Molly Ringwald Says ‘Secret Life Of The American Teenager’ Was Her “Worst” Experience Due To “One Person That Was Really Difficult”
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Molly Ringwald has revealed that filming The Secret Life of the American Teenager was the worst experience of her career, pointing to a difficult colleague as the reason. Speaking on Watch What Happens Live, the actress ranked the ABC Family drama as a "1" out of her body of work, well below other credits such as Sixteen Candles, Pretty in Pink and Not Another Teen Movie. Her comments have drawn attention given the show's popularity and the affection she expressed for most of her castmates.
Ringwald declined to name the person responsible, but said she loved working with Shailene Woodley and the wider cast, adding that "there was one person that was really difficult" who "brought it down to a 1" for her. The Secret Life of the American Teenager ran on ABC Family from 2008 to 2013 across five seasons, with Woodley starring as a pregnant teenager and Ringwald playing her mother, Anne, as a regular for the first four seasons.
- Ringwald calls Secret Life of the American Teenager her worst project
- Blames one unnamed colleague for the negative experience
- She praised co-star Shailene Woodley and the rest of the cast
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Molly Ringwald is best known as one of the defining teen stars of 1980s Hollywood, thanks to films like Sixteen Candles and Pretty in Pink. Decades later, she took a lead role in The Secret Life of the American Teenager, a family drama that aired on the American cable channel ABC Family between 2008 and 2013. The show centred on Shailene Woodley's character, a teenager who becomes pregnant, with Ringwald playing her mother, Anne, for most of the series.
Ringwald has now looked back on that period publicly, ranking her past projects during a television appearance and rating her time on the show unusually low compared with her film career. She has said the experience was soured by friction with one unnamed colleague, while making clear she has warm feelings towards Woodley and the rest of the cast.
The story matters mainly because Ringwald is a well-known and generally well-liked figure, so a rare negative comment about a past job draws attention, particularly given the mystery over who she is referring to. No further details about the person's identity have been confirmed.
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