Eva Longoria has done many shows and movies which have helped in shaping her career in the best way possible. Her range in acting has constructed a reputation for her and one which she rather enjoys. Although she has not been in that many projects, those that she has have been enough to prove how wonderful of an actress she really is.
One particular series that stands out more than others is none other than Desperate Housewives. The series was a classic on television and many would take their time out to sit and watch the drama skewing within the plot. There had been various plots in the series that raised some eyebrows because of how controversial they were, but none were as controversial as Longoria’s character’s affair.
Eva Longoria Opened Up About Her On-Screen Affair
One scene in Desperate Housewives that created a lot of controversy was an affair between Eva Longoria’s character, Gabrielle Solis, and Jesse Metcalfe’s character, who was a young gardener. The controversy that was brewing rose up because of the massive age gap between the characters. While Gabrielle was supposed to be around 40, Metcalfe’s character was only supposed to be 16.
“So Jesse and I were actually the same age so we didn’t feel weird, but it was definitely much better chemistry and better for the story that it was Jesse.”
Ironically enough, that was not the case in reality. When Longoria was playing the character, she was only 27 and Metcalfe was also 25. Although the affair in itself felt particularly weird to them, their chemistry was not something she felt bad about. Their actual ages helped in the chemistry that was forming on-screen. The script, according to the actress, was so bizarre that she believed it would never be a hit or even air for that matter of fact. However, that was far from the case.
The Gardener Was Recast For Desperate Housewives
Eva Longoria confirmed that Jesse Metcalfe was not their first option to cast as the young gardener. The initial actor they chose was quite younger and he also happened to look the part. However, they did not want to go as deep into creating controversy and decided to instead recast the gardener.
“They recast him because they’re like, ‘He really looks 16!’ And then they cast Jesse and [he] was 25 when he did the show. He was 25 playing 16, and I was 27 playing 40.”
Metcalfe was then hired and he fit the part perfectly. The series was one she herself learned to love because it wasn’t until the first table read that gave her hope about it actually being a successful series. In fact, she went to Marc Cherry on multiple occasions, asking for a reboot.
Source: Huff Post
