‘Desperate Housewives’ creator chills movie hopes

The producers of "Desperate Housewives" say the series finale will leave a few loose ends hanging, but cautioned fans against awaiting a reunion movie.

Creator Marc Cherry said that eight seasons have given the ABC series time to "plumb the depths" of the characters played by Teri Hatcher, Felicity Huffman and others in the ensemble cast. "Desperate Housewives" will air its final episode this spring.

He's very satisfied with where the series stands, Cherry told the Television Critics Association on Tuesday, the actors alongside him. Cherry contrasted "Desperate Housewives" with "Sex and the City," which did fewer episodes and followed its HBO run with two big-screen movies.

He remained mostly mum about how his series will conclude, saying some "old, familiar characters" will return, but that the rest is a secret and "I'm being hyperprotective of it." Fellow executive producer Bob Daily said the last year of "Desperate Housewives" will include echoes of season one and serve as a bookend to it.

Whatever the final act, it's one that Cherry said he's been carrying in his head since the show went on the air. Although the show's writers are embellishing his vision, "the general premise has always been the same," he said.

He's also going to keep his promise to make a cameo appearance before the lights go out on Wisteria Lane.

"I'm gonna do a Hitchcock," he said, referring to Alfred Hitchcock's tradition of popping up in his films. "The hair and makeup people will go through more hell that day than they ever have."