Neal McDonough is an American actor who is perhaps best known for his portrayal as Dave Williams in the television series “Desperate Housewives.” Dave Williams is the husband of Nicollette Sheridan’s character, Edie Britt, who has blonde hair. In spite of the fact that he got his start on the notoriously racy program, McDonough is, by all accounts, a very traditional actor who is so morally uptight that he may almost be called a puritan.
McDonough flat-out refuses and won’t participate in any on-screen canoodling or any other activity involving more than handholding. In response to questions from the press about his odd position, the actor said, “I won’t kiss any other lady since these lips are designed for one woman.” That fortunate woman is Ruvé McDonough, who became McDonough’s wife in 2003 when the couple tied the knot.
Although it may be beneficial for McDonough’s marriage, his no-kissing rule has, at times, been very detrimental to his professional life. Fortunately, he was cast on “Desperate Housewives” before the producer of the program, Marc Cherry, discovered the full scope of McDonough’s very detailed rule book. When he was hired for the part, he said, “When Marc Cherry signed me, I replied, ‘I’m sure you know, but I won’t kiss anyone.'” Both of the guys came to the conclusion that they needed to find a means to avoid sexual encounters and close quarters.
McDonough brought up the conversation he had with Cherry again in an interview “”But this is Desperate Housewives!” he said incredulously. I responded with “I know.” After pausing for about five seconds, he said, “Okay, I’m simply going to have to learn how to write better.” And all of us had a wonderful time.”
While Cherry was ready and able to find a way to circumvent McDonough’s argument, other authors were not as kind in their criticism. When he thought back on how hard it was for him to get consistent employment, he commented, “It was a bad circumstance for me.”
According to Entertainment Tonight, McDonough proceeded, detailing Hollywood’s response to his peculiar request, and he said the following: “After that, nobody would hire me because they believed that I was some kind of fanatical religious extremist. I have a strong faith in God… That is the credo by which I live. It was challenging for a number of years.”
Nevertheless, in the end, Graham Yost extended an offer to cast him in a part on the program “Justified.” Since the two men had previously collaborated on the HBO miniseries “Band of Brothers,” Yost was confident in his ability to find a way to circumvent McDonough’s restriction. McDonough noted, in reference to his casting in the Western crime thriller, “I knew it was my chance back at the championship.” [Cast member]
McDonough saw the post as a chance to not waste his time and to really commit himself, especially considering that he had had some degree of difficulty in his professional life. He reflected on his performance, saying, “I believe my acting became so much better because I genuinely loved it.” “I got a blow right in the chin, but I wasn’t going to let this battle get away from me. And it was successful. Since then, I’ve had nothing but success in my professional life.”
His marriage has remained solid despite the progress he has made in his work. McDonough has said the following about his wife: “To have her as my partner in everything, I’m just the most blessed guy I know… without her, I most certainly would not be talking with you right now.” Almost 20 years, five children, and just one heck of an awesome life later, McDonough has said this about his wife.
Then, McDonough said, “I’m not going to squander anything,” referring to the gifts of his family as well as the opportunities presented by his work. “That’s simply the kind of person I am. I have a wonderful wife and five wonderful children, yet I still find time to enjoy my career.”
The actor continued, gushing over his family and the role he sees for himself in spite of the pressures of a successful playing career “I want to make sure that I am looking out for everyone’s best interests. I’m going to follow in my father’s footsteps and do the same thing he did.”
When McDonough was abruptly let go from his role on the ABC comedy “Scoundrels” in 2010, he was forced to contend with a number of challenges. McDonough claims that the reason he was fired from the show was because he refused to do any sex scenes, which placed not only his career but also his family in peril. Despite the fact that the show only lasted for one season.
However, following his second shot at popularity with “Justified,” McDonough has gone on to feature as President Dwight D. Eisenhower in “American Horror Story: Double Feature” and antagonist industrialist Malcolm Beck in “Yellowstone.” Both roles were quite successful for him.
Although it may seem as if McDonough is making a significant sacrifice in order to respect his wife, the truth is that he and his partner do have a love story that is unique in its own way. They were acquainted with one another when McDonough was filming “Band of Brothers” in England. According to reports, they “simply stumbled into one other on the street, locked eyes, and that was it” on the night that he was in the nation, which also happened to be St. Patrick’s Day. This information was obtained via Fox News. Relaying the event, the actor affectionately recalled, “The following morning, I contacted the lady I was seeing at the time and said, ‘I’m sorry, it’s not going to work out with us anymore — I just met the woman I’m going to marry.'”
Although it is possible that McDonough may not be honored with an MTV Award for Best Kiss, it seems as if he does deserve some recognition for being such a loyal family guy.