Joss Whedon talks Dollhouse

by Jennifer Squires Biller

Last week I was invited to a conference call with one of my favorite TV writers: Joss Whedon.

Pinch me.

Yes, that Joss Whedon, of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, and Firefly fame.

Whedon was, of course, funny. Anyone familiar with his writing knows he can turn a phrase so quickly and so humorously that you’re laughing before you realize just how clever he really is.

Whedon participated in the call to speak to journalists about his new TV show Dollhouse, premiering on FOX Friday at 9 p.m. ET.

Dollhouse is set in a futuristic laboratory where the residents are implanted with memories and skills and then assigned various tasks and personas, only to have their memories erased upon the completion of their assignments. They can become anyone. The show centers on Echo, actress Eliza Dushku, (Faith of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.) Echo is beginning to realize who she is and what’s going on.

Here’s a quick recap of the interview. You have to love a guy who can use the words “enounce” and “amorphous” in the same sentence. (See the paragraph where he discusses the genesis of the show.)

Comparing Dollhouse to Whedon’s former shows Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, and Firefly.
Whedon: “There is a lot of fun and a lot of humor in it. What it doesn’t have is an inherent silliness that both Buffy and Firefly had, and even Angel. That was we could just take one step back, that part of the fun was deconstructing the genre we were in. This has to be a little bit more grounded in order for it to play, or it would become campy, and with vampires and spaceships and horses, we had more leeway to be a little less realistic in how we plotted things. But humor is a part of the show all over the place, because we have really funny actors, and these situations do become absurd, and besides, we would get really bored if we didn’t.”

On rewriting the Dollhouse pilot to make the network happier:
Whedon: “Part of the mandate of the show is to make people nervous. It’s to make them identify with people they don’t like and get into situations that they don’t approve of, and also look at some of the heroic side of things and wonder if maybe they were wrong about what motivated those as well. So we’re out to make people uncomfortable, but not maybe so much our bosses…. We had all of the elements, the characters, none of which were changed really, and none of the regular characters, and the premise, the concept, the way we were able to explore what makes us human, all of that is in there. As the season progresses, it ends up going exactly where I had hoped it would go before all of this happened, so I do feel like we got back to our vision in a way that really works for the network. And the last few episodes that we just completed shooting got all of us extraordinarily excited.”

On the Friday night time slot
Whedon: “Honestly, I really do see the opportunity there because the deal with the Friday night time slot was you don’t come out, bang, opening weekend, and it’s all decided. It’s about growing a fan base, both for Dollhouse and Terminator. I think Terminator is a remarkably good show, and the kind of show that makes sense to be paired with Dollhouse, so I feel great about that, plus I get to see all these posters with Summer (Glau) and Eliza together and that’s just too cool. Ultimately, this is a show where people will hopefully become intrigued and then hang in, that really builds, so it needs the 13 weeks, and it needs the 13 weeks of people paying attention, but not so much attention that it gets burned out in the glare of the spotlight. I’ve always worked best under the radar. Most of my shows people have come to after they stopped airing, but I would like to buck that trend, and at the same time, it is part of how I work that you stay with it and it grows on you and it becomes family, and the Friday night is a much better place for that to actually happen.”

On whether he’ll do any of his trademark unique ideas such as having an episode where no one speaks (Buffy), an episode of puppets (Angel) or an all musical episode (Buffy.)
Whedon: “Most of the things I think have been done at some point, and we don’t think it’s done for their own sakes, but one of the exciting things about the show, one of the reasons why we’re excited to have more runs at it is that you can really come at these stories from a lot of different perspectives; from the perspective of a client, from the perspective, as we do in episode six, from the man on the street, from the perspective of obviously Echo or any of the dolls or the people who are running it. But I don’t have anything specific in mind, and no, I’m not planning a Dollhouse musical just yet.”

Commenting on episode two of Dollhouse and why it wasn’t used as the pilot. (I won’t spoil you but the concept is a bit “outrageous.”)
Whedon: “Outrageous is always good. That episode was meant originally to be around episode five, or possibly even eight, and it was the network who said, excuse me, did you say bow hunting? That will come second please, because we already had the pilot working, so it kind of got bumped up further than, but you’re not the first person to say why didn’t you just open with that, and my answer would be I don’t know. I had the other idea first.”

On the genesis of the show and how it began with a lunch with Eliza Dushku
Whedon: “I’m very interested in concepts of identity, what enounce is our own, what’s socialized, can people actually change, what do we expect from each other, how much do we use each other and manipulate each other, and what would we do if we had this kind of power over each other? And in this, our increasingly virtual world, self-definition has become a very amorphous concept, so it just felt what was on my mind. I don’t mean it felt timely like I was trolling the papers looking for something timely. It’s just been something I think about a lot.”

On Dollhouse star Eliza Dushku
Whedon: “She’s overcome her homely shyness over these years. Eliza is, apart from being, in my opinion, as great a star as I have ever known; she has a genuinely powerful electric and luminous quality that I’ve rarely seen. She’s also a really solid person. She’s a good friend. She’s a feminist. She’s an activist. She’s interested in the people around her. She has a lot of different things going on, and I’ve watched her over the years, as a friend, try to take control of her career, and try to get the roles that weren’t available to her, and protect the ethos and the message of what it was that she was doing, and I respect that enormously. Being part of that progression is, for me, one of the greatest benefits of this show.”

Dollhouse premieres this Friday at 9 p.m. ET on FOX.

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Interview with Rosie O’Donnell: Rosie dishes about her new variety show and "The View"

by Jennifer Squires Biller

I spoke with Rosie O’Donnell today on a conference call to discuss her upcoming Rosie Live variety television special.

First of all, she was delightful, sticking around to answer all the questions from inquisitive journalists. (New York Post, did you really need to have three reporters ask questions? Geesh! Give the rest of us a chance.)

Second, she loved the name of my Web site, Tube Talk, which endeared her to me from the get go. (At first, she thought it was named Tube Top, so that was a funny moment. You can hear the hilarious exchange for yourself at the end of the blog post in a brand new audio feature.)

Not only did O’Donnell dish the scoop on her upcoming variety show special, she talked about her difficult time on The View, mentioned her old talk show and that infamous heated interview with Tom Selleck, and even discussed politics. “Variety” indeed.

Yes, Rosie is headed back to television. For how long, depends on ratings for her upcoming variety show. If ratings are high, NBC will order six more episodes, O’Donnell said. If those go well, then NBC can renew the show in cycles of six, she said.

Rosie Live is an old-style variety show, the kind many of us TV addicts grew up watching, including O’Donnell. Think Sonny and Cher, Donny and Marie, and Carol Burnett, all inspirations for the show.

Rosie gave me an exclusive piece of scoop for Tube Talk, since she loved the name of my Web site so much (thank you Rosie!): Gloria Estefan will be stopping by the variety special. As previously reported, also on board for the show are Alec Baldwin, Liza Minnelli, Jane Krakowski, Kathy Griffin, Alanis Morissette, Ne-Yo and plenty of Broadway actors.

Minnelli and O’Donnell will open the show with a duet, she said. It’s a song from The Act and one that Minnelli hasn’t sung in 30 years.

“It was a song I grew up singing and now the dream is coming true,” O’Donnell said. “She’s showbiz royalty.”

The format for Rosie Live is scripted comedy bits, with the celebrity guests playing themselves, a comedy sketch with Rosie dressed as a policeman and plenty of musical numbers.

What viewers won’t see is Rosie espousing her political views. This show is “to give people an hour to forget about their troubles,” O’Donnell said. Considering the current state of the world, I think the timing is perfect for an old-school variety show. So does O’Donnell, who likened the current environment to that of the ‘70s when variety shows were popular.

“It’s the right time,” she said. “Variety shows were a big hit in the ‘70s when the economy was in the crapper, and gasoline was scarce, and people’s belief in the political system was shaky.”

As for The View, O’Donnell said she rarely watches the show and is still unhappy with how her stint ended.

“After I left the show, I couldn’t watch it. I had so many mixed emotions. It would just be almost like post-traumatic stress disorder. Every time I would turn it on I would have mild panic and have to turn it off. Truly I haven’t watched it,” she said.

“Having been there and having seen what goes on behind the curtain, it’s a different experience to watch it than as an average viewer,” she said. "No matter what Barbara (Walters) wants everyone to believe, and think and act as if everybody there gets along and is really good friends... it's just not the reality. I’m not saying they loathe each other... The fact is there wasn’t a lot of camaraderie off camera there…That’s not saying you can’t work with people and have a relationship.”

As for that infamous argument with co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck about the war in Iraq, it’s still upsetting to O’Donnell that it played out on live television.

