A victim of the new depression, THE STARTER WIFE was based on the novel by GIGI LEVANGIE (the former wife of Hollywood mogul BRIAN GRAZER) and reveled in the excess of the early aughts. We spoke with MESSING over the weekend and she freely lamented the demise of the popular series.

The novel (her fourth), Queen Takes King (Simon & Schuster, $25.99), follows the world of upper-tier Manhattanites, centering on socialite Cynthia Power’s divorce battle with her philandering husband, Jackson.

Grazer knows this topic well. She’s the ex-wife of Hollywood producer Brian Grazer (Apollo 13) and wrote about their me$$y divorce and aftermath in 2006′s The Starter Wife, which became a Lifetime series starring Debra Messing. It’s about a woman having to begin again after being dumped for a younger starlet.

Will Queen head to TV, too?

“Miniseries, movie. I’ll take anything,” jokes Grazer from her native Los Angeles, where she lives with her two sons. “It’s like finding a gold mine in your back yard. It just doesn’t happen.”

OK, hypothetically, if it did, who would play the cad?

“George Clooney — but that’s just because I want to spend time in a room with him,” she says.

Grazer actually found inspiration for the book by meeting Donald Trump (“incredible work ethic and obviously larger than life”) and thinks in order for the story to work, you have to feel for the louse.

“His little vulnerabilities — losing hair, gaining weight — make you not hate this guy so much,” explains the 45-year-old writer. “I could see someone like Hugh Jackman. He can play narcissistic but charming.”

And the female lead?

“Sandra Bullock, maybe. Kate Walsh. Lighter would be Kate Hudson or Debra Messing. I wish I had her height — and her feet,” she says.

But it’s OK if Queen goes no further than the shelves.

“I’m not that writer who hangs out on sets, I have nothing to do there,” she says. “I’d rather be home.”

Even so, the 10-episode first season offers a frisky skewering of Hollywood hypocrisy and superficiality. Divorcee Molly Kagan (Messing) deals with a selfish producer ex (David Alan Basche) and a 7-year-old daughter who wants a BlackBerry.

Molly swears off men and struggles to make her own way by turning her private journal into a humor column. But a writing instructor ( Hart Bochner) and a thief complicate her plans.

Will & Grace star Messing brings glamour, charm and poignancy to her role. In fantasy sequences, Messing flourishes as Elizabeth I and Indiana Jones.

First-rate actors play Molly’s best pals. The Starter Wife isn’t seamless or groundbreaking, but Messing and her colleagues deliver stylish goods in a threadbare era for comedy.

USA Network has filed for divorce from The Starter Wife, citing irreconcilable ratings.

When the Debra Messing-fronted Wife debuted in 2007 as a six-hour miniseries, it attracted more than 5 million viewers and went on to earn 10 Emmy nominations. However, ratings for its 10-episode first season averaged just 2.4 million viewers — a decent number by most cable standards, but not for USA, where its top shows (Burn Notice, Monk) regularly pull in around 6 million.

In an exclusive statement, USA called Starter Wife a “critical and creative success,” and added that the Dec. 12 season finale served as a “satisfying conclusion” to the franchise.