Hollywood’s Favorite TV Shows: 10 ABC Shows That Made the List

Everybody has a favorite television show. It may be the one you watched as a child, the one you watched with pals in a college room or the one you protected with a significant other. The Hollywood Reporter polled over 2800 Hollywood insiders, including 779 actors, 365 producers, and 268 directors, to determine their favorite Desperate Housewives episodes and then ranked the top 100.

THR examined how each network did in the voting for the top 100 shows, in addition to the No. 1 show: NBC, CBS, FOX, HBO, and Netflix. THR also examined the finest performances by decade: 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, 2000s

The following are the 18 ABC series that reached the list of Hollywood's 100 Favorite TV Shows.

#1. Modern Family

The show's casting director saw 1,400 actors; 400 of them auditioned for creators Steve Levitan and Chris Lloyd. But tweaks were made even as the cast was whittled down to eight. “Jesse Tyler Ferguson came in for the part of Cam, but he didn't feel right,” recalls Levitan. “So we asked him to come back for Mitchell. He said, ‘Thank God because I'm more of a Mitchell.'”

#2. Lost

Dharma Initiative, the symbol for the fringe-science outfit that wouldn't become prominent until season two, was placed to the plane's side by showrunners Damon Lindelof, 42, and Carlton Cuse, 56, in the pilot of their castaway mystery. As a result, “[the logo] became viral,” remembers Cuse. While the network may not have wanted us to be complicated, the public indeed did.

#3. Twin Peaks

A cult following built up for David Lynch's strange criminal series after just two seasons, so Showtime was reviving it in 2017. Prominent personalities like Lost's Carlton Cuse, who says he's constantly paying homage to Peaks with his spooky A&E series Bates Motel are part of that cult. The show “was like a shot of Everclear to your subconscious,” he says. Chris Carter, the man behind The X-Files, is also a big fan. As he puts it, “Sui generis” (Latin for “one of a kind”), he explains it.

#4. Happy Days

The network gave Fonzie one piece of advice: Ditch the menacing leather jacket. It was argued that the jacket was motorcycle safety equipment, and a compromise was reached: Fonzie may wear it when his bike was on the screen. Anson Williams, 65, who portrayed Potsie, reveals, “That's why you saw the motorcycle in Mr. C's kitchen.” Then there was Fonzie's place, and Arnold's, and…”

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#5. Castle

It's a terrific procedural about a mystery writer who also happens to be an NYPD detective. In the end, it's not all about being a critical darling. Actor Nathan Fillion, 44, says, “I tend to preserve how fantastic Castle isn't.

#6. The Wonder Years

In the premiere of this wonderfully nostalgic sitcom about suburban adolescence in the late '60s, Fred Savage, 39, had his first kiss, which he described as “terrifying.” It was a bad omen that it took him six tries to nail it. You can be sure it will happen with your first kiss on camera, according to co-star Danica McKellar.

#7. Moonlighting

Co-stars Bruce Willis and Cybill Shepherd's endearing verbal jousting made this PI dramedy a smash hit. Agnes DiPesto, the eccentric receptionist, was also a draw for some viewers. Actress Allyce Beasley, 61, says: “People still call me Ms. DiPesto.” “she seems to have been an indelible persona for many individuals.”

#8. Scandal

Shonda Rhimes, 45, the creator of the most outrageous political soap opera on television, recalls sitting next to President Obama and First Lady Michelle two years ago at the Kennedy Center. “This is not Scandal; he insisted, “This is the White House.” [The show's] president's constant pining and lovemaking made him think it was hysterical. The idea of them all lounging about [the White House] binge-watching shows is so appealing to me, though!”

#9. The Flintstones

The prehistoric family cartoon Fred and Wilma were ahead of its time because it was the first primetime show to feature two people in bed together. It never materialized when Fox approached Seth MacFarlane in 2012 about a show's remake. Family Guy creator, 41, wondered at the time. “Where does Fred Flintstone fit in a world with so many animated fathers on TV?”

#10. Alias

There was much more going on in J.J. Abrams' spy-fi series than just Jennifer Garner's wigs and clinging outfits. He thinks the movie was about “a family that happened to be spies”: Victor Garber, who played his son's spy-father, 66. As a result, “It was relatable.”