree Van de Kamp is a fictional character on the ABC television series ''Desperate Housewives''. She was played by actress Marcia Cross, who received multiple awards and nominations for her portrayal, including an Emmy Award nomination, three ...
,
Gabrielle Solis
Gabrielle "Gaby" Solis () is a fictional character portrayed by Eva Longoria on the ABC television series ''Desperate Housewives''. Longoria was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy for h ...
and
Edie Britt
Edie Britt is a fictional character created by television producer and screenwriter Marc Cherry for the ABC television series ''Desperate Housewives''. Nicollette Sheridan portrayed Edie from her debut in the pilot episode of the series unti ...
, with
Mary Alice Young
Mary Alice Young (previously Angela Forrest) is a fictional character from the ABC television series ''Desperate Housewives''. The character was created by television producer and screenwriter Marc Cherry and is portrayed by Brenda Strong, who ...
returning as the series' narrator.
Katherine Mayfair
Katherine Irma Mayfair is a fictional character created by Marc Cherry for the American Broadcasting Company, ABC television series ''Desperate Housewives''. The character was portrayed by Dana Delany and first appeared in the series' Now You Know ...
and her family are introduced in this season and are the center of the season's mystery. Critical reception for the season was positive, and ratings increased from the third season. The series drew in an average of 17.9 million viewers per episode during the
2007-08 American television season, becoming the sixth most-watched program of the year and the most-watched scripted program for the first time.
The series was released on a five-disc DVD box set by
ABC Studios
ABC Signature was a production arm of the American Broadcasting Company (ABC), which is a subsidiary of Disney Television Studios, a sub-division of the Disney Entertainment business segment and division of The Walt Disney Company. The studio's ...
on September 2, 2008, in
Region 1, October 29, 2008 in
Region 4, November 3, 2008 in
Region 2, and March 17, 2009, in
Region 5.
Production
Joe Keenan, one of the three
executive producer
Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the production of media. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights or royalties). In film ...
s during the third season, as well as writer of the critically acclaimed season episode "
Bang", did not return for season four as executive producer, but as consulting producer.
Replacing Keenan, and joining
Marc Cherry
Marc Cherry (born March 23, 1962) is an American television writer and producer. He is best known for creating the ABC dramedy series ''Desperate Housewives'' and Lifetime series ''Devious Maids''.
Personal life Early life
Marc Cherry was ...
and
George W. Perkins as executive producers, is season three writer and co-executive producer
Bob Daily, whose previous work include sitcoms ''
Frasier
''Frasier'' () is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for 11 seasons from September 16, 1993, to May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey (screenwriter), Peter Casey, and David Lee (scr ...
'' and ''
Out of Practice
''Out of Practice'' is an American sitcom television series that was produced by Paramount Television and originally broadcast on sister company CBS from September 19, 2005, to March 29, 2006. With producers Joe Keenan and Christopher Lloyd ('' ...
'', as well as cartoon series ''
Rugrats
''Rugrats'' is an American animated television series created by Arlene Klasky, Gábor Csupó, and Paul Germain for Nickelodeon. The series focuses on a group of toddlers, most prominently Tommy, Chuckie, Phil, and Lil, and their day-to-d ...
''. Keenan will serve as Cherry's second-in-command for the next two years. Also joining as executives producers are writers and former co-executive producers
John Pardee and
Joey Murphy who have been on the show since its first season.
This is also the first season the synthesized version of
Danny Elfman
Daniel Robert Elfman (born May 29, 1953) is an American film composer, singer, songwriter, and musician. He came to prominence as the lead vocalist and primary songwriter for the new wave band Oingo Boingo in the early 1980s. Since scoring his ...
's main title theme was used, as it would be the rest of the series.
Cast

The fourth season had twelve roles receiving
star billing
Billing is a performing arts term used in referring to the order and other aspects of how credits are presented for plays, films, television, or other creative works. Information given in billing usually consists of the companies, actors, direct ...
. All eleven starring actors from the
previous season returned for this season. The series is narrated by
Brenda Strong
Brenda Lee Strong["Miss Arizona 1980"](_blank)
''Arizona Republic''. July 13, 1980. ...
, who portrays the deceased
Mary Alice Young
Mary Alice Young (previously Angela Forrest) is a fictional character from the ABC television series ''Desperate Housewives''. The character was created by television producer and screenwriter Marc Cherry and is portrayed by Brenda Strong, who ...
