ET: Before we chat about "Desperate Housewives," I have to ask: Did you watch your ex on "Dancing with the Stars" last night? Do you think you will take your daughter to see him in person?

Vanessa Williams: She was there last night. That is why I watched. She was in the green dress.

ET: So, what can you tell us about Renee Perry?

Vanessa Williams: She is married to a New York Yankee. She comes to the lane because of marital problems and visits her old friend Lynette, Felicity Huffman's character, and ends up liking it so much she stays.

ET: I saw clips of your character. Is she channeling a little bit of Wilhelmina Slater? There were some nice digs in there.

Vanessa Williams: I think they are playing to that audience that expects something like that. Again, I am not on the writing team, but I think they want to make it as interesting and get as much bang for their buck in bringing people who are fans of mine and what I brought for the last four years to the lane. She is certainly not Wilhelmina, but she is no shrinking violet either.

ET: I heard that creator/executive producer Marc Cherry created this role just for you. Is that true?

Vanessa Williams: Yes, he did. Steve [McPherson, former ABC Entertainment president] called and said, "I want Vanessa on the show." When I took my meeting with Marc, I thought it was for something in the future. I had no idea that there was an interest in having me on the set of "Desperate Housewives" and [me] joining the show. I was available. I was doing Broadway [Sondheim on Sondheim]. It was a limited run so technically, I wasn't signed to anything after the show finished. The deal was done in four days. It kind of happened like wildfire.

ET: We know Renee's marriage is on the skids and that is why she came to visit Lynette. Does she come with any deep dark secrets like people on Wisteria Lane tend to do?

Vanessa Williams: Nothing that they have told me so far. I wish I could reveal something to you, but so far she is just ruffling feathers with the other gals. It has been great that they have given me opportunities to work with each of the girls one-on-one per episode. I have had scenes with … I think I did a couple of episodes with Lynette, a couple of episodes with Bree (Marcia Clark), one episode with Gaby (Eva Longoria Parker). What am I doing this week? This week has to do with me, Lynette and Susan (Teri Hatcher). They are spreading me out tastefully.

ET: What has it been like on the set for you?

Vanessa Williams: They have been so nice and so welcoming. They are genuinely happy to have me onboard. They are a well-oiled machine at this point. Their careers are firmly established, their characters are known and loved, and they are welcoming my new energy. It has been wonderful and easy.

ET: I remember you playing heroines early in your career. When did you make the transition to playing ballsy, bitchy women?

Vanessa Williams: I always have. They just haven't been on film a lot. Since high school I have been able to play strong women. In high school, in college, on Broadway: Kiss of the Spider Woman, Into the Woods, "A Diva's Christmas Carol," and The Odysesey. I have been lucky to play strong women. It is definitely not a one off thing. It has been happening for years.

ET: Is it more fun than playing the heroine?

Vanessa Williams: It is not that it is more fun, I think it all depends what is on the page. If it is written well, it is great. You can only do so much in terms of creating a character, but if it is a great project and a great opportunity, it is wonderful. In terms of me, I haven't had opportunities to really do leading stuff a lot. I do what I am given and I make the best out of it.

ET: Any chance Renee Perry's background may include being a singer and we would get to see her perform?

Vanessa Williams: I don't know. That is up to Marc Cherry and his staff. So far, we haven't heard of any singing episodes or anything at this point.

ET: Last time we spoke when you were on "Ugly Betty," you had just finished your album. Any music plans coming up?

Vanessa Williams: No. We just finished the Broadway show in June. The album came out in August and this will keep me occupied for a while. No music on the horizon.

ET: Wilhelmina was such a fashion plate. How do you feel about what you are wearing as Renee?

Vanessa Williams: Well, it certainly will never be like Wilhelmina again. I certainly miss the racks and racks of couture that were available on a per episode basis. There is really no comparison. On the lane, we try to make Renee seem like she has money and make her different from the gals on the lane.

Check out this new interview with Nathan Fillion.

