| Bob Hunter | |||||||||||
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| Tuc Watkins as Bob Hunter | |||||||||||
| Desperate Housewives | |||||||||||
| Portrayed by | Tuc Watkins | ||||||||||
| First appearance | "If There's Anything I Can't Stand" (episode 4.04) | ||||||||||
| Created by | Marc Cherry | ||||||||||
| Profile | |||||||||||
| Occupation | Attorney | ||||||||||
| Residence | 4351 Wisteria Lane in Fairview, Eagle State - since beginning of season 4 | ||||||||||
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Bob Hunter is a fictional character created by television producer and screenwriter Marc Cherry for the ABC television series Desperate Housewives. He is portrayed by Tuc Watkins and first appeared in the season four episode "If There's Anything I Can't Stand" on October 21, 2007.[2] Within the series, Bob, an attorney, and his husband, Lee McDermott (Kevin Rahm), are the first gay couple to live on the fictitious Wisteria Lane.[3][4]
Prior to the fourth season of Desperate Housewives, the series' sole leading gay character was Andrew Van de Kamp, whom critics noted as having a minimal role in season three.[3] In July 2007, two months before the premiere of season four, series creator Marc Cherry announced that a gay couple would be moving to Wisteria Lane around the fifth episode of the new season.[3][4] Cherry named the characters after ABC journalist Bob Woodruff and his wife, Lee,[3][5] and based them on his own experiences and interactions with neighbors as a gay man.[3] Cherry decided not to make the new characters "issue-oriented" and treat them like the heterosexual couples on the series.[5] Actor Tuc Watkins was cast in the recurring role of Bob in August 2007,[4] having previously auditioned for the role of Adam Mayfair for the series only a few weeks earlier.[6] Kevin Rahm, who was cast as Bob's partner Lee, originally auditioned for Bob.[7] Watkins was promoted from recurring guest star to series regular for the seventh season.[8]
Tired of life in the city, Bob forces his life partner, Lee McDermott (Kevin Rahm) to move to the suburbs in the fourth season. They move onto Wisteria Lane in Fairview, Eagle State.[9] Their arrival creates conflict when their neighbors object to them putting a sculpture fountain in their front yard. Neighbor Katherine Mayfair (Dana Delany) revives the homeowners' association and campaigns to have the fountain removed. However, Bob and Lee uncover information about a sexual harassment lawsuit that was filed against Katherine's husband, Adam (Nathan Fillion), in Chicago, forcing Katherine to retreat from the argument.[10] The fountain is later destroyed in a tornado.[11] Bob and Lee decide to celebrate their relationship with a commitment ceremony.[12] While Bob wants a cherub ice sculpture, Lee insists they have an enchanted castle ice sculpture. The argument causes them to call off the ceremony, but they realize that their love is powerful enough to overcome small squabbles.[13]
In the fifth season, Bob's neighbors, Tom (Doug Savant) and Lynette Scavo (Felicity Huffman), hire him to represent their son, Porter (Charlie Carver), in court after he is accused of burning down the White Horse nightclub.[14] When Porter runs away, Tom and Lynette have his twin brother, Preston (Max Carver), take his place during the trial. Bob is angry when he learns of their deception, as he is torn between his friendship with the Scavos and his responsibilities as a lawyer.[15] Nevertheless, Bob is able to have the case thrown out due to the lack of sufficient evidence.[16]
In the sixth season, Bob offers to legally defend Danny Bolen (Beau Mirchoff), a new neighbor who is accused of attacking Julie Mayer (Andrea Bowen), the daughter of Bob's friend and neighbor, Susan (Teri Hatcher). Though Susan feels betrayed, Bob insists that it his moral and ethical obligation to be Danny's lawyer. Nevertheless, Danny has an alibi and is cleared of all charges.[17][18] Later, Bob and Lee reveal that they are in marriage counseling,[19] during which time they run into several obstacles while trying to adopt a child.[20] Later, neighbor Gabrielle Solis (Eva Longoria Parker) offers to be their egg donor for a surrogacy. Bob and Lee gratefully accept her offer, but tell her that they do not want her to have an active role in raising the child. This causes Gabrielle to question her commitment and she retracts her offer. Drained from dealing with the difficulty and unhappiness of trying to have a child, Lee leaves Bob.[21]
At the beginning of season seven, Bob and Lee have yet to reconcile their differences and are still no longer living together.[22] To ease his loneliness, Bob develops a friendship with Gabrielle's husband, Carlos Solis and eventually mends his relationship with Lee.[23] When Gabrielle learns that her daughter Juanita (Madison De La Garza) was switched with Grace Sanchez (Cecilia Balagot) at birth eight years ago, she asks Bob to track down Grace's family.[24] Gabrielle uses Bob's services again when Grace's parents face deportation when they are discovered to be living in the country illegally.[25] Paul Young (Mark Moses) enlists Lee's help to purchase seven homes on Wisteria Lane so he can gain a majority in the homeowners' association and open a halfway house for ex-convicts on the street.[26] The neighbors greatly oppose Paul's plan and resent Lee for helping him. Paul tells Bob and Lee that he has obtained the majority with the purchase of an eighth house and suggests they move to avoid the wrath of their neighbors. Bob and Lee sell their home to Paul without realizing that Paul had lied and their home will in fact be the eighth home he acquires. The other neighbors are furious to learn that Bob and Lee have sold their home to Paul. A staged protest against the opening of the halfway house escalates into a violent riot in which Bob and Lee are attacked.[27] Later, Bob and Lee announce that they are adopting a young girl named Jenny.[28]
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