, as she observes from beyond the grave the lives of the
Wisteria Lane
Wisteria Lane is a fictional street at the center of U.S. television drama series ''Desperate Housewives''. ''Desperate Housewives'' storylines primarily center on the residents of the street. The set for Wisteria Lane is located inside Universal ...
residents and her former best friends.
Teri Hatcher
Teri Lynn Hatcher (born December 8, 1964) is an American actress best known for her portrayals of Lois Lane on the television series ''Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman'' (1993–1997). She also played Paris Carver in the ''Production ...
portrayed
Susan Delfino
Susan Delfino (née Bremmer and formerly Mayer) is a fictional character played by Teri Hatcher on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC television series ''Desperate Housewives''. The character was created by television producer and screenwrite ...
, who is finally married after three seasons searching for a stable relationship.
Felicity Huffman
Felicity Kendall Huffman (born December 9, 1962) is an American actress. She is known for her role as Lynette Scavo in the ABC comedy-drama ''Desperate Housewives'' and her role as Sabrina "Bree" Osbourne, a transgender woman, in the film ''Trans ...
portrayed
Lynette Scavo
Lynette Scavo is a fictional character from the American comedy drama television series ''Desperate Housewives'', which aired on ABC from 2004 to 2012. Developed by series creator Marc Cherry, Lynette was portrayed by Felicity Huffman. Lynette ...
, who fights cancer during the first half of the season and deals with her step-daughter's behavior in the second half.
Marcia Cross
Marcia Anne Cross (born March 25, 1962) is an American actress. She acted in daytime soap operas such as ''The Edge of Night'', ''Another World (TV series), Another World'', and ''One Life to Live'' before moving to primetime television with a ...
portrayed
Bree Hodge
Bree Van de Kamp is a fictional character on the ABC television series ''Desperate Housewives''. She was played by actress Marcia Cross, who received multiple awards and nominations for her portrayal, including an Emmy Award nomination, three ...
, married for the second time and faking pregnancy in an attempt to protect her daughter.
Eva Longoria
Eva Jacqueline Longoria Bastón ( Longoria; born March 15, 1975) is an American actress, producer, director, and businesswoman. After several guest roles on television, she became recognized for her portrayal of Isabella Braña on the CBS day ...
portrayed former model
Gabrielle Lang, now the wife of Fairview's mayor.
Nicollette Sheridan
Nicollette Sheridan (born November 21, 1963) is an American actress. She began her career as a fashion model before landing a role in the short-lived American Broadcasting Company, ABC primetime soap opera ''Paper Dolls'' in 1984, as well as st ...
portrayed
Edie Britt
Edie Britt is a fictional character created by television producer and screenwriter Marc Cherry for the ABC television series ''Desperate Housewives''. Nicollette Sheridan portrayed Edie from her debut in the pilot episode of the series unti ...
, who faked suicide in the
previous season finale.
Ricardo Antonio Chavira
Ricardo Antonio Chavira (born September 1, 1971) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Carlos Solis in the ABC television series ''Desperate Housewives'' (2004–2012). He also played Abraham Quintanilla in '' Selena: The Seri ...
portrayed
Carlos Solis
Carlos Solis () is a fictional character portrayed by Ricardo Chavira on the ABC television series ''Desperate Housewives''. He is, for most of the series, the husband of Gabrielle Solis, portrayed by Eva Longoria.
Past
Carlos was born in Gu ...
, now divorced from Gabrielle but still in love with her while involved in a relationship with Edie.
Andrea Bowen portrayed
Julie Mayer, the responsible and caring daughter of Susan.
Doug Savant
Douglas Peter Savant (born June 21, 1964) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Matt Fielding in the Fox prime time soap opera '' Melrose Place'' (1992–97), Tom Scavo in ABC comedy-drama '' Desperate Housewives'' (2004–12), and ...
portrayed
Tom Scavo
Thomas Scavo is a fictional character on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC television series ''Desperate Housewives'', played by actor Doug Savant.
During Season 1, Tom was credited as a recurring role, but became credited as a series regu ...
, Lynette's husband and now owner of a pizzeria.
Kyle MacLachlan
Kyle Merritt MacLachlan ( ; ' McLachlan, February 22, 1959) is an American actor. He is best known for his Emmy-nominated and Golden Globe-winning role as Dale Cooper in ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991, 2017) and its film prequel '' Twin Peaks: Fire ...
portrayed
Orson Hodge
Orson Hodge is a fictional character on the ABC television series ''Desperate Housewives''. The character is played by Kyle MacLachlan. Orson is introduced in the final episodes of the second season of the series, and becomes the main mystery of ...
