Melissa George Interview

[AliasALIAS]

MINOR SPOILERS!


Melissa spies stardom
Look out, SD-6! There's a new spy in town and she'll give Sydney a run for her money.

Melissa George is thrilled with her 27th birthday present - a lead role opposite Jennifer Garnerin the hit spy drama, Alias! The former Home And Away star, who played a professional criminal in the short-lived drama Thieves and had a stint on Friends as baby Emma's nanny, has signed to Alias for six years. She's already on billboards all over Hollywood as the show's newest star.

How did you land this coveted role?
I went and read for the role and met (creator) JJ Abrams and the producers, but they wanted me to come back to test with Michael Vartan (who plays Michael Vaughn). It was instant chemistry. It was only meant to be a guest role but performing was so great with him, JJ called me later and said, "Would you be interested in joining the show full time?" and I said, "Yes!"

What can you tell us about your role?
I can't even tell you my character's name because it might give away some secrets surrounding how she joins the show! But I can say I'm involved in a love triangle with Sydney (Jennifer Garner) and Michael. They're creating the role for me from scratch.

Had you met Jennifer Garner before?
We knew each other because we were on the same network with Alias and Thieves and we were being pushed at that time as "the two kick-arse girls of the year." When I turned up, she said, "How fantastic that you're doing this show!" Now we're two kick-arse girls on the same show and our different looks compliment each other well. Jennifer was also thrilled there was another girl in the cast to hang out with.

How did your family react?
My family was over the moon. I called my parents in Australia to tell them I'm now going to be on the air in Australia twice a week and my mum had to pull her car over!

What else have you been working on?
I have been filming the two-hour premiere of Charmed. One of my girlfriends was also in it and I got the role of Queen of the Warriors. I said I'd do it so we could run around all day looking ridiculous!

How does it feel knowing you'll be back on TV at home in Australia?
That's another great thing about Alias - now hopefully I'll finally get back on the cover of TV WEEK instead of being an inset (laughs)!


From TV Week, an Australian magazine


Thanks to CremeBrulee of SD-1 for the article.

 

[freelancer1]

i dont like them saying that shes going to be the new star. no ones better than JG. the shows about her.

 

[lenkid]

six years? Man, that totally means there will be no more S/V.

 

[AliasALIAS]

six years? Man, that totally means there will be no more S/V.

Not necessarily

 

[lenkid]

Hmmm, that's true. I guess she could wind up being the new baddie. That would keep her around for awhile.

 

[WV_Mountaineer]

Six years!! Oh no, that is horrible, horrible news. :madfire:

 

[Irina_Derevko]

Ya, but I don't know how I feel about another, like, full-time female lead! I kinda feel like it will take away from Jen's glory. But hey, who knows right? ^_^

 

[AliasALIAS]

Hey, what if she's a great actress? I think it's unfair that people are judging her before even viewing her performance.

And just because she's signed on for six years, it doesn't necessarily mean she'll be on for that long. As Manu put it at SD-1, "The show won't last for another 6 years. It's a contract that ties her to ABC/Touchstone for that long, not to the show. She could easily be killed off by the second half of the season."

And if she was to stay on the show for that long, she could be "out of the triangle" and just another agent because she's a kick-arse actress.


eta: This article does exaggerate her importance though. I agree with Irina Derevko. I don't want anyone taking away Jen's glory. But I doubt anyone can.

 

[Azhria Lilu]

I don't want anyone taking away Jen's glory. But I doubt anyone can.

Exactly

 

[Chanel]

ditto charlie!

this season is goig to be excelelnt! 6 years.. woah...

 

[VaughnFan13]

lol, like most of you, the first thing i thought was, SIX YEARS?!?!

 

[nancee]

dude...thats like...grrr he IS married...gggggggggrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!!! at least shes pretty...u know not like the other chick that they had for vaughn..alice....grrrrrr......gggggrrrrrrr like major...:angry:

 

[sdmix]

it's from an Australian magazine right? of course they're gonna make her out to be one of the big stars on the show. i'm sure she'll get her screen time, but i'm also sure that JG, MV, and Victor Garber won't lose any, and that's what's important to me. anyway, i'm okay with them playing it up in Australia. if it gets Australians watching the show i'm all for it.

like AliasALIAS said, she could get killed off or just taken off the show eventually. they're creating this character from scratch, and things like that don't always work out. but she also could be a great addition to the cast. but don't worry, i think that Sydney and Vaughn won't be apart forever.

one question though. isn't JG only signed until 2008? so wouldn't that mean that she's only signed on for another 5 seasons making 7 seasons total? so then how could Melissa George be signed on for 6 seasons if JG isn't even signed on that long? or am i terribly wrong about something? HELP!!! now i've gone and confused myself.
:clover:

 

[nattie700]

I'm an Aussie and it's true, don't worry about Melissa George too much! She'll play and important character but I doubt JG will lose in screen time, the whole show revolves around her and rightfully so! I think TV Week is just trying to be all exclusive with an interview with her and everything, they want to be special to get an interview with a star on Alias! It's pretty big fo us here, cos we're all pretty roud of our Aussie celebs eg, Nicole Kidman and Anthony LaPaglia and I think they're just tring to show how far she's come from Home and Away, which is like a soapie.
So like sdmix said as long as it gets more Australians to watch the show, let them have their interviews with her!

 

[syd_spy47]

Hmmm, that's true. I guess she could wind up being the new baddie. That would keep her around for awhile.

Great idea! She could go all evil.

 

[ISpy10]

Go away Melissa!!!!!! :angry:

 

[spy_girl21]

I REMEMBER HER NOW!! ACK!!! ACK!!!! why can't they put thieves back on......

 

[Mad bout Alias]

one question though. isn't JG only signed until 2008? so wouldn't that mean that she's only signed on for another 5 seasons making 7 seasons total? so then how could Melissa George be signed on for 6 seasons if JG isn't even signed on that long? or am i terribly wrong about something? HELP!!! now i've gone and confused myself.
:clover:

Ok now im confused too! :blink:

 

[alias_luver]

Wow! This just adds to the anticipation for season 3. I cant wait for it!! It's going to be soo... good!!

 

[syd_spy47]

one question though. isn't JG only signed until 2008? so wouldn't that mean that she's only signed on for another 5 seasons making 7 seasons total? so then how could Melissa George be signed on for 6 seasons if JG isn't even signed on that long? or am i terribly wrong about something? HELP!!! now i've gone and confused myself.
:clover:

Ok now im confused too! :blink:

Ok, this is what I understand. Them signing to be there that long, doesn't necessarily mean the show will run that long. It just means they're tied to them if it does. It just makes sure they don't break out of their contracts before it ends. It does not, in any way, mean Alias will have seven seasons or what not. Does that make more sense? If not, maybe one of the admins can help explain it.