“V”: Laura Vandervoort Audio Interview, Part 1
Although “V” is off the air until March, SciFi TV Zone will be providing continuing coverage of the show, beginning with this exclusive audio interview with actress Laura Vandervoort (Lisa). Conducted just before the show began its production hiatus and before the audience — and presumably Laura herself — knew that Lisa was actually Anna’s daughter, she discusses the character and her overall feelings about the role and the show itself. Interview conducted by Edward Gross.
Executive Producer Scott Rosenbaum on the March Return of “V”
November 24, 2009 by RetroEd
Filed under ABC, Featured, Sci Fi TV Zone
Tonight’s episode of “V” is scheduled to be the last one to air on ABC until the show returns in March, following the airing of the Winter Olympics. The question amongst fans of the show, however, is whether or not this is a programming mistake. As has become extremely evident over the past couple of seasons, there is very little viewer loyalty with audiences quickly growing used to not seeing a show when it’s off the air. Will this take away something from the momentum “V” has been building?
Scott Rosenbaum, the show’s new executive producer, whose real influence will be felt beginning with the its return in March, doesn’t think so. “This scheduling was done on purpose to make the show even better,” he offers. “I think the reason they [ABC] did this – and it makes a lot of sense – is that they view this as a big event, and it’s also an expensive show to do. By breaking it up into these different sections, I think it allows more time for writing and more time for production. The idea is to make the show even bigger and essentially better. Think of a television season as a movie. Look at the first season of ‘V’ as 12 episodes [after the pilot]. The first four are the beginning, Act 1; the second four will be Act 2 and the final four will be Act 3. Approaching it that way, I think, will make the show even better. Is it going to be frustrating for people because they want to see new episodes? Possibly. But I think the plan is, by doing it this way, is that more people will be excited by the next group, and they’ll know that when they get to that next group of episodes, they’re going to get something that’s better than anything they’re going to get anywhere else, because we were able to put more time and effort into every aspect of production.”
The fear, of course, is that the network will look at the fact that the ratings have dipped from week to week and decide not to proceed with additional episodes. Rosenbaum doesn’t see this as a possibility. “I think they’ll stick to the plan, because everyone here agrees it’s a good one,” he says. “It’s like event programming. Truthfully, I’m thrilled that this is the way they’re doing it. It might be a little annoying, but this will work. I also think that season two or three will be more like a regular show with 22 episodes. In this first season, this is a property that people know from before. It was a huge event back in the days when it first appeared, and I think the spirit here was, ‘Let’s reintroduce it in a way that’s different from what everyone else is doing.’
“I think ‘V’ has great potential,” closes Rosenbaum. “I think it can be not just an entertaining show, but I think it can be an important show, if done right. It can be a show that has a sort of lasting effect, and can be bigger than just a TV show. It allows you to dive into things that most TV shows don’t allow you to do. Just in terms of the state of the world, the state of humanity, who we are as people, what is good and bad about us, how we can fix things in our nature – everything about humans beings’ place in the world and in the universe. It can be an intellectual exercise as well, and not just a fun action show. It gives you all the tools to play with, which is really nice.”
“V”: Elizabeth Mitchell on The Bonnie Hunt Show
“V” may be winding down its first story arc (concluding Tuesday night, scheduled to return in March), but publicity for the show continues. On November 19th, Elizabeth Mitchell (who plays FBI agent Erica Evans) appeared on The Bonnie Hunt Show.
Will Lost Protect the Visitors?
Despite the fact it will be going head-to-head with the Winter Olympics, it seems that ABC has decided that the hype surrounding the final season of Lost will be enough to guarantee an audience. The enigmatic show returns to the network on February 2nd, and according to Variety, when the Olympics ends in March, “V” will return to the schedule — at 10PM, immediately following Lost. Given the expected audience for the show’s final season, it would seem to almost guarantee a much larger audience for “V” than it was able to hold on to over its four-episode run in November (which concludes next Tuesday). No doubt that “V” fans will be grateful as the show will move away from 8PM powerhouse NCIS, which has, on average, been pulling in over 20 million viewers per episode.
