VANESSA WILLIAMS was shocked when her new TV series “666 Park Avenue” was canned after just seven episodes – and now the badly shaken 49-year-old beauty fears her career is headed in the same direction.
The former Miss America thought she had landed a surefire hit – starring as the matriarch of a haunted Manhattan apartment building – and she tossed aside several other offers to take the role.
“Horror shows like ‘The Walking Dead’ and ‘American Horror Story’ had created such a buzz, ABC wanted into the game and wooed Vanessa to come on board,” revealed an insider. “They convinced her the show was tailor-made for her and could be on the air 10 years.”
But those promises quickly evaporated. Vanessa felt shortchanged on screen time and believed the show was poorly promoted, leading to an ever-shrinking viewership.
The much-anticipated series debuted in September to a mediocre audience of seven million, and by its Nov. 11 airing, that number had shrunk to four million.
For Vanessa, the disaster brought back painful memories of her resignation as Miss America in 1984. It was sparked by “Penthouse” magazine publishing scandalous nude photos taken of her before she’d found fame. She felt the photographer betrayed her trust by allowing the private photos to be published.
“Vanessa became less trusting, and now she feels like she fell for it again,” said a source.
“This is terribly upsetting. Vanessa knows she’s getting older and won’t be able to rely on her stunning looks much longer.”