"For me what happened on the show was a personal argument with a friend that was publicly displayed... I didn't want to be paid to fight. When I started and took that job it was with the intent of speaking for the millions of mothers whose voices weren't represented on television," she said… "I’m not proud of the arguing and the fighting.”

After being the boss of her own talk show, it was tough not having control of The View, O’Donnell said.

“It was Barbara Walters and Bill Geddes’ program... I was not the boss, and I did find that difficult,” she said. “I did enjoy the program right up until the day it all went crazy…I did it for a year and I thought it was really great, right up until the day it went off the track. When you're on a football team and your own team won't support you, and your own guy tackles you, it's time to take off the uniform."

O’Donnell also discussed how much she loved her former self-titled talk show and that she didn’t argue politics on it with the exception of that infamous fight with Tom Selleck about guns. “It was a sad day for both of us, I’m sure,” she said.

During the conference call, journalists were limited to one question and a follow up. And for all my readers who love her character Dawn Budge on Nip/Tuck, I asked if we’d see her again on the show. O’Donnell hopes so, she said. So do I.

If you don’t want to wait for the new season of Nip/Tuck, you can get catch O’Donnell this Wednesday in her variety special. Personally, I can’t wait. Long time readers of this column, dating back to its early days as a print newspaper column, know I’ve been a fan of O’Donnell’s for many years. I loved the Rosie O’Donnell Show so much I taped every episode. So, to say I’m excited to see her back on television in a format that doesn’t involve arguing and politics is my very own little Christmas present.

Rosie Live will air Wednesday, November 26, (the night before Thanksgiving) at 8 p.m. ET on NBC.

To hear my fun interview with Rosie, click the link below.

(When the window opens, click on “rosieinterview.wav” and “open.” It will take a couple seconds to load. This is my first attempt at including audio in a post, so please let me know if you’re having trouble hearing it. The audio worked fine for me in Windows Media Player.)

ROSIE INTERVIEW

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Exclusive interview with One Tree Hill's James Lafferty

by Jennifer Squires Biller

One Tree Hill is back tonight with a new episode on the CW at 9 p.m. ET. To celebrate, I’ve got an exclusive interview with the one-and-only James Lafferty (Nathan Scott.)

I talked to Lafferty by phone last week and did my best to get him to spill some secrets on the remaining upcoming episodes. We also talked about his annual charity basketball game at which fans get to meet the cast, what he likes to watch on television, and what he thinks of the newest member of the cast: the adorable Jamie Scott (child-actor Jackson Brundage.)

Jennifer: OK, let’s talk One Tree Hill! There has been a change in dynamic this year with the fast-forward through the college years and into adulthood. I have to say, the Tree Hill graduates have been so successful that it makes the rest of us look like slackers. It’s nice, and relatable, to see your character NOT having everything in his life fall so easily in place. What’s it like playing the guy whose life didn’t turn out the way he thought it would?

James: It’s interesting because Nathan’s character always sort of (identified himself) with the basketball court and to have that taken away, it’s been a challenge, definitely. I haven’t really had to delve that deep into the character since season one. It was good to reach down. It turned out really good. It worked for the character. It really set up a good opportunity for him to come full circle and get back to the guy that he was.

Jennifer: I know the storyline direction has changed this season, but I’ve really missed Deb, Dan, Karen, and especially Whitey. Do you know if there is any chance we’ll get to see more of them in upcoming episodes?

James: Yeah. Dan will be around. We’ll be seeing a little bit more of Deb, she’s gonna come in and out, and Whitey, I think we’ll see him in the future, but I’m not sure how much we’ll see him this season.

Jennifer: For years, my readers have been salivating over Nathan Scott, but this season, you’ve got competition, Mr. It seems your onscreen son, Jamie Scott, is winning the hearts of America’s females. What’s it like working with such an adorable little guy (child actor Jackson Brundage)?

James: It’s amazing. The kid is a genius. He brings such a life to the set. It changes the entire dynamic of the set. Everybody is in a much better mood when he’s around. He’s so much fun to work with. He’s very smart.

Jennifer: Can you tease us with what’s coming up for Nathan in the remaining episodes?

James: Nathan is still trying to put the pieces back together. We’re gonna get to see a lot of Nathan coming around as a father and becoming a role model and really solidifying his position with his family. There’s some good story there.

Jennifer: Last week on the show we got the news that Dan is “allegedly” dying from a heart condition. Can you give us any scoop on whether Dan is just manipulating Nathan or if indeed Dan’s ticker is almost out of time?

James: Um…I can’t give anything there!

Jennifer: I had to try!

Jennifer: The character of Nathan Scott has evolved so much from the beginning of the series. He went from a selfish, party boy who hated his brother to the good guy we see today. Which do you like playing better, bad Nathan or good Nathan?

James: Playing bad Nathan is a lot of fun. But with good Nathan there are more levels there because he’s got more to deal with in his life and he brings people closer to him in his life.

Jennifer: Do you have any theories on how Nathan and Haley afford that gorgeous mansion on a coach and teacher’s salary?

James: (Laughter.) The story is that Nathan actually has money from a shoe contract. Obviously, it got bought out when he got injured. But the money came from that, and they purchased the house with that.

Jennifer: Let's talk about your annual Charity Basketball Game. I get tons of e-mails every year from fans wanting to find out information on the event each year in Wilmington. This year was the fifth year for the sold-out game that benefits several charities. What made you start this event five years ago and what keeps you and the cast doing it each year?

James: We started (doing it) season one because we wanted to give back to the community, because the community here embraced us so well. We wanted to give back to some local charities and use the show to do some good. Also, we wanted to reach out to the fans a little bit. Every year it gets bigger and bigger and now we can sell out the game and raise more money. It’s become a staple of every season to have that charity game. The fans all show up and get to meet a lot of the cast that shows up. It’s turned into something pretty great for fans and charity alike.

Jennifer: Rarely in the world of TV, do fans ever get the chance to meet the stars of their favorite shows, let alone watch them play sports. How did you come up with such a unique concept of a basketball game that gives fans face time with the cast?

James: Our show is about basketball. It’s always sort of been a central theme. (And with it) we can bring the entire cast together around a game and give the fans something to watch, instead of just inviting them over to wait in line and sign autographs for them. We can actually put on a little bit of a show, you know? That’s how that came about.

Jennifer: Are you planning another game for next year or was this year the final?

James: We are considering doing another one next year. It went well this year. We’re coming back for a sixth season. We got an early pickup from the CW, so we’ll be doing another one next year.

Jennifer: Since this interview is for Tube Talk, I must ask, what do you watch on TV or what are some of your favorite shows?

James: I watch a lot of HBO shows and some South Park. My favorite show on television right now is The Office.

Jennifer: Thanks James for taking time to talk.

James: Thank you!

Editor's Note: If you enjoyed the interview, please take a moment to leave James a comment and let him know how much we appreciate him taking time to talk with us here at Tube Talk.

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Interview with Bones' David Boreanaz

by Jennifer Squires Biller

Last week, I was invited to do a phone interview with Bones star David Boreanaz to talk about the return of the show tonight. Cool, right?

Well, it was cool, despite the fact that I didn’t get a chance to actually ask my questions. The call time was limited to only 25 minutes, and there were a large number of journalists on the conference call. Despite that I hit the proper keys to get in the queue early to ask my questions, I apparently didn’t get in the queue early enough. So, I didn’t get the chance to talk to him. But, the other journalists asked plenty of intriguing questions, and I’m happy to share his answers with you.

At one point, the interview got tense, as one reporter made the mistake of calling Bones a “bubble” show (meaning it’s “on the bubble” or not a definite lock for the network to return next season.) Boreanaz vehemently refuted that Bones is a “bubble show” and began drilling the reporter to cite the source where he had read that news. When the reporter couldn’t quote the source, well, let’s just say it got a little ugly. Keep reading for the completely awkward exchange and Boreanaz’ defense of the show.

Q: Does he believe Booth and Bones should get together?

Boreanaz: I mean, I think they already are. I don’t think that they necessarily were ever apart. The function of the relationship really is the function of the show in a lot of ways. These two characters drive these plot lines; they drive these shows. They put them in circumstances or in areas that they not necessarily wouldn’t think they would be in and it brings them closer together as characters or it pulls them apart. You know, the kiss, for example, on Christmas. It was a dare and they both knew it was coming and it brought them closer. Obviously, it won’t affect them greatly, but they know that the kiss happened, and I think it happened smartly the way they did it. I think, though, we’ll start putting ourselves into those situations and those areas, but we’re not going to go to a place where it’s completely hole nine; we’ll keep teasing and flirting with the audience. I don’t think that’s a problem at all.

Q: Have you liked this story line this season of the serial killer?

Boreanaz: No, not at all. For me, I’ve always maintained that the show is the relationship, maintained that the show is about the characters and I maintain that the show is about the two of us learning through the crimes and that journey that we take. That, to me, is the most important part.