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: New “V” Showrunner Scott Rosenbaum
“V” has certainly had its share of behind the scenes turmoil since production of the pilot, including a pair of production shut downs and several shifts in showrunners. The latest, and the one likely to stick for the long haul, is the addition of former Chuck executive producer Scott Rosenbaum, whose influence on the series will be felt beginning with episode five, which airs in March when the show returns to ABC.
In the following exclusive interview with SciFi TV Zone editor Edward Gross, Rosenbaum discusses his approach to the series and his creative intentions.
SCIFI TV ZONE: With you taking over as show runner on “V”, what do you see as the primary differences between you and Scott Peters?
SCOTT ROSENBAUM: I have a slightly different story-telling sensibility. I think Scott and I share the same vision for the show, but our execution will be a little different. I’m going to probably do the show a little more visceral, it will be a little more fast-paced, it will be learning more of the mythology and the history of the Vs. In my mind, viewers are very advanced at this point, and I want them to come to “V” and see, A, stuff they can’t see anywhere else, and, B, also feel like they’re getting storytelling that doesn’t feel retread or old, that’s, frankly, exciting. That being said, is Scott Peters’ vision of the show, his overall conceit, those things he feels strongly about, are they going to go away? No, I just think you will see it executed in a different manner.
SCIFI TV ZONE: So there will be more revelations?
SCOTT ROSENBAUM: Listen, my goal is that in every single episode there will be an “Oh my God, I can’t believe that happened” moment, or a “Wow” moment – at least one – in every single episode. And I think that would not only be a mythology plot reveal, but also a character reveal. I want the characters to be able to make mistakes, to make the wrong choices sometimes, and that’s where you get the most amount of drama. I would prefer that the stories come from them making mistakes, and the snowball effect of those mistakes, or, rather than mistakes, choices made for the right reason, but then there are consequences of that. I don’t want people to watch this show and ever be able to guess what’s going to happen next, because that’s the problem with some of the TV I watch. Maybe this is because I watch so much TV, but you have this vast number of stories you’ve seen because you’ve been watching TV since you were a kid. So I think I have to be ahead of that curve, and have it be completely organic, and to have it make sense, but to just surprise people, in a good way, and challenge them as well.
SCIFI TV ZONE: But not mire us down like Lost…
SCOTT ROSENBAUM: That’s a good point – the one thing “V” will definitely not have is it will not be steeped in mythology so that you can’t just watch an episode or you’ll be confused. The complexity will be in the thematics of the storytelling. And when I say complex storytelling, I mean the main characters don’t always make the right choices, it’s not always a happy ending. A lot of times in TV, all the leads have to be heroes and make the right choice and every episode has to have a happy ending, and I don’t want to go down that road. But one thing that I do think I can add to the show is to make it more fun. I don’t want it to be a dark, fugitive, purely resistance story. I want there to be the dark elements, and I want there to be incredibly high stakes, but I also want the show to be fun. At it’s core conceit, it’s probably one of the most fascinating ideas ever presented. It’s the first time that aliens have come to Earth and when I was a kid, I could identity with where Tyler is coming from, I would want to be the first one to sign up; to say, “Hey, let me on that ship!” And I want more of the show to be seen through the eyes of the characters, the wonder and the joy of how incredible it is, so it doesn’t just feel like it’s our people against the world, against the Vs and constantly running.
That’s a strong element of the show, too, but I think this sort of fun and wonder and excitement of these visitors being here for the first time is something I want to cover as well. I think the human elements are super exciting, and we’ll have characters who people will love and care about, but I think at this point what is incredibly new and unique in the show is these aliens. So it will never be the aliens’ show, but I think we have to spend more time with them, with the Visitors, and understand why they’re here, what they’re planning to do, who they are. If in fact they are lizards, what does that really mean? Normal questions you would ask, like what do they eat? What do they need for survival? What about their brains? Are they capable or incapable of love? Are they capable of sympathy or empathy? All of those things I think are interesting, and the more we know about that, the more it’ll inform our human struggle, and what the humans in the show are up against, and what the consequences will be if they fail.
“V”: The Summit – An Original Online Comic
“V” as a concept is something that has challenged audience’s imaginations since its debut in 1983, and the latest example of that is an original fan-created online comic story set during the era of the original miniseries.
