Terri Hatcher Birth Date and Age During Desperate Housewives
Terri Hatcher was born on June 8, 1964, which means she was 37 when Desperate Housewives premiered in October 2004 and 41 when the series ended in May 2012. Her birth date is confirmed by public records and entertainment databases, and her age at each season aligns with standard year-over-year increments. The show ran for eight seasons on ABC, and Hatcher played Susan Mayer across the entire run. This makes her one of the older leads among the original cast, with a few years of difference separating her from co-stars like Felicity Huffman and Marcia Cross.
Because Desperate Housewives aired from 2004 to 2012, Terri Hatcher was 37 to 44 during production, depending on the specific season and month of filming. The series was created by Marc Cherry and produced by Cherry Productions and ABC Studios, which is now part of Disney Television Studios. ABC is a broadcast network owned by The Walt Disney Company, and the show was distributed internationally by Disney–ABC Domestic Television. The network schedule and episode order determined the precise filming windows for each season.
Susan Mayer Character Age and Timeline in Desperate Housewives
Susan Mayer, the character played by Terri Hatcher, was written as a single mother in her late 30s and early 40s during the show's run. In the pilot episode, Susan is depicted as recently divorced and navigating life on Wisteria Lane, which places her character's age roughly in line with Hatcher's real age at the time. The show's timeline spans multiple years, and Susan ages in real time with the actors, meaning her age progresses from the late 30s into her early 40s over the course of the series.
Storylines involving Susan's relationships, career shifts, and motherhood milestones mirror the natural aging of the actress. For example, her marriage to Mike Delfino and the birth of their son M.J. are written to coincide with Hatcher's early 40s. The character's age is never stated with a specific number on screen, but production timelines and casting choices confirm the alignment with Hatcher's real age. ABC's scheduling of mid-season premieres and hiatuses also affected how quickly the character aged relative to the actress.
Desperate Housewives Production Details and Cast Age Context
Desperate Housewives was created by Marc Cherry and executive produced by Cherry, Tom Spezialy, Michael Edelstein, and Bob Daily, with production handled by Cherry Productions and ABC Studios. The pilot was filmed in 2004, and the series was shot on the Colonial Street backlot at Universal Studios Hollywood, a facility now managed by NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. Filming schedules for a weekly broadcast series typically run several months ahead of air dates, so scenes for early episodes were shot while Hatcher was 36 or 37.
The show's ensemble cast included Teri Hatcher, Felicity Huffman, Marcia Cross, Eva Longoria, and Nicollette Sheridan, with ages ranging from the late 30s to early 50s at the start of the series. Hatcher's age relative to her co-stars placed her in the middle of the cast's age spread, and her casting was based on her ability to portray a relatable, comedic, and emotionally layered lead. ABC renewed the series for multiple seasons based on strong ratings and audience engagement, and the show remains one of the most-watched scripted series in broadcast history. For more details on the show's production and broadcast history, see the Wikipedia entry for Desperate Housewives at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desperate_Housewives and for Terri Hatcher's filmography and biographical data, see