Q: How much of Booth is your doing and how much of the character were you given?

Boreanaz: Well, I was given the pilot. I read the pilot and I created everything that you’re seeing on screen as far as that character is concerned, what you see physically. And it can’t happen without the words, obviously, but as far as the physicalities and as far as the belt buckle, all the stuff that you see is stuff that I brought to that character.


Q: What kind of research did you do to find out about FBI agents and their personalities and qualifications and things?

Boreanaz: Everything that they told me about the FBI I threw out the door in a lot of ways. I respected it. I went through the idea of it. I took the approach of the military aspect of the guy working for the FBI rather than a guy who came right out of Harvard and he’s a penny loafer and pencil pusher guy who gets kicked around and who is afraid to get his feet wet. For me, it was more interesting from that angle with the military guy who was a blue-collar guy. And from there, everything exploded. So, you know, I highly, highly respect what they do. When it comes to using any kind of firearms or entries into buildings, I don’t mess around with. I do it as cleanly and as professionally as I can the way they would do it. I work with a great guy, Mike Grasso on the show who is with the LAPD who is fantastic so for me, that is very, very authentic to a T, but there is stuff, character stuff that I like to bring.

Q: And are there moments where you’re squeamish about the actual bones, the actual gross bodies?

Boreanaz: No, not me. I kind of know, because I’m so tuned into my relationship with her and so tuned in to the character work, that I sometimes forget about where I’m standing over, to be quite honest with you. Obviously, Booth’s perspective is that he’s squeamish to begin with so that helps when I have to go there, so it does work.


Q: The dialogue between you and Emily, is it ad-libbed at all?

Boreanaz: We work on every episode on the weekends with Ivana Chubbuck, who is an acting coach out here. Her credits are huge and very respected and she helps us find a lot of those moments. So we work on the scripts on the weekends for every scene, every moment during the week. So we come in pretty much with an improvisational arc, knowing where we are going to add stuff, where we’re going to take things. So, by the time we show up and rehearse, we throw that down so when we’re shooting we just, we kind of throw it all out on the table. All this stuff comes out, but I think that’s the beauty of our relationship and our chemistry is really solid and it’s only getting better. We did a scene yesterday, which was just so much fun. We really started pushing each other’s buttons and it was fun to have the ability to go there with a co-star who does that with you and also being in the freedom zone of a third season instead of thinking, oh, well, you know, this show has got x amount of years left so I don’t have to really work hard because it’s just a show. Well, it’s quite the opposite because now you have the beauty and the freedom to do stuff as a producer to allow yourself to go to those places that you weren’t allowed to in the first season, which makes the show even better.

Q: Is the therapy with Dr. Lance Sweets going to continue throughout all the rest of the episodes?

Boreanaz: Yes, I think having that other perspective, that third eye, that point on the two counterpoints works in a show like this and he fills that void perfectly. We tried it before with a couple of other characters that just didn’t really sing as hard as they could have been maybe. There was a love interest of the past and they had just gone on and focused on their characters, where they are. But I think with Lance Sweets, he fits perfectly; a) physically; b) what he brings to the table and how it affects their relationship and I think that’s a stronghold, to go through therapy and help bring us together. I think it’s a great idea.

Q: Is Booth mocking Dr. Sweet’s age and everything you or is that something that’s scripted?

Boreanaz: That’s me. It’s funny because we’ll do a lot of improvisation when I’m in that therapy session they’ll be you’ve got to just do one that’s scripted maybe a little bit. Because it just becomes, it’s just so great to be part of and you’re having so much fun so, yes, a lot of those young comments, I’ve got to come up with some new stuff. Some new arsenal is coming out soon.
Q: Which has been your favorite Bones episode to work on so far?

Boreanaz: I really enjoy anything I do with Emily, obviously, any scenes. As far as one complete episode is concerned I like the Halloween episode this year. It was a lot of fun. I got to play a Nerd. That was fun. I also liked the season opener of season two, which was a lot of fun. I loved the pilot. I mean, that’s the pilot, really; you have to go back to the pilot because that’s fresh, new, the possibilities are endless, you know what I’m saying? So, it’s kind of hard to always answer those kinds of questions.

Q: With the show being in yet another time slot and being considered by some people as a bubble show, is that something that worries the cast and the crew?

Boreanaz: I’m sorry; you say our show is on the bubble?

Reply: I’m not, but I’ve read a few things, I don’t know.

Boreanaz: Where did you read that?

Reply: I don’t remember.

Boreanaz: Well, you can’t say something if you; if you’re saying our show is on the bubble, I’d love to know the source of that one. I mean you can’t just say to me that the show is on the bubble and you said you read it and you don’t know where it came from?

Reply: Well, I mean I read a lot of different sources.

Boreanaz: Well, I mean it’s a pretty big source to say to an actor on a show, or for me to say your column is being cancelled and then you ask me where I read that and I say I read a lot of things. I don’t get that question. But, I mean to answer your question, I don’t think the show is on the bubble. It’s a very successful show. We’re a different show; we’re a cult show that strives itself on relationship and we’ve proven if we’re on Wednesday or Tuesday or Friday or even Monday that our fans will follow us. And we pride ourselves on the relationship with this show and we pride ourselves that we’re with a great network and studio with Fox. If I hear any different, like you’re telling me, then I’d have to investigate that, but I’ve never heard that.

Reply: Okay, my apologies.

Boreanaz: No, don’t worry about it. I just had an interview with Dave Schultz. I’m a little fired up right now.

Reply: Okay, well that’s basically what I wanted to know, the show moving around (and how it will affect the audience.)

Boreanaz: Yes, it’s difficult. We were also the show put after Idol and we did better before Idol than we did after Idol. I don’t place the show or tell you where the show should be placed. That’s not my job. My job as an actor is to come in and portray a character and do the best that I can. I can’t get caught up in what time slot it’s at or where they’re moving it to or who it’s paired with. I do know that the shows are of the best quality and I think the best on television as far as a relationship show is concerned I think it’s the best. And if you take these two, the new shows that are coming out, especially these new fresh six shows that are coming and you’ll see the relationship just take off. Unfortunately, we had a writers’ strike that kind of intercepted what I thought was the start of a great, great third season and we’ll finish off a fantastic third season, which we believe there are just unbelievable shows that are going to just expand these characters and this relationship. There is no show out there that has a therapist that has to deal with a couple’s counseling for them to deal with each other in the work force. That’s not on television.

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Interview with Rainn Wilson and Greg Daniels of The Office

by Jennifer Squires Biller

The Office returns with the first of six new episodes on April 10 (YAY!), and to celebrate I recently had the chance to chat with Rainn Wilson (Dwight Schrute) and executive producer Greg Daniels.

The two were kind enough to do a conference call with reporters from across the country. The interview was EXTREMELY long, as reporters from TV Guide, E!Online and Access Hollywood and a plethora of other media outlets took turns asking every question an Office fan could possibly conjure. I’ve posted some of the most interesting tidbits.

The result is an interesting read with plenty of scoop. For example, did you know that Wilson used to work in an office? Funny coincidence, no?

I got Daniels to spill on a possible return for Karen. The two also gave their thoughts on the Office fan convention earlier this year and some future storyline tidbits that are coming up. For those of you who don’t like spoilers, proceed cautiously. There are a few light ones peppered throughout the interview.

Here are the highlights:

Jennifer Biller: Hi guys - love the show.

Greg Daniels: Thanks!

Jennifer Biller: I guess this question is for Greg, unless Rainn, you know some inside scoop. My readers love Karen. Will she be making any upcoming appearances in the next six episodes or beyond that?

Rainn Wilson: Well I think that she’s - yes, she’s coming back as Dwight’s love interest for the finale, right? Yeah.

Jennifer Biller: I love it.

Rainn Wilson: Please write that in. Thank you.

Greg Daniels: I think she’s fantastic, too. And we’ll see what happens. We had a nice deal with the people that did the show that she’s currently on to use her in the beginning of this season. And I think we have one more ability to use her as part of this arrangement that they made.

Question: I’ve been looking forward to this dinner party (episode on April 10.) It’s been about four months now when I think I first heard about it. Can you give us clues to anything in the episode?

Greg Daniels: Well, that’s a very kind of a charged situation where Michael has been asking Pam and Jim to come have dinner with him and Jan over and over, and over again. And he finally manages this, through this kind of scam, to destroy all their excuses. And it just happens to be after the previous episode, which is when he went to New York to try and help Jan with her deposition, and he kind of blew her wrongful termination lawsuit. So there’s a lot of tension between them in that episode. And coming up we have some episodes that follow off on that. Some of them involve the character of Ryan, whose website initiative started the season off and is kind of crumbling underneath him and has gotten, for some reason, infested with sexual predators. And we have episodes coming up where Dwight and Michael are going to have joined Ryan in some of his club-hopping New York partying and try to get involved in his life a little bit more. But there’s some cool, weird things happening that I can’t talk about and, you’ll just have to see it to truly enjoy all the twists and turns.

