The most talked-about person on Emmy Nominees Day at the Television Critics Association press tour wasn't even a nominee.
Katherine Heigl, last year's winner for best supporting actress in a comedy, had stated earlier that she didn't submit her name this time around because she was not satisfied with what the writers had given her character this past season. Heigl wasn't in attendance Thursday, but her boss, "Grey's Anatomy" creator Shonda Rhimes was, although she did her best to avoid questions on the subject.
She did say that while she has a "really wonderful working relationship" with Heigl, she was surprised when she heard Heigl's comments. She later said Heigl was given a great comedy arc for the first half of the season, and after that, the actress had "personally asked me to write her light so she could do her movie." Heigl will be back next season.
"Desperate Housewives" creator Marc Cherry shared how he dealt with the notorious Vanity Fair shoot in which his cast apparently blew up at each other. "The best way to deal with actors is to pretend that they're real people," he said. "... I solved that problem by hugging a sobbing actress for about 30 minutes in a trailer and telling her, 'This too shall pass. It's not real life. It's show biz.' Pretty soon they're going to forget about you and attack 'Lost.'"
Cherry, who is shooting Season 5, said he plans to wrap up the series in three years. That prompted ABC entertainment president Steve McPherson to shout from the back of the room: "Not going to happen!"
"Maybe it's just a terrible ruse from me to get tons of money for season eight," Cherry replied.