- Brennan becomes an "expert on Jersey Shore after watching what she thought was a documentary but turns out was a reality show"
- Episode is "over-the-top and fun...like those people are"
- "The dead body definitely has a "Situation" going on...."
- Explains that 'the Snooki' hairdo "doesn't work" on her head
- Says hairdo needs a small forehead & she's "already got enough forehead for four people"
- Friends with Simon Helberg and cast of the Big Bang Theory, loves the show, etc.


Thanks to sabasaba

This is from a new interview of Elisabeth with TV Squad:



Q: This season has been an interesting one for you as far as the development of Peggy is concerned. Did (creator) Matt Weiner come to you at the beginning of the season and say "There's going to be a lot more Peggy this year?" What was his speech to you before the season started?

A: Of course we talk about things, but that's sort of between the two of us. They don't often know what's going to happen from episode to episode and they don't have it written yet. I think there's a huge hesitation to tell actors "what's going to happen" because of all the changes. I can't tell you how many times I've heard that something was going to happen with either my character or another character and then it didn't happen.

So I think there's a big hesitation in telling us what's going to go down because you don't want to disappoint someone or you don't want to mislead someone. (Matt's) told me things obviously in the past before it's happened, and he usually asks me if I want to know first, and you always have to take it with a huge, huge grain of salt.


Q: As you're seeing the scripts, that's how you're seeing what's developing week to week?

A: Yeah, exactly. We each get that script and you should see it. If that script goes around, everyone sort of disappears and reads their script, because everyone is so interested in where their characters go and where the other characters go because nobody knows (chuckles).


Q: Let's talk about an episode that every fan is still talking about, 'The Suitcase.' When you read the script, how did you see it from your perspective?

A: I think my first reaction was... I honestly feel, and I said this to Matt, I feel honored and flattered that he wrote that script. And I have so much admiration and respect for Jon (Hamm) as an actor, and the thought that Matt thought that I could hold my own with him for that long... And, also, you know, although this show is known for its writing, it's also known for its acting. That they thought that out of all these incredible actors that are on the show -- I mean everybody is so good and everybody has had amazing opportunities on the show -- the fact that Matt thought I could do this was so incredibly flattering.

I'm a viewer as well of this show, and I'm a fan. So as a fan, I was like, "Awesome!" (Episodes like this) are actually called bottle episodes, and I love bottle episodes, and I just thought as a fan, of course! This is so cool, that after six years in TV world, its so awesome to see these two characters... to finally, after everything that's happened, after everything they know about each other, and everything they don't know about each other, for them to come together like this, as a viewer, I was like "That's an awesome episode." (laughs)


Q: What did that episode show you about the relationship Matt had set up between the two of them?

A: It didn't really reveal anything new to me, and it possibly didn't really reveal... I think it just confirmed and elaborated and showed to the audience this relationship that they know. Everybody knows the relationship that they have, everybody knows that they're close, that they have this sort of "they're so different but yet so similar" kind of relationship, and I think people just wanted to see that, wanted to see them talk about it. They wanted to see them talk about that goddamn hospital scene, and talk about the baby... (laughs).


Q: Both you and Jon had to break out in tears in that episode. How many times did you have to do that during shooting?

A: I don't remember how many times they did it. Maybe five times or something? I don't remember, to be honest. They're very long shooting days (laughs). It all blends together.


Q: To me it seems like Peggy has morphed from even the year before. What's your perspective on what Peggy's been going through this season?

A: I think she has gone from being 20 years old to being 26. I know I've changed a lot from 20 to 26, and I think people, I think that's an incredibly formative time, your 20s. And being in your 20s in the '60s, in Manhattan, in advertising, it's a multilayered recipe for change. And people forget how young she is, because everyone looks older on the show, but she's actually only 26, and she is finally figuring out who she is.

She's not trying to be somebody else, not trying to be a man, not trying to be a woman, but trying to be who she is. And I don't think she's quite there yet, but she's on her way. I think the biggest change for her character-wise came between seasons three and four.


source: tvsquad