Scott Bakula discusses arriving for end of 'Desperate Housewives'

Scott Bakula talks about working with Marcia Cross and joining an ensemble cast in its last days.

One of the few positives to knowing well in advance that a show such as DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES is coming to a close is that it affords a creator like Marc Cherry ample time to check off his bucket list. Case in point, the recent addition of Scott Bakula to Wisteria Lane as Bree’s defence attorney Trip Weston is a guest spot eight seasons in the making. At least according to Bakula, the affable actor who was only too happy to take some time during the show’s final week of shooting to tease what’s in store for his character’s relationship with Bree both in and outside the courtroom, what it’s like to be a part of such an iconic show’s closing chapter and what fans can expect from the upcoming series finale. See for yourself, after the jump.

Is an offer to guest star on the final five episodes of DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES an automatic yes for an actor, or is it something you had to think about?
Scott Bakula: In this case it was easy because I’m a fan of the show. My wife and I got hooked from the beginning and have pretty much watched for eight years. I’ve bumped into Marc Cherry periodically over the years and he would say, “We gotta get you on the show,” and I would say, “You’re right!” yet it just never happened. And basically I had written off that it would ever happen so when they called and asked if I wanted to do the last five, it just sounded perfect. Plus, it was working with Marcia, who I had worked with when she was a baby, twenty years ago on QUANTUM LEAP, so it all seemed like it was meant to be.

If there is one thing we’ve learned having spent the better part of eight seasons watching DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES is that everyone who comes to the show brings with them a secret or two!
 I think what’s fun about him [Bakula referring to his character of Trip] is that we don’t really know what his motives are and we’re not sure what he’s up to, so I kind of played that a little closer to the vest and hopefully some secrets will be revealed as we go along. I can tease that there’s going to be a relationship with Bree, but I don’t want to talk about what form it’s going to take. Rest assured, things get interesting there.

It has been said that guest starring on any show is the hardest job in Hollywood, very much akin to being the new kid at a new school. What was it like on DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES?
 It can be a challenge and it really depends on what the set is like and who you’re working with. I’ve had good experiences and not so good experiences and this one was just a joy because the set is a great set to work on. They’ve got a great crew there, there’s a great energy on the set and Marcia [Cross] was completely wide open and available to working with me. Either she was happy that I was there or she’s a good liar because we hit it off right from the beginning and that just makes all the difference in the world.

Was the tone on the set that much more special knowing that this was the end of the series?
 The longest show I’ve ever done was four and a half years so I can only imagine what ending an eight year show is like. That family there, that group that they’ve lived with for almost more time than their real family for 8 years, there’s a huge history. Just with Marcia alone, what she has gone through, the explosion of her career, the fame of the show, her marriage, twins, just in her own private world… then multiply that by a couple of 100 people and it’s a huge deal. It’s just special to be a part of and to be around. It’s very emotional, and in this instance it’s in a good way. I’ve been around shows at the end where people are dying to get out of there and this isn’t that case.

Having been involved in quite a few series finales yourself, what do you think makes a good one and do you think DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES fans will be happy with how this one ends?
 The end of shows are a nightmare for everybody because there is so much pressure to satisfy everyone which of course you can’t do. So I think what Marc has done, and I believe successfully, is that he has kind of gone back to his own inner muse and he’s writing what I think is going to be delightful to him. And since it’s his show and people loved it from the beginning, hopefully it will be delightful to a lot of people. Look, they’ve got five big storylines that they’re trying to wrap up, and five big storylines that they carry every week and that in and of itself is a huge challenge, but they’ve been up to the task or they would have been gone a long time ago.

The TV Addict staff blogs at The TV Addict.