Bette Midler reveals she regrets not SUING co-star Lindsay Lohan for her sitcom Bette getting cancelled: ‘I couldn’t make myself clear’

Bette Midler has revealed she regrets not suing former co-star Lindsay Lohan after their sitcom Bette was cancelled.

The short-lived show, which aired for just one season on CBS from 2000 to 2001, was canceled before its 22-episode order was completed due to increasingly poor ratings.

After the pilot aired, the two-time Oscar nominee claimed Lohan, 37, refused to return.

‘[She] decided she didn’t want to do it, or she had other fish to fry,” Midler recalled in an episode of David Duchovny’s Fail better podcast. ‘So Lindsay Lohan left the building and I said, “Well, what do you do now?” And the studio didn’t help me. It was extremely chaotic.’

She continued, “If I had been in my right mind, or if I had known that it was my part of my duty to stand up and say, ‘There’s no way this is going to work, I’m going to file a lawsuit,’ then I would have done that. done.”‘

After the pilot aired, the two-time Oscar nominee claimed Lohan, 37, refused to return

“But it seems like I was somehow conned into not being able to get into the writers’ room. I couldn’t talk to the showrunner. I couldn’t make myself clear,” the Hocus Pocus told listeners.

The series followed Midler playing herself in a semi-satirized version of her life.

The first season had 16 episodes and was largely autobiographical.

At the time, Lohan was fresh off the success of her 1998 film The Parent Trap and just a few years removed from being cast in some of her biggest hits, including Freaky Friday (2003) and Mean Girls (2004).

While it’s unclear if Midler still hates Lohan’s choice, the mother of one posted a sweet throwback to the set together last week.

“It was so fun filming with the incredible @bettemidler,” Lohan captioned a photo with the Broadway legend.

During the interview, Midler declared the entire series a “big, big, big mistake” and took some responsibility for why it went wrong. ‘I think for several reasons. It was the wrong motivation. It was a part of the media that I simply didn’t understand.

‘I watched it. I appreciated it. “I enjoyed it, but I didn’t know what it meant to make it,” she said.

The series followed Midler playing herself in a semi-satirized version of her life and was largely autobiographical

Although the star said she had previous experience making films, doing theatrical live events and variety television shows, she had “never done a sitcom.”

‘I didn’t realize what the pace was. And I didn’t understand what the hierarchy was. And no one bothered to tell me,” she explained.

In response, Duchovny said, “Well, the hierarchy should have been, since Bette is the name of the show, you should have been number one in the hierarchy.”

While it’s unclear whether Midler still hates Lohan’s choice, the mother-of-one posted a sweet throwback to the set last week, as she recalled having a “blast movie” with the Broadway legend.

Despite not enjoying her stint on television, Midler has received numerous accolades for her film, Broadway and voice roles (seen in 2021)

“Well, I was immediately kicked to the curb,” Midler said. “And I didn’t know what to do about it. I mean, all the signs were there. But because I was so green, I didn’t understand what my options were, what choices I could have made to improve my situation. I didn’t know I could have taken the lead.”

Despite not enjoying her stint on television, Midler has received numerous accolades for her film roles, on Broadway and her voice.

The artist has four Golden Globe Awards, three Grammy Awards, three Primetime Emmy Awards, two Tony Awards and a Kennedy Center Honor.

She has also been nominated for two Academy Awards and a British Academy Film Award.

Her filmography includes the musical drama The Rose (1979), Hocus Pocus (1993), The First Wives Club (1996), The Stepford Wives (2004) and Gypsy (1993).