'Desperate Housewives': 'Ugly Betty's' Vanessa Williams on Wisteria?

Source: ZapIt

Will Vanessa Williams Move Into Wisteria Lane?

"Desperate Housewives" has several vacancies to fill after this season's finale. The Bolens have moved on. And now we know that Dana Delany's pilot, "Body of Proof," has been picked up. So, Katherine's house may go up for sale.

So far, they've only filled Susan's empty home with the return of baddie, Paul Young (played by Mark Moses).

And executive producer Bob Daily tells us that Moses isn't the new "Edie" they've been searching for as Zap2it first reported back in February.

"We haven't really figured out what that person is," Daily tells us. "What we're looking for is sort of a provocateur, a muckraker. We've had a couple different people filling that role over the years. When Dana Delany joined The Lane, her function was partially to sort of stir things up a little bit. I think that's really what we're looking for."

Zap2it has heard rumors that former "Ugly Betty" star Vanessa Williams was being considered for a role next season. When a casting call for an African-American mother and daughter hit the web, the rumors about Williams joining seemed plausible. Both an ABC spokesperson and Daily say that casting call is not true. That doesn't mean that Vanessa Williams isn't being considered though.

"We love Vanessa Williams and I knew her name has been floated," says Daily. "If she were available, we would certainly be interested in talking to her."

Daily goes on to say, "We haven't had a moment to really think about the new characters for next season. I think we're primarily looking for what kind of character we want to add next year. In terms of gender or age or race, we haven't thought that far yet. [Vanessa Williams] has come up, but nothing more at this point. We think she's great, but nothing more than that her name was mentioned in the writer's room."

Daily tells us that "Desperate Housewives" creator, Marc Cherry, will be having lunch with Williams soon. He stresses it's not to talk about the show, but about the legendary stage and film composer/lyricist Stephen Sondheim. Cherry is a big fan and Williams is currently starring on Broadway in "Sondheim on Sondheim."

They probably won't talk about "Desperate Housewives" at all, right?