Yesterday brought us a bombshell lawsuit filed by Nicollette Sheridan against Desperate Housewives creator Marc Cherry, alleging that she was wrongfully fired from the show in the wake of a physical assault by Cherry. In the wake of any additional news today, I decided to examine the lawsuit in greater depth, and I'm surprised that one of Sheridan's charges -- unlawful discrimination based on sexual orientation -- isn't attracting greater attention.
The allegation is contained in Sheridan's fourth cause of action, fully explicated as "unlawful discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation, and age." In it, Sheridan notes a post-firing interview that Cherry gave where he noted that "We will find a new kind of sexiness through Wisteria Lane. What we won't do is cast another fortysomething sexy blonde."
Still, the most provocative part of the charge is the one where Sheridan alleges the following:
ABC and Cherry harassed Sheridan, discriminated against her, and ultimately terminated her on account of her sex, her sexual orientation, and her age.
Cherry's treatment of Sheridan, including his physical assault and battery of her, occurred because he is a homosexual man and she is a heterosexual woman.
A bold statement! However, the contents of the lawsuit don't go into detail as to why Cherry's sexuality would have provoked him to allegedly become violent with Sheridan. Is the actress going to assert that being gay made Cherry a misogynist (or worse), or is she simply throwing out every charge possible to see what sticks, in the hopes of securing a settlement?
Developing...
Read the full Nicollette Sheridan assault lawsuit [THR, Esq]