, Bree's second husband and the man that ran over Mike in the
second season finale.
James Denton
James Denton (born January 20, 1963) is an American film and television actor. He is known for playing Mike Delfino on ABC's comedy drama series ''Desperate Housewives'' (2004–2012) and Dr. Sam Radford on Hallmark Channel's fantasy seri ...
portrayed
Mike Delfino
Michael Delfino is a fictional character on the ABC television series ''Desperate Housewives''. The character is portrayed by James Denton from the show's inception, until the eighth and final season of the show.
Characterization and casting
...
, now Susan's husband who starts using drugs.
Dana Delany
Dana Delany (born March 13, 1956) is an American actress. After appearing in small roles early in her career, Delany received her breakthrough role as Colleen McMurphy on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC television drama ''China Beach'' (1 ...
is introduced in the role of
Katherine Mayfair
Katherine Irma Mayfair is a fictional character created by Marc Cherry for the American Broadcasting Company, ABC television series ''Desperate Housewives''. The character was portrayed by Dana Delany and first appeared in the series' Now You Know ...
, whose mysterious arc is the season's main storyline.
[Owen, Rob (August 17, 2007)]
"Tuned In: 'Desperate' measures include adding Dana Delany to cast"
. ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'', also known simply as the PG, is the largest newspaper serving Greater Pittsburgh, metropolitan Pittsburgh in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Descended from the ''Pittsburgh Gazette'', established in 1786 as the fi ...
''. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
Five out of six actors who received "also starring" billing from the previous season returned.
Shawn Pyfrom
Shawn Caminiti Pyfrom (born August 16, 1986) is an American actor and singer who has appeared in several television series and films. He is best known for his portrayal of Andrew Van de Kamp on ABC's ''Desperate Housewives'' and as Lionel Griff ...
, portrayed Bree's gay son
Andrew Van de Kamp
Andrew Van de Kamp is a fictional character in the ABC television series ''Desperate Housewives'' played by Shawn Pyfrom, and is the son of one of the title characters, Bree Van de Kamp, and her first husband Rex Van de Kamp.
As one of the few L ...
.
Lyndsy Fonseca
Lyndsy Marie Fonseca (born January 7, 1987) is an American actress. She began her career by appearing as Colleen Carlton on the CBS daytime soap opera ''The Young and the Restless'', on which she starred between 2001 and 2005. Thereafter, she h ...
was cast in the new role of
Dylan Mayfair, Katherine's daughter and part of the season's mystery.
[Small, Jonathan (August 24, 2007)]
"A First Look at ''Desperate Housewives'' New Neighbors"
''TV Guide
TV Guide is an American digital media
In mass communication, digital media is any media (communication), communication media that operates in conjunction with various encoded machine-readable data formats. Digital content can be created, vi ...
''. Retrieved August 4, 2011. Joy Lauren reappeared in the role of
Danielle Van de Kamp
''Desperate Housewives'' is an American comedy-drama series that aired on ABC (American Broadcasting Company). It focuses on the residents living on the fictional Wisteria Lane as narrated by their deceased neighbor, Mary Alice Young (Brenda Stro ...
, Bree's pregnant daughter.
Brent Kinsman,
Shane Kinsman
Brent Kinsman and Shane Kinsman (born November 13, 1997) are American twin child actors who roles include Kyle and Nigel Baker in the 2003 film ''Cheaper by the Dozen'' and its 2005 sequel '' Cheaper by the Dozen 2''. They also had featured role ...
and
Zane Huett, played
Preston Scavo,
Porter Scavo and
Parker Scavo, Lynette's troublesome children.
Rachel Fox was promoted to regular after guest starring in several episodes in the previous season as
Kayla Huntington Scavo, Tom's mischievous daughter and the result of an affair he had before meeting Lynette.
This season featured many established and new guest stars.
Kathryn Joosten
Kathryn Joosten (; December 20, 1939 – June 2, 2012) was an American actress. Her best known roles include Delores Landingham on NBC's ''The West Wing'' from 1999 to 2002 and Karen McCluskey on ABC's ''Desperate Housewives'' from 2005 to 201 ...
portrayed
Karen McCluskey, one of the most prominent residents of Wisteria Lane,
Richard Burgi
Richard William Burgi (, born July 30, 1958) is an American film and television actor best known for the roles of Det. Jim Ellison on '' The Sentinel'' and as Karl Mayer on ''Desperate Housewives''. He also portrayed Paul Hornsby in the ABC da ...
appeared as
Karl Mayer, Susan's ex-husband who is also married again,
Pat Crawford Brown
Pat Crawford Brown (June 29, 1929July 2, 2019) was an American actress.