“V”: The Summit is an eight-page comic story hosted over at Visitors Among Us.com. Written by John T. Caliber and drawn by Pat Carbajal, it is the first in a series of proposed storylines set in the “V” universe.
What follows are the first three pages of “The Summit.” Hopefully you’ll come over to Visitors Among Us and give us your feedback on the story.
For the rest of this comic, please click the image below.
Ratings “V”ictory
The Hollywood Reporter.com is stating that ABC’s massive marketing of “V” paid off – big time. The premiere episode of the series, based on overnight ratings (which could change based on national numbers), was seen by 13.9 million people, and its rating among adults 18-49 was the highest of the night, even beating CBS powerhouse NCIS. “That’s the biggest scripted series premiere rating for a freshman show this fall,” offers the story. The real question ABC is asking is how many of those people will return next week? Let’s hope the audience stays with the show.
Exclusive Interview: Laura Vandervoort on “V” & Smallville
Laura Vandervoort, who stole the hearts of genre fans when she played Supergirl on Smallville, is returning to television this Tuesday on ABC’s “V”, in which she plays the alien Visitor Lisa, whose job is to bring disenfranchised teens into the Peace Ambassador Program, with the ultimate intent of using them against humanity. In the following interview, Laura talks about both series.
SCI FI TV ZONE: You are shooting in Vancouver – any chance that you might hop over to Smallville?
LAURA VANDERVOORT: Oh gosh, there’s been a few background performers I did Smallville with, and they’re coming up and saying, “So, are you coming back?” And I don’t know. I mean, I’m in Vancouver, I don’t know if they know I’m here, but it would be nice to hop over and be part of the show again. I loved Smallville. It was everything to me. You know, it was the first role that put me out there in front of America and the world – it’s played all over the world – and it’s helped me get in the door for other projects that were grittier and different, that I would have never been considered for because of the way you look, or the way they’ve seen you in the past. I owe everything to Smallville, and I’d love to go back, I don’t know if they’re going to have a storyline for me, I’m not sure what direction they’re taking the show in, so fingers crossed. I’d love to go back before the show is done.
SCIFI TV ZONE: Have you had the chance to get a better handle on who Lisa is as a person?
LAURA VANDERVOORT: As a reptilian or a person? As a character I feel like I had a fairly good grasp on her at the beginning, but as we’ve had different directors come in, and I’ve chatted with the producers, I’m definitely learning more. There’s a lot of stuff they aren’t going to tell us that might impact our performance and might give away any secrets, but from what I’ve understood, she’s literally just a 17-year-old who is there for peace, and she’s got orders that were given to her, and she’s going to follow through with them. That’s how they’re trained, and she’s also interested, similar to Supergirl, in taking in Earth and the culture. But right now she’s exploring.
SCIFI TV ZONE: You say she’s there for peace –
LAURA VANDERVOORT: I was just going to say, the way you can look at it is she’s been given an order to get humans to join the Ambassador Program, and that’s her task and that’s what she’s there for. She’s very focused, and she’s getting the best possible humans she thinks are appropriate for the job.
SCIFI TV ZONE: Do you think she’s going to develop a more sympathetic side?
LAURA VANDERVOORT: I think so, without giving too much away, I think when she experiences a bit of the hate that’s going on with the Visitors being on earth, and protestors, some of the things she sees impact her more than she expects. She feels more for some of the humans, I think, and I think she’s learning more about dealing with conflict and not being wanted.
SCIFI TV ZONE: I think a great arc would be to see her working with the humans.
LAURA VANDERVOORT: I have to say that’s what I want. But I don’t know where they plan to go with it. Especially because she’s focused on Tyler right now, and I’d like to see that develop into something, and perhaps that’s where the Fifth Column will come in.
The new “V” premieres on ABC November 3rd. For all the news on “V” — both past and present — just click below.
