The Real Reason Nicollette Sheridan Left Desperate Housewives

For the most part, fans don't hear much from Nicollette Sheridan anymore. After Sheridan's character was killed off on Desperate Housewives, the actress publicly expressed her feelings about it. In response, the show's creator, Marc Cherry, clapped back with several unflattering accusations, including, but not limited to, her alleged poor attitude on the set. 

In April 2009, Sheridan's character, Edie, died after her car crashed into a telephone pole. When Edie got out of the car, the pole's wire electrocuted her, according to ABC News. Sheridan discussed her onscreen counterpart's demise in an April 2009 interview with TV Guide. People reported that Sheridan remarked, "Killing off Edie was a risky decision that could have devastating ramifications." However, the actress seemed ready to move on, saying, "When the show started it was such a different beast. It was exciting and dangerous and funny and edgy and bizarre. It started feeling a little complacent, and that was very frustrating."

She also shaded Cherry for overlooking her. Sheridan told the outlet, "When you have a jewel, why not polish it and put it out there for all to see?" Cherry told TV Guide magazine (via People), "Edie's already slept with most of the guys on the street and has caused about as many problems as she could." That's a gross way to explain that her character's story had run its course. He also shared,"There has been tremendous pressure put on me to cut costs." Cherry concluded, "Nicollette Sheridan performed the aging neighborhood tramp better than anyone has ever done before."

After her character got killed off on Desperate Housewives, Nicollette Sheridan sued for wrongful termination and assault, seeking more than $6 million, according to a 2012 Daily Mail article. Desperate Housewives creator Marc Cherry testified, "The purpose of the character was going to be over," per E! News in March 2012. He said he was looking for an "interesting way to end the character's time on the show in a shocking way for fans." Cherry's legal team argued that her death had been planned for months. In contrast, Sheridan insisted that her former boss promised that her job was safe before the season began. 

In March 2012, the Los Angeles Times reported that Lori Kirkland Baker, a former co-executive producer on the show, claimed that Cherry's timeline didn't add up and that the decision to kill Edie wasn't planned as far in advance as he claimed.

During the trial, Sheridan claimed that Cherry was slowly phasing out her character. She said Edie had no lines in the original version of some scripts, which prompted her to complain. When her character did have something to say, it wasn't enough for Sheridan. She alleged that Cherry told the writers not to let her character say any "funny lines," adding that he "didn't give Edie the time and attention she deserved." Conversely, Cherry said, "the primary reason I killed off the character was I thought creatively it was the best thing for my show."

Nicollette Sheridan believed that part of the reason she got fired from Desperate Housewives was retaliation after claiming Marc Cherry hit her on the head. At the 2012 trial, Marc Cherry downplayed her accusation, saying, "I tapped her head," per the Daily Mail. According to Deadline, the original case ended in a mistrial. 

After appeals, the suit got thrown out in 2017 since there was "ample evidence Sheridan's dismissal was a creative decision," per a 2018 Deadline article. On a 2018 episode of The Talk (via Deadline), Sheridan said, "I was a victim of assault and battery by my boss on the set and I reported him and was retaliated against and fired off the show. All of which is illegal. There was nobody to stand up for me. I felt like I needed to stand up for myself." 

In March 2018, Cherry's rep told Entertainment Weekly, "Nicolette Sheridan was not a victim at the hands of Marc Cherry — a court has already ruled to that effect after hearing the testimony of multiple witnesses. We are disappointed that the judicial determination continues to be ignored." 

Sheridan told the outlet, "I was vilified for standing up for my rights, not only as a woman but as a human being." She added, "What happened at the end of Desperate Housewives was degrading and demoralizing." Sheridan said, "I really grappled with what happened, losing faith in people and really not trusting the business at all."

According to a March 2012 Daily Mail article, Marc Cherry testified that Eva Longoria and Felicity Huffman were "relieved" when Nicollette Sheridan's character was killed off Desperate Housewives. He also claimed that Sheridan showed up for work without knowing her lines and that she made "insulting comments" during table reads, according to a March 2012 E! News article. 

While Cherry insisted that terminating Sheridan made sense financially and creatively, he also admitted that her alleged antics on set played a small role in the decision. The Los Angeles Times reported that Cherry said Sheridan made remarks that he deemed "hugely rude and hugely upsetting to the writers." He also claimed, "She only had five or six lines ... and she didn't know any of them." He even said that he was summoned to rehearsal because Teri Hatcher was upset that Sheridan wasn't prepared. 

After years of litigation and public feuding, it seems like Sheridan and Cherry will never be on the same page. In short, Sheridan's got killed off because things got very complicated ... and even more so after she got fired.