Q: Have you ever worked in an office when the acting work got thin? And if so, what kind of office worker were you? Were you a Dwight or a Jim, or a Ryan, or what?

Rainn Wilson: I’ve worked in many offices before, in my New York days of being a starving actor. I worked in a major New York charity as Assistant Office Manager and Special Events Coordinator. And I was also…

Greg Daniels: Assistant to the Officer Manager and Special Events Coordinator or Assistant Office Manager?

Rainn Wilson: Thanks, Greg. That was a good setup. And then I was also a receptionist from the Pam Beesly mold at Kirshenbaum, Bond & Partners, an advertising agency in New York.

Q: So you were the office Pam?

Rainn Wilson: I was Pam… I guess I was most like a Jim because my heart really wasn’t into it. But I was also very capable which is a lot like Jim, too. But I guess I’m proud of the fact that in my past I was actually a really good waiter. I was an excellent waiter. Like I could have really gone somewhere as a waiter. And I was pretty decent in my office work, too. I was not very good at Marine Supply delivery, which I did for about eight months at (Ballard Marine Supply & Hardware). I got in a couple car accidents and kept losing stuff.

Q: Is there going to be any love interest for Dwight that will be introduced right now because right now Angela has kind of moved on, or she’s trying to move on, and it looks like it’s just breaking Dwight’s heart. Do you think that he’ll have a love interest come in and try to make Angela jealous?

Greg Daniels: (To Rainn) Well, do you remember in your audition when you improv’d some of his ex-girlfriends? Because we’ve always had that on the board and that, it's part of his character that he has some exes out there.

Rainn Wilson: Yes, I improvised in the audition for the pilot. We had an improvisation of me and Jenna, and I told her that I had an ex-girlfriend who was stationed in Kuwait City, you know, as a reservist. So I don’t know if that is coming into play, but ex-girlfriends - yeah. I think we’ll be seeing a lot more sides - a lot more facets of Dwight when it comes to dating and women. I want to say that this is something that I love about this show is that, every season, - even every couple of episodes - there’s always some new aspect of Dwight that Greg and the writers want to explore. And that’s such a rare thing, you know. So many shows have their comic sidekick character and they do XY and Z. But I get emotional stories and comedic stories, and family stories, and lots of different textures. And I really appreciate getting to do that as an actor.

Q: (Are there) any plans or at least any intention to have the characters see the documentary that’s been filming in their office for the last three years, and what kind of reactions do you think that would have?

Greg Daniels: I think it’s great. We have talked about it. I don’t think we’re there yet, but I definitely love it as a big kind of game-changing story move. But, hopefully when we do press that nuclear button, it’ll be prepared for and people will think it’s worth it. Well, there’s certain things that we have, like in our back pockets, and I feel like if we ever got to a place where we were discussing storylines and we just had nothing, then we would say all right.

Rainn Wilson: I think it’s hard. I’m just speculating here because I know nothing about those conversations. But I think once they see the documentary and you kind of deal with the fallout of that, I don’t know how much longer you can then continue storylines, you know, with all the characters kind of being in the public eye and stuff like that.

Q: I’ve been lucky enough to sit through the Scranton convention, and I was curious. A lot of the actors have said that they had this great adrenaline rush and the writers coming back from that convention and were really kind of gung-ho. And then all of a sudden the strike hit at the exact same time. So, were you able to kind of recapture that at all when you guys got back? Is there anything from the convention, from being in Scranton that you’re going to add?

Greg Daniels: Sure. The convention was very fun, and it was a real wonderful experience to see how many thousands of fans came from all over the world and there were people from Ireland and Oregon. People came from a really great distance. And this was my first time in Scranton, although we’ve done so much research on the Internet. And I was really struck by how beautiful Scranton is, which is not what we really have been portraying, and there’s a lot of weird kind of Scranton-specific things that we saw, that will I’m sure come into different episodes. And the entire writing staff was there, and they all had different experiences driving around and going to Scranton bars and meeting the policewomen. So I think it was very good for the creativity of everybody here.

Rainn Wilson: Really it’s a lovely town. Like there are big old buildings, 100 years old, all over the downtown, big brick buildings that have a really cool industrial look and a lot of iron work. And stuff like that. And there are beautiful hills all around Scranton. It’s like down in this little valley, and there’s lovely trees and hills all over the place. A very green city.

Q: Greg, do you have a favorite Office character that you like to write stories for? And I know it’s kind of awkward with Rainn right here, but you can be candid. Is there anybody that you really enjoy writing stories for?

Greg Daniels: Well I do love the Dwight character, I have to say - and especially writing the Talking Heads, you know, the interview segments with Dwight… There is something of that character that I really respond to. There was this special on the Discovery Channel, a couple of weeks ago, which I spent an hour taking notes on and being really fascinated by, which was the ten greatest threats to the world, from robots that come alive to the mega volcano, to new diseases and everything. And it was so great. And eventually this will filter its way into Dwight’s brain, I think.

Q: Those talking heads segments, are those mostly scripted or is it kind of half scripted, half improvised?

Greg Daniels: There’s usually a script to start from. And then the directors ask questions. And some of the actors, like Rainn, for example, will sometimes write stuff on his own and come in with them.

Rainn Wilson: Mostly, it’s just a wealth of riches, and the writing is so good and so funny. There’s so many times I go in, and I can’t imagine even changing a word. It’s just, you know, perfect…

Greg Daniels: And yet you do.

Rainn Wilson: Recently, I’ve just been taking to saying them because they’re just so spot on and you can’t really improve on it. I think the writers would like to write for Creed a lot more. I think - my sense is that, you know, Creed works best in some little doses here and there. But I think the writers really get off on how crazy that man’s brain is.

Q: Is that a fine line for you to walk because if you make Dwight too ridiculous, then the comedy kind of falls apart? We have to believe that he is employable, too.

Rainn Wilson: Yeah, just the other day I was shooting a scene with Steve. All I had to do was run into Steve’s office, and then I ran into Steve’s office - into Michael Scott’s office as Dwight. And I turned to Steve, and I was like wow, I just ran into your office like I was a cartoon character. And I was like why am I doing that? This is a documentary about a guy who works in an office.

Greg Daniels: I’ll tell you one thing, though…I was in the other room listening with all the writers, and I don’t know exactly at which run, but (Jen Salata) said, "Oh my god, Rainn just did the funniest run." And she was saying that was her favorite part of the whole scene.

Rainn Wilson: And that’s probably the one you’ll use. But, yeah, we always do that. We kind of check in with each other, and we’ll go oh right, we’re not doing a comedy. Like let’s tone down the broadness here and make it more real. And of course, the editors always use the broadest takes that we ever do.

Greg Daniels: Well the thing is, when you look at a real office, once you get to know the people who are in the office, you realize how bizarre they can be. I think that it certainly has been my experience. I remember finding out about these women that used to work with my mom who were also bikers. And you just couldn’t write some of the stuff that they were doing because it would just seem too implausible.

Q: Greg, you made a couple of interesting tweaks for this season - one, putting Jim and Pam back together. Did you know that that was what you were going to do all along when you broke them up? And the other one is bringing in Ryan as a new irritant. Were those also looking to the long haul?

Greg Daniels: Well I don’t really see much more than about a half a season ahead. That’s how far the headlights go on this bus. Jim and Pam never were together before. This is the first time that they’ve gotten together. They were almost together. And, certainly we didn’t have it planned in Season One, what was going to happen to them. I know what’s going to happen to them for the next maybe ten episodes. But that’s about as far as I can see. (As for Ryan) I thought of that some time in Season Three. He seems like a funny statement about corporate America, just how the guy with a business school degree manages to rise.

Q: Is there any hope for Dwight and Angela? Could there be reconciliation?

Greg Daniels: Where there’s life, there’s hope.

Q: A Star Trek actor once told me that the best part of having his own action figure is that he could play with himself in public. What do you think of having your own bobblehead? Is it great, is it surreal, what?

Rainn Wilson: Can I use that line? I walked by the NBC store in New York, and there’s a wall of Dwight bobbleheads in the windows. It’s the number one selling thing in the history of NBC Universal merchandising. And it’s pretty crazy. I feel like Mr. Potato Head, you know. I think in the future I will be known not for the character of Dwight, but just for the bobblehead. And I think, in the far future humanity -- like ten thousand years from now – they’ll uncover Dwight bobbleheads and think that I was a great leader of men.

