Eva Longoria: Felicity Huffman Helped Me Survive ”Pure Torture” on Desperate Housewives Set

Eva Longoriais singing Felicity Huffman‘s praises in a letter written to the judge of the college admission scandal.

On Friday, Sept. 6, prosecutors involved in the trial announced that they are suggesting a 1-year prison sentence and a $20,000 fine for Huffman. In response, the actress and her legal team asked the judge to instead consider sentencing her to 1-year of probation. To support the alternative sentence, they included letters from friends and family, which speak highly of Felicity’s character. 

As a close friend and former coworker of the Desperate Housewives star, Eva Longoria is one of the numerous people who personally wrote a letter to the judge. In her lengthy statement, the Dora the Explorer star details the many “moments that really impacted” her in life. “Felicity was the first one to take my under her wing. From the first table read of the script, she noticed me sitting alone, scared and unsure of where to and what to do,” Eva shares. “Her gentle character and kind heart immediately opened up to me. She approached me, introduced herself and said, ‘Don’t be scared, we will get through this together,’ as she sat down beside me and never left my side since that day.”

While many of the memories she shares are poignant and speak to Huffman’s character, Longoria particularly highlights the times that Felicity defended her from a bully on the Desperate Housewives set. Eva says, “There was a time I was being bullied at work by a co-worker. I dreaded the days I had to work with that person because it was pure torture. Until one day, Felicity told the bully ‘enough’ and it all stopped. Felicity could feel that I was riddled with anxiety even though I never complained or mentioned the abuse to anyone.”

The creator of Desperate Housewives, Marc Cherry, reiterates in his own letter the havoc that this “problematic cast member” wreaked on set. The creator claims that the troubled actor had some “big behavioral problems” which made it “impossible” for the cast to get along with them. He shares that this woman even “decided she would no longer speak to her fellow cast members” only to the directors. He describes this behavior as “alternately maddening and hilarious.” 

But Marc says that Felicity would never stoop to said actress’ level. “Felicity still insisted on saying, ‘Good morning’ to this actress, even though she knew she wouldn’t get a response. I found out about this and asked Felicity about it. She smiled and said, ‘Just because that woman’s determined to be rude, doesn’t mean she can keep me from being polite,'” Cherry claims.

Eva says that the bullying eventually ended but she was again made to feel inferior by the rest of the cast when she was the only woman from the show to not be nominated for an award. Eva describes feeling “devastated,” not by being excluded, but because the press made it out to be a “bigger deal” than it truly was. And, once again, Felicity stepped in to assure Eva that she belonged on the show, which Eva is “forever grateful” for.

“I know I would not have survived those 10 years it wasn’t for the friendship of Felicity,” Longoria adds.

But the scope of Felicity’s kind actions went beyond petty bullies. It turns out, Huffman was one of the only stars who supported Eva during contract negotiations. Eva claims that at one point in her career she was the “lowest paid actor” on Desperate Housewives. Then, one day, Felicity approached her with the idea that they all renegotiate their contracts together, in order to obtain equal pay, despite the fact that Felicity was making “much more” than Eva. 

Of course, negotiating together meant that Eva’s salary would “significantly” increase and bring her up to the same pay as the other “more experienced actors.” Eva quips, “Well, needless to say, that did not go over to well with the others.”

However, rather than back down, Felicity continued to push the idea because Eva says she believed “it was fair because the success of the show depends on all of us, not one of us.” Longoria adds that the “fight” lasted weeks, until Felicity was able to convince the others to do the right thing. 

“It wasn’t about money for me, it was the fact that I was seen as an equal, which is how Felicity had always seen me,” Eva explains. “Now, thanks to her bold act, everyone saw what she saw, not only on our show, but within the industry.”

Then, when the show ended, Felicity continued to be an avid supporter of Longoria. Eva says that Huffman and her husband would “always” show up to support the various charities that Longoria held for the Latinx community, solely out of the goodness of her heart. 

Eva concludes, “She always leads with her heart and has always put others first. This is why I still call her my friend today and always.”

Huffman plead guilty to the charges in April, along with 12 other persons involved in the college admission scandal. Huffman’s sentencing is schedule for Sept. 13.