For more Superman universe exclusives, take a look below:
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Featured in our premiere issue:
MERCY REEF• Behind the Scenes on the “Aquaman” TV Pilot* Exclusive interviews with creators Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, and director Greg Beeman
• A conversation with actor Justin Hartley, who played Aquaman before becoming Green Arrow on Smallville
• Never before published behind the scenes photos
JUSTICE LEAGUE: THE ANIMATED SERIES
• The making of all 52 episodes before the show became Justice League Unlimited
• Go behind the scenes on each episode with producers Bruce Timm, James Tucker, Dwayne McDuffie and others
• An interview with voice director Andrea Romano
• Exclusive interviews with the voice cast, including George Newbern (Superman) and Kevin Conroy (Batman)
• Previously unpublished behind the scenes images
“V” Episode Two: “There is No Normal Anymore”
EXCLUSIVE: “V” Director Yves Simoneau
Director Yves Simoneau, who had previously collaborated with executive producer Scott Peters on the pilot episode of The 4400, spoke to Visitors Among Us while in the midst of production of what would end up being the last episode of the new “V” shot prior to the show commencing on its second production hiatus. In this excerpt from the interview, he discusses his reasons for doing the pilot and his feelings about the show’s potential.
VISITORS AMONG US: Is this the kind of project that attracts your attention?
YVES SIMONEAU: I’m very eclectic in terms of what I like. I did big historical war movies, and I did some noirs and then a bit of science fiction, so when I got the call I was very interested in going back to that world a bit, because I hadn’t visited there for a awhile. I don’t have a specific affinity for other things – I’m interested by a variety of things.
VISITORS AMONG US: What was it about “V” that made you want to do it?
YVES SIMONEAU: There’s something about that notion of an alien “country” coming to earth that feels somewhereat relevant to what’s happening here on this planet, because you can draw a lot of parallels to a lot of things. If you have a powerful nation that’s decided to go to another nation and integrate, or try to absorb, there’s a lot to compare to. And also this notion of foreign life existing, which I believe in – I think it would be a little short-sighted not to think of it. And in a way, people are getting more open to it, changing the way we’re thinking about that sort of question. Before, we were the know-it-alls, when people were saying “I believe in aliens,” you were treated like a fool. Now people are more and more open to the idea that there is life out there in one form or another. I’m not saying they’re Vs – but I don’t think we’re alone in the universe. Also, if you remember the original, it’s something that made an impact, so you’re receiving a sort of a trademark to play with, which is always a big deal. All that made it very interesting.
VISITORS AMONG US: Did you go back and look at the original before you shot this?
YVES SIMONEAU: I didn’t do that until later in the process, because I was concentrating on what we had in front of us. I tried to address basically the questions we had about the script, and the production, and then later on, when I was somewhere in the middle of it, I started looking at it, just to make sure I wasn’t completely either disconnected from it or too connected to it. Now that I had established my own position, I wanted to put it in relationship with the original, and it was a lot of fun, because we were very different, but at the same time I think we respected a lot of what made it work in the first place. It was a good re-imagination, I think it worked.
VISITORS AMONG US: What are the primary differences between the approach taken with the original and the approach in 2009?
YVES SIMONEAU: It has more shades of gray in it, it is not as black and white, in a sense that a lot of people will adopt the aliens as their favorite characters, and I think that in that regard it’s a little different – in the original, most of them were presented as invaders and bad people, and this time we’re presenting a little variety. We are not totally sure about their real intent- – we know they want to take over, and we know there are bad elements there, but there is also a whole dimension of that group of people that is positive, and I think that’s what’s going to make it interesting in the long run. The original miniseries lasted for four hours. This let’s you do what you want for many hours so you have to develop a richer, more complex environment for the characters so you have enough to go on with. I think this new version is trying to connect with the reality of today, and so in that way it is connected to the original, but it is different from the original. And that’s established the right balance there.
VISITORS AMONG US: Obviously the original was a re-telling of the Holocaust – for today’s audience, what are the allegories?
YVES SIMONEAU: It’s more about how do you deal with foreign people, foreign elements, foreign objects, how do you deal with something that doesn’t belong in your world? And I think it’s beyond the Holocaust, and all that, it’s about humanity as a whole, how do we behave when something really foreign hits us? I think that’s where I would put it. I don’t think it’s as precise as the original was, in terms of representing the Holocaust or something of that nature. I think it’s something bigger than that – not that the Holocaust wasn’t big, but it’s going beyond that specific event – it’s that event, and all the events like that. And not only here, but from everywhere. It’s about what makes us human, and how we react and survive and move on and develop.
