Amy Locane’s time on Melrose Place was short-lived, but she made quite the impression. So, would she return for the reboot?
“It would be very exciting to bring it back,” Locane, 53, exclusively reveals in the latest issue of Us Weekly, confirming she’d happily sign on for round two of the drama soap.
Locane was part of the original cast of Melrose Place, which premiered in 1992. She played southern belle Sandy Harling, an aspiring actress living in the titular West Hollywood apartment complex.
Throughout season 1, Sandy had a protective and flirtatious relationship with Jake Hanson (Grant Show), after previously dating. She was also close with Rhonda Blair (Vanessa Williams), her roommate. Her biggest story line involved a stalker, whom Sandy managed to get rid of after Jake came to her rescue and was arrested for assault.
Locane’s Sandy appeared on 13 episodes before the character left the complex after booking a role on a TV show. Reports at the time indicated there were tensions on set. Now reflecting on her departure, the actress reveals there are multiple reasons her Melrose Place role was cut short.
“Our show was an automatic season and they sort of made the decision that I didn’t fit what they were going for after the 12 episodes had already aired,” she shares with Us. “The southern accent was weird for some people. They didn’t like it. And perhaps I was a little younger than the rest of the cast.”
Locane recalls, “A lot of people liked Sandy, but maybe I was a little too campy.”
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Despite her early exit, Locane would say yes to reuniting on screen with Heather Locklear, Laura Leighton and Daphne Zuniga, who are set to reprise their roles as Amanda Woodward, Sydney Andrews and Jo Reynolds, respectively, in the reboot, which was announced in April 2024.
“I would do it in a heartbeat,” she says.
The Cry-Baby actress walked away from showbiz in 2006, which she reveals could have been the catalyst for a bout with depression. “There was a void in my life because I had [acted] for so long,” Locane recalls.
Following her time away from Hollywood, Locane was incarcerated from 2013 to 2015 for a DWI crash in 2010 that killed a 60-year-old woman. At the time of her arrest, she was convicted of second-degree vehicular homicide and assault.
Five years after her release, she was sent back to prison from 2020 to 2024 after her first sentence was deemed too lenient. Locane has been a free woman since December 2024, and she tells Us, her life has been forever changed.
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Working through her “guilt,” Locane says there isn’t a day that goes by when she doesn’t think about the accident: “To this day, I have a lot of remorse. It’s a very, very, very heavy, heavy reality to live with,” she says.
“When I’m praying or when I do daily devotionals every morning, I just try to keep her in mind,” Locane reveals. “And that acknowledgement makes me feel like I am aware of her and my day.”
Locane is also focused on the positives in her life, one of which is a possible return to acting. However, a simple life just outside of Princeton, New Jersey with her daughters, Paige, 18, and Avery, 16, is her No. 1 priority. (Locane shares her girls with ex-husband Mark Bovenizer, who filed for divorce in 2015 following her first prison stay.)
“I see me and my family kind of growing old together,” she shares of her hopes for the future. “I want to be married again. If I do meet a guy now, I don’t have to worry about [telling him] ‘Oh, by the way, I might have to go away for a little bit,’ so that’ll be exciting.”
Watch the exclusive video above for more on Locane’s life after prison — and pick up the latest issue of Us Weekly, on newsstands now.
