Melrose Place star Laura Leighton has revealed cast members dreaded filming in the show’s famous pool – because it was “gross”.
The cast of the classic 1990s soap took part in a virtual reunion to help actors affected by the coronavirus pandemic, coming together for the first time in eight years.
They included Josie Bissett, Thomas Calabro, Marcia Cross, Laura Leighton and Heather Locklear.
Well, this should be fun! Go to https://t.co/bxmnUYIE7b to watch the livestream at 8pm ET, 5pm PT tonight, as the cast of Melrose Place goes down memory lane—all to benefit @TheActorsFund pic.twitter.com/L7Bd6O9Qz7
— Laura Leighton (@LauraLeighton) April 28, 2020
Melrose Place took place in a trendy apartment complex in West Hollywood, with many scenes filmed in the pool.
However, while the setting may have looked glamorous, Leighton, who played Sydney on the show, revealed the stars tried to avoid it because it was “gross” after being heated too much.
Her husband and Melrose Place co-star Doug Savant agreed, describing the pool as a “Petri dish”.
Melrose Place ran for seven seasons from 1992 to 1997, with an ill-fated revival returning for a single season in 2009.
Locklear, 58, appeared in the doomed reboot, reprising her role as Amanda Woodward.
She has been dogged by legal problems, including arrests for attacking a police officer, but is reportedly sober. Locklear admitted she would be tempted by another Melrose Place revival.
“It would be fun to play Amanda again,” she said.
Elsewhere in the reunion, the cast shared some of their favourite memories of the show and how they landed their parts.
Cross played Dr Kimberly Shaw and later went on to star in Desperate Housewives as Bree Van de Kamp.
Recalling how she landed the Melrose Place gig, she said: “I just auditioned for it, I was just trying to survive. I kind of coincidentally went through something very tragic in my life at which point, I got a phone call from them saying, ‘Would you like to come back at the end of the year?’
“I said, ‘I don’t understand, I’m driving off a cliff today, I’m dying (on the show)’. And they said, ‘No, no, no, we’re going to change that’.”
The writers did change it and Cross returned, saying it “worked out beautifully”.
The Melrose Place cast’s episode of Stars In The House was in aid of The Actors Fund.