Life and career
Brown was born in New York City and worked as an English teacher at Carson High School. After retiring from her teaching job, she made her screen debut in 1 ...
played elderly neighbor
Ida Greenberg, whereas
Tuc Watkins
Charles Curtis "Tuc" Watkins III (born September 2, 1966) is an American actor, known for his roles as David Vickers on ''One Life to Live'', Mr. Burns in ''The Mummy (1999 film), The Mummy'', Bob Hunter (Desperate Housewives), Bob Hunter on ''Des ...
and
Kevin Rahm
Kevin Rahm (born January 7, 1971) is an American actor. He is known for his television roles as Kyle McCarty on ''Judging Amy'', Lee McDermott on ''Desperate Housewives'', and Ted Chaough on ''Mad Men''.
Early life and education
Rahm was b ...
made their debut in this season respectively as
Bob Hunter and Lee McDermott
''Desperate Housewives'' is an American comedy-drama series that aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC (American Broadcasting Company). It focuses on the residents living on the fictional Wisteria Lane as narrated by their deceased neighbor ...
, a gay couple from Chicago who move to the lane. Part of Lynette's storyline were
Polly Bergen
Polly Bergen (born Nellie Paulina Burgin; July 14, 1930 – September 20, 2014) was an American actress, singer, television host, writer, and entrepreneur.
She won an Emmy Award in 1958 for her performance as Helen Morgan (singer), Helen ...
in the role of
Stella Wingfield, Lynette's mother who moves to the Scavo family home to support her daughter in her battle against cancer, and
Jason Gedrick
Jason Michael Gedrick is an American actor. He is best known for his work on the television series '' Murder One'' and ''Boomtown'', and the motion picture ''Iron Eagle'' as Doug Masters.
He starred in the 2001 film '' Summer Catch'' as Mike ...
playing
Rick Coletti, who had feelings for Lynette in the previous season and now opens his own restaurant to compete with Scavo Pizzeria. Part of Bree's storyline were
Shirley Knight
Shirley Knight Hopkins (July 5, 1936 – April 22, 2020) was an American actress who appeared in more than 50 feature films, television films, television series, and Broadway and Off-Broadway productions in her career, playing leading and char ...
returning as
Phyllis Van de Kamp, Bree's first mother-in-law, and
Dakin Matthews
Melvin Richard "Dakin" Matthews (born November 7, 1940) is an American actor, playwright, theatre director, and theatrical scholar. He is best known as Herb Kelcher in '' My Two Dads'' (1987–1989), Hanlin Charleston in '' Gilmore Girls'' (2000 ...
appearing as
Reverend Sykes, reverend at the local Presbyterian church. Part of Gabrielle's storyline were
John Slattery
John M. Slattery Jr. (born August 13, 1962) is an American actor and director. He is known for his role as Roger Sterling in the AMC drama series ''Mad Men'' (2007–15), for which he was nominated 4 times for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outsta ...
playing
Victor Lang, Gabrielle's new husband and the mayor of Fairview,
Mike Farrell
Michael Joseph Farrell Jr. (born February 6, 1939) is an American actor, best known for his role as Captain B.J. Hunnicutt on the television series '' M*A*S*H'' (1975–83). In addition, Farrell was a producer of '' Patch Adams'' (1998) starr ...
in the role of Milton Lang, Victor's father,
Jeff Doucette
Jeffrey Doucette (born November 25, 1947) is an American actor, comedian, and director. Doucette toured for years with Ernst Emling as the comedy duo Jeff and Ernst. Doucette has appeared in over 90 films and television shows and written two play ...
portraying
Father Crowley, priest at the local Catholic church,
Justine Bateman
Justine Bateman (born February 19, 1966) is an American filmmaker, author and former actress. Her acting work included '' Family Ties'', '' Satisfaction'', ''Men Behaving Badly'', '' The TV Set'', ''Desperate Housewives'', and ''Californication ...
playing Ellie Leonard, a drug dealer who rents a room in the Solises' house, and
Jesse Metcalfe
Jesse Eden Metcalfe (born December 9, 1978) is an American actor. He is known for being John Rowland on ''Desperate Housewives''. Metcalfe has also had notable roles on ''Passions'' and played the title role in '' John Tucker Must Die''. He sta ...
