Bette Midler has expressed remorse over her ill-fated sitcom "Bette," blaming the departure of Lindsay Lohan and other factors for its failure.
Bette Midler has opened up about her regrets regarding her short-lived sitcom "Bette," calling it a "big, big mistake." The actress and singer revealed that she wishes she had taken legal action after Lindsay Lohan pulled out of the show after the pilot episode.
Speaking on David Duchovny's "Fail Better" podcast, Midler explained that things fell apart quickly after Lohan's departure. "I believe it would have worked if I had had a team that was on my side," she said. "Things happened that were so astonishing. I didn’t know those things could happen."
Lohan, then around 13 or 14 years old, was cast as Midler's daughter in the pilot. However, she decided to leave the project shortly after, leaving Midler and the production team scrambling. "Well, after the pilot she decided that she didn’t want to do it, or she had other fish to fry. So, Lindsay Lohan left the building and I said, ‘Well, now what do you do?’" Midler recalled.
The studio, according to Midler, did not provide her with sufficient support, contributing to the show's chaotic atmosphere. "It was extremely chaotic," she said. Duchovny pointed out that actors typically sign contracts to prevent such situations.
"You’re not supposed to be able to do that," Duchovny noted. Midler responded, "If I had known that was part of my duties, to stand up and say this absolutely will not do. I’m going to sue,' then I would have done that, but I seem to have been cosseted in some way that I couldn’t get to the writer’s room. I couldn’t speak to the show runner. I couldn’t make myself clear."
Midler also expressed frustration over the rapid pace of the filming process, which she said overwhelmed her. "I didn’t understand how fast you had to go," she said.
The actress had publicly criticized the show during its brief run, telling David Letterman on the "Late Show" that it was the "worst thing that’s ever happened to me in my entire life." After the show's cancellation, Midler was fired and left her production company.
"My biggest failure is haste and acting on impulse," she admitted of her decision to do the show. "Bette" ran for 18 episodes from 2000 to 2001 on CBS.
Despite the regrets, Midler praised Lohan and shared a Throwback Thursday post on Instagram last week featuring a photo of the two together during the time of the show. "Had such a blast filming with the incredible @bettemidler," Lohan captioned the post.
Lohan, 37, has since made a comeback in the entertainment industry, recently starring in movies like 2022's "Falling for Christmas."
