Tori Spelling starred in 'So NoTORIous,' the fictionalized show about her life which ran for one season.
Network executives don't always get it right. Tori Spelling reflected on her short-lived show, So NoTORIous, during Friday's episode of her podcast, misSPELLING.
Speaking with actor and friend James Carpinello, who played a fictionalized version of her real-life best friend on the VH1 series, Spelling recalled one casting decision that executives at NBC, who were considering the show at the time, took issue with.
Then-newcomer Joe Manganiello had been cast in the role of Scott, Spelling's love interest, on the show, but the network wasn't convinced.
"Great guy, great guy," Spelling said of Manganiello. "So, NBC, after we did our first table read wanted to recast him. They did…. NBC was like, 'Hmm, we don't think he has star quality.' He was only going to be on for two episodes, but it's her love interest and we want someone who people are going to want to see more, and we just don't think he has the 'it' factor."
Of course, Manganiello went on to appear in hit shows like True Blood, How I Met Your Mother, and more. He also became wildly popular thanks to his turn as Big Dick Richie in Magic Mike XXL.
So NoTORIous ran for only one 10-episode season on VH1 in 2006.
Other future stars who hadn't made it big yet that appeared on the show were Zachary Quinto and even Ariel Winter, who played a young Tori. Coincidentally, Winter's big break happened on the sitcom Modern Family opposite actress Sofía Vergara, who was married to Manganiello for seven years before splitting in July 2023.
As for Spelling, during Friday's podcast, she expressed an interest in bringing So NoTORIous back in the present day.
"I really do [want to]," she said. "I mean, no time like the present. There's a big shift going on in my life, and I think it would be great."
That "big shift" is, of course, Spelling's split from her husband of 18 years, Dean McDermott. The former couple shares five kids together.
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