reappearing as
John Rowland, Gabrielle's ex-lover and former gardener. Part of the main mystery arc were
Nathan Fillion
Nathan Christopher Fillion (born March 27, 1971) is a Canadian and American actor. He played the leading roles of Captain Malcolm "Mal" Reynolds on ''Firefly'' and its film continuation '' Serenity'', and Richard Castle on ''Castle''. , he sta ...
portraying
Adam Mayfair, a doctor and Katherine's second husband,
Ellen Geer appearing as Lillian Simms, Katherine's aunt,
Melora Walters
Melora Walters (born October 21, 1959) is an American actress and filmmaker, best known for her starring roles as Wanda Henrickson on HBO's ''Big Love'' (2006–2010) and Kathy Kone on Hulu's '' PEN15'' (2019–2021). She has frequently collabora ...
playing Sylvia Greene, Adam's former patient and ex-lover from Chicago, and
Gary Cole
Gary Michael Cole (born September 20, 1956) is an American actor. He began his professional acting career on stage at Chicago's Steppenwolf Theatre Company in 1985. His breakout role was playing Jack 'Nighthawk' Killian in the NBC series '' M ...
in the role of
Wayne Davis, a cop and Katherine's abusive first husband. Additionally,
Gale Harold
Gale Morgan Harold III (born July 10, 1969) is an American actor, known for his leading and recurring roles on '' Queer as Folk'', '' Deadwood'', '' Desperate Housewives'', ''Grey's Anatomy'', '' The Secret Circle'' and '' Defiance''. He also star ...
was introduced as Susan's new lover
Jackson Braddock during the five-year jump featured at the end of the season.
For the
14th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards, Fillion, Joosten and Slattery were nominated along with the rest of the main cast for the
Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series award due to their many appearances this season.
[ 14th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards Nominations.]
Episodes
Reception
Season four was met with critical acclaim. Adam Geller of Rotten Tomatoes wrote "While the last two seasons of Desperate Housewives definitely suffered to live up to season one's standards (especially season two), season four improved not only from seasons two and three, but also from the critically acclaimed first. Delivering great storylines such as Bree's fake pregnancy, Lynette's cancer, Gaby's affair and even Susan's real pregnancy, season four was considered a vast improvement.
Ratings
United States
International season debuts
Note
The late season start in the United Kingdom was because of the
strike
Strike may refer to:
People
*Strike (surname)
* Hobart Huson, author of several drug related books
Physical confrontation or removal
*Strike (attack), attack with an inanimate object or a part of the human body intended to cause harm
* Airstrike, ...
. Channel 4 intended to begin showing season 4 in January, but it did not want to begin showing the season, only to have to take a break halfway through because of lack of episodes available.
''Desperate Housewives'' was eventually forced to take a break because of ''
Big Brother 9'' in the summer. It was anticipated that ''Desperate Housewives'' would have finished by June, but this was not the case. ''Big Brother'' took up the 9 pm or 10 pm slot every day from June 5, 2008, until September 5, 2008, so there was not room for ''Desperate Housewives'' in the schedules. As there were still seven episodes left to show as of June, Channel 4 waited until ''Big Brother'' had finished to resume showing them. Episodes returned with "
Sunday
Sunday (Latin: ''dies solis'' meaning "day of the sun") is the day of the week between Saturday and Monday. Sunday is a Christian sabbath, day of rest in most Western countries and a part of the Workweek and weekend, weekend. In some Middle Ea ...
" on Wednesday, September 3 at the earlier time of 9:30 pm between two episodes of the ''Big Brother'' day 90 eviction.
As E4 is one episode ahead of Channel 4, but does not air the season premiere before the host channel, E4 did not begin airing the new season until four days later on March 30. Episodes after this were aired on E4 three days before the Channel 4 airing, with the exception of "Sunday", which was treated as a season premiere.
''Desperate Housewives'' airs very late at night on Welsh channel
S4C
S4C (, ''Sianel Pedwar Cymru'', meaning ''Channel Four Wales'') is a Welsh language free-to-air public broadcast television channel. Launched on 1 November 1982, it was the first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speakin ...
due to Welsh-language programming airing during prime-time.
DVD release
References
External links
*
*
*
{{Desperate Housewives
2007 American television seasons
2008 American television seasons