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Interview with Psych’s James Roday and Dule Hill

Psych fans, the wait is over. The show returns this Friday at 10 p.m. on USA.

To celebrate the occasion, I chatted with the show’s stars, James Roday and Dule Hill, yesterday, as part of a conference call with several journalists throughout the country.

Here is the fun interview, full of “juicy” delicious show details. And yes, that is a reference to the ongoing pineapple joke on the show that the boys finally explain.

They also discuss all those ‘80s references you love, the romance of Shawn and Juliet, and the chemistry or “bromance” of Shawn and Gus. Please note that the transcript, provided by NBC, has been edited in places for clarity and length.

I’ve seen this Friday’s episode, and it’s good stuff, Tubers. Kerry Washington guest stars as Gus’ wife. Yes, I said wife. It’s as good as you’re imagining.

For those of you who’ve written asking, the show will begin airing this season’s episodes on NBC in March. No date has been released yet for the debut. I’ll let you know, as soon as I get the 411.
Without further adieu, the boys of Psych.

Jennifer Biller: Hey guys, love the show. It’s so funny.

Dule Hill: Thank you.

James Roday: Thanks!

Jennifer Biller: My readers love all the ‘80s references. (The recent Short Circuit one had me rolling,) and they want to know if those moments are scripted or ad-libbed?

Dule Hill: I think it’s a mixture of both. I mean, I think they write some stuff and then other stuff will come up later, mostly between Roday and any other ‘80s freak that we have on the show. That’s where it’ll come from most of the time.

James Roday: Yeah. I mean, we’ve sort of created a landscape for this show that is very sort of ‘80s friendly, from the way we talk and the music that we add, to the guest actors that we bring on. So, anytime something even sort of makes sense, we’re certainly encouraged to give it a shot. So, there’s tons more that you’ve actually never seen because we spew them out at an alarming rate.

Jennifer Biller: Please put them on the DVD. I think they would love that.

James Roday: You got it.

Jennifer Biller: Dule, will we get to see any of your incredible dancing skills in future episodes?

Dule Hill: I think we’re moving closer to it. I think it will happen at some point. It’s what I would like to do.

Jennifer Biller: Fantastic. James, the relationship with your father (on the show), Corbin Bernsen is one of my favorite parts of the show. Will we get to see more details, perhaps, about why their relationship is what it is?

James Roday: Yes. There’s some stuff coming up that I think - that’ll shed some light on that, and then there’s a big bopper of a cliffhanger that you can look forward to at the end of the sixth episode. So yeah, we’re definitely doing some of that stuff.

Q: So what’s up with the pineapple rubbing joke?

Dule Hill: That actually started from the pilot, because in the pilot episode in my apartment when Shawn came to wake me up and I went back to my room I guess to get ready, there just by chance was a pineapple on top of a refrigerator on the set. And Roday, doing what he does, just kind of took the pineapple and asked me if I wanted him to cut it up. And ever since then…

James Roday: It really has gotten bigger than I think any of us ever imagined that it would.

Dule Hill: Well the improv that Roday did, it stayed with us.

James Roday: And ironically, it was in and out of that pilot like three or four times. Like it got cut and then it got put back in. It got cut; it got put back in. I mean, it barely survived. And now it’s like a staple of what we do - very amusing.

Q: I understand you also have had a bunch of jokes about Chad Michael Murray. What’s up with that?

James Roday: You know, I’ve never actually met Chad Michael Murray…

Dule Hill: Neither have I.

James Roday: I don’t really have anything against him. To me, he puts out an image and he sort of puts himself out there in a way that’s very easy to make fun of. And, you know what? It’s an easy target, I admit it. But we have fun doing it, that’s all I can say.

Dule Hill: It’s just childish games that we play.

Q: On the show you sort of have these pretty keen observational skills. As a result of the show, have your observational skills gotten better, outside of filming, just everyday life?

Dule Hill: Well let me answer that one.

James Roday: Yeah. Go, Dule.

Dule Hill: I can answer for him and say no. There’s been many times that Roday has driven me to work in the morning, and his skills have not gotten better because there’s many times I’ve had to call out and be like, “There’s a red light right there. You better watch out for that cop over there. So…

James Roday: Yeah. You know what? I think I thought that they we were going to. I just thought there would be like a natural byproduct of… doing the show, but it didn’t really - it hasn’t worked out like that.

Q: I was really glad to hear that you guys are going to get a run on NBC. I was wondering what your reaction was to that and what you think it might mean for the regular show?

James Roday: Well, Dule and I together paid the WGA upwards of $150,000 not to resolve their issues so that we could get a run on NBC. That was the first thing we did. (Awkward pause) That’s a joke. That’s not true.

Dule Hill: Yeah, he is joking. It’s true.

James Roday: But it is, you know, it’s one of those little pieces of silver lining that can happen from a work stoppage, which is strange and unpredictable. I’m totally excited about it. And the fact that we will hopefully be exposed to a larger audience is exactly what this show needs. We have some very, very loyal fans but I feel like it’s a tight little group and we’d love to see that group get bigger.

Q: (For Dule) Are there any of Gus’s talents that you share in your life – the super smeller, for example or the exceptional spelling, or the extensive knowledge of pharmaceuticals??

Dule Hill: I think I have all of those abilities when I have a laptop in front of me. So, I can spell great when I have spell check, and I know any pharmaceutical thing you want to know, as long as I have Google right next to me.

James Roday: I can definitely vouch for his ability to say big words. He’s a master of that.

Q: Super smeller? Have you got a super smeller?

Dule Hill: No, I don’t think so. I don’t have the smelling capabilities of Burton Guster.

Q: In preparing for the role, did you hang with any real psychics and sort of get, you know, tips from them as to how to, you know, how to act on the show?

Dule Hill: Well being that my character is not a psychic…I did not.

James Roday: Way back before we shot the pilot, I did a little bit of research and I met with a few psychics, you know, just to sort of get an idea of like what happens to them, physically, when they have episodes that I could sort of have a reference point of where to go, if there was anything cool that I could feel. I made sure that I told them I was playing a real psychic so that they didn’t get offended. Nobody called me out on it. So that might say something about the level of their authenticity. But since then, I’ve sort of been flying by the seat of my pants. I’ll be honest with you. I sort of store that away and then let it go.

Q: How did you get Kerry Washington for “There’s Something About Mira?” And can the fans look forward to any Shawn/Juliet interaction the next episodes?

Dule Hill: Okay. Well for Kerry, she’s a friend of mine that I’ve known for years back, from back in New York. And when the role came up, I thought that would be a fun role for her to do. I thought she would enjoy it. And I called her and asked her to come bless us with her talent and she said, “Sure.”

James Roday: Shawn and Juliet - I think it’s possible that we created - I think we created some anticipation with that last moment in the first half of the season that we might not be able to deliver on. So don’t get too excited because, you know, I think there’s still plenty of sexual tension there. But I would be lying if I said we’d take another step in that direction.

Q: You guys have obviously very good chemistry on this show. What is the secret to that?

James Roday: The secret to good chemistry… I’ve had not great chemistry with other actors on other shows, so I think you just have to get lucky initially. You just sort of have to mesh with somebody, so that you’re not having to work at it. And then if you get lucky, then my guess would be that this secret of maintaining good chemistry is just not getting laded.

Dule Hill: That’s what Roday likes to call LL.

James Roday: Yeah.

Q: Dule, getting back to Kerry Washington, what can you tell us about that backstory, as far as Gus being married?

Dule Hill: It was a time where I guess Gus was tired of always living by the rules and decided to take a walk on the wild side, for one night, until he woke up the next morning and realized what he had done. And then kind of pulled himself back in - reigned himself back in.

Q: What’s your favorite episode so far for each of you?

Dule Hill: For me it would be “American Duos.” I just really loved dressing up as Michael Jackson. That was just a childhood dream come

James Roday: I think very selfishly, and perhaps unselfishly, I would go with “Scary Sherry” Season one. (Editor’s note: the episode he wrote) Just because it was actually quite moving to watch everybody come together and bust their butts to make that episode happen for the show, but also for me because it was sort of a departure from what we had done up to that point. And everybody really rallied. And it was a great experience. I was very thankful. That will always have a soft spot for me.

Q: James, I know you’ve written some episodes of the show. Do you have plans to do more of that in the future? And what’s that like writing for a show that you star in?

James Roday: Yeah, I think I will keep doing it. I have a good time with it. It was weird - the first time out it was weird, just because there were so many dynamics at play. You know, I didn’t know exactly how everybody was going to take, you know, my doing my first episode. But everybody was so awesome. My fellow cast mates were great. The crew was so supportive. As soon as I knew that everything was going to be cool, then it just became really fun. And now I like doing it, and I’ll probably do a couple a season.

Q: James, on this Psych Season One DVD set, there’s film of your audition, as I’m sure you know. And it seems like you got Shawn Spencer right from the get-go. Is that the way it was for you? You read the script and you just got the guy immediately?

James Roday: Well, I certainly got what my take on the guy was going to be. You know, there was a really good chance that everybody else involved weren’t going to be on the same page. But, that’s definitely the dice that you roll. But, for me it was worth, you know, going for it and letting them know if you give me this role, you’re going to get something in this arena, so you need to be okay with that. Otherwise, this is not a good match. And, it turned out that it was cool. But it could have gone the other way, and then you’d be watching some other dude.

Q: How has the success of this show changed your life in ways large and small, and ways good and bad, if at all?

James Roday: Well for me, it’s been all good. I enjoy working, so first, it’s nice to have a job and know that you still have a job. That just sort of lends itself to a happier lifestyle, I think, regardless of what you do for a living. And then being approached by fans - our fans are so great because every time I get stopped by somebody, it’s always really specific to the show, and they’re really enthusiastic about the show. And they just want to talk about the show or tell me how much they love the show, you know, as opposed to random people stopping you and saying, “Don’t I recognize you from somewhere?” We have the greatest fans, so we’re constantly being motivated to keep doing good work, because they’re out there in all shapes and sizes, and all different ages. In the matter of one day in a mall, I’ll be stopped by 12-year-old girls and a 58-year-old man. And it’s amazing to me the net that we’ve sort of cast with this show. That’s really motivating. That really makes me feel like we’re doing something that has some value, and it makes me want to keep doing it, and do it even better. So it’s been a very, very positive experience for me.

Q: Dule, did you get Gus immediately or were you having to try and figure out how to bounce him off of James, or what? How did that work out for you?

Dule Hill: I think for me, the process was a little more - well, for both of us really, but the process is evolving. I think I had an idea of who Gus is. And look at the pilot and look at him now, I think you’ll see a growth in the character.

Q: He’s goofier now.

Dule Hill: Because I actually walked in the room and said okay, this is exactly who he is. I guess I was trying to figure out all the aspects of him. And I still am. I’m still trying to, evolve the character and find out different things about him. So no, I didn’t get him right away. (Unintelligible).

Q: Dule. You were great on West Wing and you’re even more amazing on Psych, so do you prefer drama to comedy? And how hard was it for you to make that change into the new show?

Dule Hill: I like balancing it out personally. I mean, after doing seven years of the drama, to be able to do some comedy with expressions… I was tired of - not really tired of, but I didn’t want to go and do another show where I had to dig deep and, you know, deal with a lot of my personal issues of bringing stuff out. Making the transition wasn’t that hard to me because most of the time I’m more of a lighthearted kind of person anyway. I like to crack jokes and have a good time. And this show is a blast. I mean, working with this cast is amazing. So from day one I knew I was going to have a good time. From the cast itself to Steve, you know, writing the episodes and all that, I’ve had a blast. So it was very easy.

Q: On the Psych Outs (that air at the end of the shows) you guys have a lot of fun doing a little bit of improv, and I’m sure you guys do a ton on the show throughout. So does the script change a lot because you guys are kind of adding your own stuff? And who is more into doing the improv?

Dule Hill: Oh, Roday is definitely more the improver. I kind of feed off of Roday. It’s the kind of thing where I keep a ship going in the right direction, that way Roday can do all of his - everything he does, you know what I mean?

James Roday: Yeah. We have a pretty good deal with our writers. I mean, they sort of get what we do on the show and appreciate it. And we sort of set boundaries, and they know that as long as we tell their story and make sure that we hit all the major points. And they give us a lot of room to sort of have fun, keep things fresh, and make it our own. You know, it’s definitely trial by fire. It’s not like all of my improvisation is gold. But I would say 90% of it is.

Q: Did you say that you two guys commute to work together?

Dule Hill: Sometimes we have, yeah, because in Vancouver, when my wife needs the car I will call Roday and say hey, can you give me a ride

Q: (Following up) I just find that unusual. I mean, Bruce Willis and Cybill Shepherd never drove to work together. I think it’s interesting that you guys do. Does it create a different kind of situation? You guys get to talk together on the way to work and the way home from work, and stuff like that?

Dule Hill: Yeah. I believe, sometimes it allows us to catch up on what’s going on, just talk about different issues that may be going on with the show and, like, come up with a game plan of how we are going to navigate certain orders. And sometimes it’s just a matter of, you know, I get to sleep while he’s driving.

Q: When James was talking about how fans react to him, what have you noticed is the difference? I mean, you had such a different set of fans for “West Wing” than you do for “Psych.” What’s the difference in - from those two shows, the likelihood that people will recognize you and come up and talk to you?

Dule Hill: I think Roday hit it on the nose when he said you can be walking down the street or walk through a mall somewhere, or an airport, and there’ll be a 12-year-old girl. And ten feet later, it’ll be a 58-year-old man. That didn’t really happen too much on West Wing. There definitely weren’t a lot of children watching or even teens watching West Wing that often. So I think it’s just the variety of the audience, what I see the difference is.

Q: How many episodes are in this second part (of the season that begin airing on Friday?) And were they all written and filmed? Do you have them all written - all the ones written that you’d planned on written before the strike?

Dule Hill: Yeah. I believe there were six. Roday?

James Roday: Yeah, there’s six left and they’re all finished and have been for awhile.

Q: Dule. You’re talking about the evolution of Gus, and it’s clear his one-night walk on the wild side is certainly one evolution. When you first saw him and saw how straight arrow he was at first, was that one of your hopes - that this guy would gradually start to wave off and do some interesting things?

Dule Hill: Definitely. And I think the (writers) were on the same page initially also that where the character was written in the pilot, isn’t necessarily where he was going to stay, because he was, from the pilot episode, definitely very straight-laced. I think we’ve kind of not necessarily loosened him up some, but at least it’s started to allow him to have more fun, more fun in who is. And I think you’ll continue to see it go that way.

Q: Dule, I was wondering when you first started portraying Gus, how much of Charlie did you bring over from the West Wing, do you think?

Dule Hill: None. Yeah, I don’t think I brought any of Charlie over there. Because they were different. Gus didn’t have all the history that Charlie had in terms of his mom being killed and working with this co-worker who died in a car accident. I mean, Charlie had a lot of baggage. No, I didn’t bring anything over because it was just two different shows - two different shows, two different characters. And being - one being a comedy and one being a drama - definitely helped draw the line how I would approach things with Shawn was completely different than how I would approach things with President Bartlet or any of the other characters on that show.

James Roday: Not that Shawn doesn’t have the gravitas of President Bartlet. He does, it’s just a different approach, is all. So from the beginning, that takes it in two completely different directions.

Q: Did you have any input into the animated thing - The Big Adventures of Little Shawn and Gus?

James Roday: I didn’t man. We were just as surprised as you guys were when we heard they were doing that. But they’re funny little looking dudes, man. Running around, having adventures, you know, animated and what not. They just - they’re sort of like - they’re in their own little world over there in marketing and with Web site stuff. And they keep us on our toes. We get surprised a lot by them actually.

Q: Have you guys seen them all (The Big Adventures of Little Shawn and Gus?)

Dule Hill: I have not seen any of them. Nope, I actually forgot about it until we came - until I started to see it come back up.

Q: Is there a point anywhere down the line where Shawn will be discovered to be a complete fake, or will you guys bring in more people into your inner circle so they’ll know that this is real?

James Roday: I think the answer to that question lies almost exclusively in how long the show runs. I think we’ll try to get away with not doing that for as long as possible. And so we’re all sort of sitting at the table going, you know, we’ve clearly hit a wall. It’s time to either shut it down, bring someone into the inner circle, you know, show that he’s a fake or bring a child onto the show because that’s what happens when you hit walls. One of those four things has to occur. I think we’ve sort of found the formula that works for our show and now that we know what it is, I mean, me personally, I’d like to spend at least another full season just having fun with it, now that we don’t have to worry about what it is anymore - you know, doing as much silly stuff as we can come up with. We’ll take a look at it again after Season Three, you know, see what needs to be done. I mean, I would much rather learn more about the characters. I mean, from their lives and sort of start questioning in that direction, than do something like plot-driven. So we’ll see.

Q: Can you talk some more about what we’ll be seeing in the second half of the season from the show - what adventures you and Gus are up to?

Dule Hill: It’s always so hard when you’ve filmed them like six months ago. Well, you know, we had an episode where obviously I get married or have been married, and my ex-wife comes back in the picture. Then we have the episode where we become fashion models, which was written by Roday and Steve Franks

James Roday: There’s a couple episodes that involve us and like people over 60 that kind of blend together for me. It’s sort of like Psych meets Cocoon Part 1 and Psych meets Cocoon Part 2. And then there’s a big finale that involves a mummy.

Q: It seems like Lassiter has mellowed, like in the first season he was just more determined to prove that Shawn was a phony, and he hasn’t seemed to be doing that. What’s going on with Lassiter?

James Roday: I think we went down a more sort of character driven path with him the last season and a half or so. We’ve sort of peeled back a couple of his layers, and I think that was really good for the show because, while you’ll never lose him as, you know, the coyote to Shawn’s roadrunner, and while that’s important to have in place, you want to get to know him as more than that. And I think Season One, we really sort of just jammed it down viewers’ throats (that) hey, this guy is really, really wired tightly and he can’t stand Shawn Spencer. And it’s like all right, we got that. We get that he’s going to be in the foil. What else do you got? And so we sort of tried to peel back a few layers of Lassiter’s character. And now that you’ve sort of seen some more colors from him, I think we can go back to having him be more of an ass, and it’s okay because he’s not just that anymore.

Q: If you could change anything about what’s been going on, on the show up until now, what would it be? Anything?

Dule Hill: I probably would have Gus get more love interests, which I think he will see happen. You know what I mean, because why not?

James Roday: That’s a tough one. We’ve been pretty damn lucky with this show. But, I guess if I had to pick something I would just say that we would have started pushing the boundaries of what we can do on this show a little earlier, because I feel like we are starting to do that now. I was itching to start doing crazy stuff, like Episode Three. But it’s a process and we’re getting there.

Q: Back when you guys did the promotional campaign with Monk, it made me want to see if there could be like a Psych/Monk crossover. Is that at all a possibility that you guys might think about?

Dule Hill: I think it’s possible That’d have to go to the-powers-that-be to kind of work it out, I think. I would love to do it and be sure that Tony would be interested in doing it. It’d be fun. I would love to see how the three characters would interact with each other.

James Roday: Yeah. We’ve had a lot of fun with Tony the few times we’ve got to hang with him. The clock’s ticking, though. I mean, if we’re going to do that, I think we need to do it pretty quick. So, you know, float that out there. Go tell everybody that you want to see it happen.

Q: I’m sure you guys are aware of all the fan fictions that have surfaced about the show over the past. Do you guys read any of that and does it affect the writing of the show?

James Roday: Fan fiction - what is that exactly?

(Follow up) : Oh…a lot of the fans on the Internet will write their own extensions to the stories, alternate plots, typically love affairs between Shawn and Gus… That kind of thing.

Dule Hill: I think the first part of the question, saying that you are aware of it - that was the part that was off because I was not aware of it. I’m not (unintelligible)…

James Roday: That’s great, though.

Dule Hill: I think it’s great, yeah. So I guess that kind of answers your question because… Maybe some of the writers might know. Tell them to keep on doing it. We may need ideas very soon.

James Roday: Yeah, we might be running cold before we think we are.

Q: Did you guys ever kick around the idea of having a reoccurring villain, other than Lassiter, who is more of like you said “the foil” - but more of a darker villain, if you will?

James Roday: I think just recently we have. I mean, the idea of doing stuff that’s not as episodic. It’s not as sort of standalone has been a tough - sort of a tough bubble to burst, so far. But now that we’re going into a third season and, you know, our numbers have sort of held steady, it’s definitely like the obvious question; Can we start doing stuff like that? Can we do story points that last for longer than an episodes, characters that come back? We are planning on bringing a couple people back in the third season, which will be our first official recurring characters from past episodes. Neither of them were villainous. But, you know, we’re definitely taking steps in that direction. I think it would be fun. I think something like that would only add, you know, a layer to the show that we don’t already have. So I’m certainly for it, just a lot of other people have to be convinced before something like that can happen.

Q: Do you want to talk about what you’re doing now and where you’re going, and what’s happening in your career?

Dule Hill: Well right now I’m sitting in my pajamas having a cup of tea. That’s what I’m doing right now. I’m on break. I’m really enjoying my break after the last year of doing a play last year. This year really felt that I needed a rest. I just came back from Jamaica, spending two weeks out there, and I’m going back there again in about a week to hang out again. I’m just taking it easy right now.

James Roday: Well I wasn’t performing in the play, but I just finished producing a play here in Los Angeles that just about killed me. If you know anything about producing theater in Los Angeles, it’s one of the most thankless, and arguably, stupid things that you can do. But I did it and I’m really glad I did it. And I’m exhausted, and I’m definitely going to take some time off now, and maybe do a little traveling, clear the head, get the juices flowing again. You know, hopefully it won’t be too much longer before we can start thinking about Psych.

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Interview with Moonlight’s Jason Dohring

by Jennifer Squires Biller

Moonlight fans, do I have a treat for you. Earlier today I spoke with one of the show’s stars, Jason Dohring, or as you know him, Josef, one of the world’s oldest vampires.

Dohring was kind enough to take time to speak me and a few other TV press folks and was as charming as ever.

He’s so excited for us to see the upcoming episodes he could hardly contain himself. From the spoilers he gave us, the future episodes sound awesome, or as Jason put it, “F------ awesome!”

Thanks again to Jason and to CBS for this interview. And don’t forget to watch Moonlight this Friday at 9 p.m. I don’t think I’m alone here when I say, “Don’t die Coraline!”

Here’s the interview transcript. CBS did not provide a transcript, so I transcribed our conversation from my tape to the best of my abilities. In places, the word "frakking" has been substituted for another F word that we can't print here.

Do you know if the show will be delving more into Josef’s past to explore his past loves and how he’s managed to become so successful?
Yes, absolutely. I think the successful thing [came] more in the first episode, with the hedge fund trader, and the real estate. In the episode this Friday, you find out basically why he’s always concerned about Mick dating humans and being with humans, like what is that? There’s basically a personal reason that Josef’s gone through. I don’t know if it’s proper or whatever, but I always kind of take the idea that maybe Josef has gone through what Mick’s going through. Maybe one time he was a good person, and you’ll sort of see glimpses of that, you know, with my former hairstyle, and my really nice suit in New York in this week’s episode.

Is Josef going to get a love interest?
That’s fantastic man. You’re going to find out. You’ll see some really cool stuff in this next episode. I don’t know if that’s too much of a spoiler or whatever, but you’ll definitely see some love interest. You’ll see. I don’t know how to explain it or whatever. I think he would. Like Logan, he’s probably a tough guy to live with. There was an episode with Lola or whatever. They had the on again off again thing. I would really like to see someone that could match him, they fight, they get back together. I think it would be quite a passionate relationship.

How many episodes are left with the strike, what are we going to see, what does the future hold?

Les Moonves said a few days ago, some kind stuff about our show and The Big Bang Theory, about us coming back for a second season. I can’t speak for the producers, but that was given in a press interview, which is obviously a good sign. There’s a lot of plus points. Our show is one of two shows that have been up-trending in viewership. So obviously that’s a good sign. We’re right around 8 million, which is pretty high. Having CBS as backup, promo-ing the show, you’re sitting there watching golf and see a promo, which helps out a lot. We just finished shooting number 12 about 3 or 4 days ago. It was very good. There’s a vampire that comes that makes me look like a pauper which is cool. It goes back in history. We have some great history, makeup and sets, and like an old world, from a different time feel to the show and the storyline comes out. I think it’ll be really cool to see how it all turns out. Great makeup and George Washington hair and all that cool stuff. [Air date] is sometime in January. (Episodes) 11 and 12 will both air in January [January 4th and 11th].

How is the experience on Moonlight different from your experience on Veronica Mars?

Yeah, there’s a couple things I guess. The characters are obviously a bit different. You know, I think, they both have really interesting stories. Josef was kind of the expansion of a character, it’s like the 400 years aspect, as we’ll find more about as the story unfolds. There’s so much history. As an actor, each new script that comes out, you kind of add to that. You don’t know beforehand, when you first started, what your history is, but you sort of learn as you do it. You’re sort of picking that up and putting that in your character as you go. So I think it adds more to the storyline like that. And I think, just being on CBS is quite a bit different. It’s a bigger cast. You’re at Warner Bros which is quite close to my house so I don’t have to trek down to San Diego, which is kind of nicer. Just those two aspects more than anything else.

The blood on this show – what is that?

There’s two generations. We got love handles from the first one. It was pure sugar and you just wake up feeling horrible so you have to change it. The new generation is pomegranate juice and something else. It’s a concoction that the props guys make up. Yeah, it’s good. It’s quite sweet. It’s a little hard to keep a straight face when you’re taking it down, but [adopts awesomely cocky attitude voice] that’s why they pay us the big bucks.

What are some shows that you watch on TV?

Oh boy, I really enjoy Deadwood. I enjoy The Office, Family Guy. Moonlight, Veronica Mars, I don’t know, that’s about it (laughter.)

How do you prepare for a role like this, where you’re sort of eternally young and going through these things?

I can’t quite help that, because I just am young, ya know what I mean? As far as the role, it’s an ongoing thing. You can study all the things on the vampires for as long as you can live in LA. There’s so many books on it. We kind of have our own code, and before we even started, I was reading some Ann Rice books, getting a feel of what vampires are like, why are they different from humans. I think there’s a lot to do with “esp”, they can tell when other vampires are nearby, they can tell who are humans, they can perceive what’s really going on, and these are really cool character elements for an actor to work on. I’m very happy to be able to have that opportunity. Every actor wants to play a vampire.

What about the character made him interesting to you?

It came to me, as basically two pages, was the audition scene. So originally it was an older guy and they hadn’t finished the script yet, so the two pages I got was essentially the first scene that was in the pilot episode, on the phone, and I’m sort of talking to Mick and he comes in. I was immediately fascinated with the character. Very, very, very sharp, you know? I don’t know, very keen, has a very hard edge. And then, I guess as it sort of develops, you got more that the writers do their thing, and you get more backstory and get familiar with the character and you see where he’s been, what the history was, that led to becoming who he is. It just gets more interesting over time, but it started out cool.Josef is so paranoid about the humans finding out about the vampire community.

Are we ever going to get into how he gets a hold of his staff (some who are human, some who are vampires), and how he keeps all of them, to keep the [vampirism] from getting out?

I think at some point, if it gets too out of hand, people are just like “come on please” and it doesn’t become believable. I think he has a lot of poise. He’s able to keep his guys at bay. I don’t know to what degree he disposes of these guys. There was talk in the earlier episodes that he was ruthless guy. Then you see that maybe he does have humanity. I think it would be an interesting point. Mostly he just bankrolls them. I don’t know I’ll just make it up – he wipes them out afterwards.

Going past episode 12, do you know anything about what your character is expected to see?

It’s pretty much in the formulistic stages, with regard to that. Obviously, there’s no scripts written. There’s some possible stuff. The one thing that I heard is basically a betrayal of Josef against Mick. Something Josef’s been telling him all along is not true, and it’s very important to Mick. That’ll lead to some very cool stuff. There’s some great stuff coming up. I’m so excited for you to see it. Particularly, in episode 11, I think you’re going to fall in love with this one character, she’s just unreal, this girl.

The next question kind of goes along with that – some of the readers of our site were interested in seeing Josef and Mick as possible enemies – is that something you’d want to play?

Oh absolutely, I’m always kind of in favor of changing things around. You can always come around. I think that would be great. He can stand up to the best of them, so I’d like to see him maybe tear me a new one ha.

A lot of the scenes that people have really responded to have been ones where there is real male camaraderie going on. Is there going to be more of that male bonding coming up? Or is that going to be fractured?

I hope it never gets to that. I think it’s a part of who these guys are. A big part of why Josef is in the storyline at all is because he’s somewhat of a mentor, a safe person that Mick can ask about certain experiences he’s going through and how they relate to Josef’s knowledge of the situation. They’re the scenes that I enjoy the most. A lot of that banter back and forth. Hopefully, we’ll get a lot more.

There’s a lot of action on Moonlight and I was wondering if you expect to see Josef get in on the action?

All they had was me slipping on the rooftop so far, which is the extent of my action, I don’t know if you saw that one, where I like jump up on the roof or whatever. I expect that there would be some more. I would love to se him get in a fight. I’d be curious to see how they write it. I think perhaps, he [F----], oops, sorry about that just vamps out. He goes nuts. He just totally loses his mind. I think that would be so cool.

Obviously, vampires have been the big fear of many for years. What is your own personal biggest fear?
Oh my God, that’s a great question! It’s funny. I think I would have to say looking around and seeing the way that the world is now as opposed to where it was 40 to 50 years ago, it’s pretty crazy. It’s funny for like a kid my age, growing up, because it’s way different than my parents. They grew up with morals and manners and stuff like that and I look around at my friends and I think, damn, dude, where did that go and what happens when they have kids? Really, it’s not a light matter. You look at 100s and 100s and 1000s of years, it’s been that way, and in the last 40 or 50 years it’s gone down man so it’s like, damn you gotta pick it back up. That’s scary to me.

Who are some of your favorite actors/actresses, who would you love to work with?

Dude, I always see movies and say “oh I would add that to my list” and then someone asks me and I can’t think. Brando, Dean, and Clift. Those are all no longer here, but Kevin Kline would be awesome to work with. I’d love to work with Ryan Gosling, I think he’s awesome. I think Jeff Bridges is unbelievable. I think he’s very underrated. Alfred Molina I love. I think Meryl Streep is fantastic, I think she does amazing work. Jessica Lange is beautiful.

To go along with that question, if you could do anything in the world, any type of project, what would it be?

Gosh, I would probably do Shakespeare with the above guys. It would just be so amazing. The concepts in that, I don’t know, just with my horrible answer to what am I scared of, they deal with concepts like that in Shakespeare, you know what I mean? He saw these things and he saw that sort of stuff, so when you get actors that can play that sort of thing. Like, did you guys see Love Actually? There’s this scene with Emma Thompson. It breaks your heart, man. She’s just talking to her husband, talking basically about this girl that he might be in love with or whatever, and then she totally lets it go, and goes on to the next thing and shuts it out of her life. You just go, oh my god, it just breaks your heart. I love those moments in acting. That’s what I try to find sometimes. What that actually does, you take it on as a universal concept. You see like this kid who gets hit by his dad, but you really see that dude, and you see what that does to that kid. Then when you talk about it, it’s a little bit different, if you can actually see what that does, what the ramifications are. That’s why these great actors are so good, because they make you feel it man, and they see it. If you can see it, then you can put it in your act.

Do you have any upcoming movie projects?

I just messed around with some friends of mine. We did a little short film [called Struck] that you’ll probably wind up seeing at some point. It’s only about 7 minutes long. I play a guy that’s not like any of these guys. It’s a really lovely story. I think you’ll see. I play like a really loose nice guy, and it’s a little bit cool for a change of pace. There are a couple movies I might be working on soon. It more or less depends on the strike though. I can’t be in the middle of a movie, and they call you back to work on this project and have to abandon the movie.

How do you prepare to play this part? Do you have a technique, do you use Method?

I suppose I just read it over and over and over and get my idea of things. I think what I said earlier is kind of like more how I approach it. If you can look at life, man if you can really see life, you can bring that sort of knowledge to your acting. Gosh, it’s amazing man. I think the people that can’t, don’t get it, don’t see that, are missing lots of things that they could bring to their work. I just read it over and over and kind of more, dramatize it. You take a little line or a little piece of something and you look at it a bunch of different ways, you can add a story to it yourself if it’s not in the script and make it bigger for yourself. And then when you say it…you know what I mean? If you’re talking about, say your father, who is never mentioned before and that sort of thing, what that relationship is like, you know, so when you talk about it, you know. People feel that. When people are just talking to you in their everyday life and they’re talking to you about experiences that they’ve had, you get what they’re talking about, what they’re looking at when they’re talking to you. I think it’s great that as an actor you can create it how you want. It’s very creative; it doesn’t leave you in the past. Method is, I don’t know. It’s just the people I’ve seen do it, I don’t know, I don’t want to say anything I guess because there’s people that do it with great success. I think there’s another way to do it that it’s not so hard on yourself. You can take it and make it whatever you want, based on your ideas of life, or your ideas about that certain situation. You can create it whatever way you want, based on the story, and how you want it to be looked at and what you want people to feel from it. It’s beautiful actually.

You don’t take anything from your life, you’d rather imagine it?

Yeah, totally, but not to the point where it’s like, oh I don’t know about that, when I do? If I’ve seen something in my life, I know what that’s like. I’m not going to not use my knowledge of life, you know what I mean? I don’t consciously go back to that moment and feel that pain. It’s like, yeah I know what it’s like to be broken up with; I know what the feels like. It’s like [frakking] time just caves in on you, it’s [frakking] unbelievable. It’s the worst feeling in the [frakking] world or when you break up with somebody else. You see that all the time in drama, and if you really look at it, it’s probably one of the top five worst things that’s ever happened to you and if you look at it like that, you really look at it, you come up with some really special stuff for those moments.

I read somewhere that you have two sets of identical twin siblings. Is that true?

They’re both identical, which doesn’t run in the family, like we don’t have twins anywhere in the family, like it’s not hereditary. We don’t have twins anywhere in the family, so it’s like one in a million chance.

Thank you guys so much, I really appreciate it, thanks for letting me talk about the acting for a little bit!

That's it Tubers. Don't forget to vote for Moonlight in the People's Choice Awards.

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