March 19, 2003

Joss Talks Eliza
Joss Whedon spoke to TV Guide about life after Buffy, and they asked him about Eliza and the proposed Faith spinoff:

TVGO: Let's talk about Eliza Dushku. Why was it so important to bring back rogue slayer Faith - and not just on Buffy, but on Angel, too?

Whedon: She had finished out as a character on Angel, and she'd talked, not knowing about the last season of Buffy, about doing Angel again, because she had fun. And I booked her for both, thinking she left us on Angel, so she should come back there and have some closure with that crew, then go back to Buffy for the end of the last season. And, because it is the last season, Faith should be a part of that. She's so much part of the history.

TVGO: The prospect of a Faith spinoff was awfully tantalizing. What happened there?

Whedon: Eliza's doing something else [the Fox pilot Heroine]. There was some talk of [a Faith spinoff], but she chose something else, and the talk stopped.

TVGO: And you wouldn't just recast Faith?

Whedon: I would never have a different actress playing any of the characters I've established. I could create shows around different characters, with different permutations and structures for the characters, but it would require coming up with a new show. It wouldn't just be, you know, like, more of the same with some of the same people. It would have to be the way Angel is not Buffy - it would have to be neither of them [but rather, something unique]. And I don't know what that show is or would be or could be because my brain is very sleepy. But I certainly don't rule that out.

Angel 4.15 Screencaps
I've posted low-res screencaps again from the wildfeed of Angel 4.15 (the pictures would be spoilers.) The episode has already aired in Canada and is scheduled to air tomorrow night on the WB in the US. However, according to this article sourced from Variety, should war break out, the WB will likely simulcast CNN coverage so no one knows exactly what's happening.

Zap2it Article
Many thanks to AgentG: Zap2it posted an article about a set visit to Angel as they were shooting Episode 15, with a few comments from Eliza:

Faith, a regular commuter between the two shows, hasn't been seen lately, since her character has spent two-plus years in prison for killing a human. "I could be in a coma," Dushku says, referring to a spell when she was out of commission on "Buffy," "[or] thrown in the klink. Whenever they don't use me for a while, I go and hang out somewhere."

The full article contains spoilers for Angel 4.15.

Eliza in PUNK'D
I seriously got over a dozen emails about this, thanks to everyone who wrote in: Eliza was shown in the previews for MTV's PUNK'D next Monday. The airing times are on the website.

Another New Eliza Movie?
Many thanks to The Tragic Vixen: Eliza is listed to star in a movie called 'The Tourist.'

From IA Films:

She is currently preparing THE TOURIST, which was written by Daniel Pyne (THE SUM OF ALL FEARS, THE FIRM, PACIFIC HEIGHTS). Dan is directing this as a follow up to his film WHERE’S MARLOWE, which was released by Paramount Classics. Eliza Dushku (BRING IT ON) is attached to star.

HSBR.net (a HSX resource site) had this description from InHollywood.com:

After seeing a story about a murderer on tabloid TV, a college student phones in a police report about a mysterious stranger in her town. The police investigation brings about the arrival of 2 rival news shows who invade the lives of the college student and the mysterious tourist.

Kathy Bates and Jeff Goldblum were also attached to star. However, according to the Faculty page at UCLA's Department of Film and Television (where Daniel Pyne is a professor) it says that he was "slated to direct his original screenplay The Tourist for producer Martin Bregman in early 2000." Given that it was meant to be filming 3 years ago, it's possible that Eliza was in talks for this movie, but it's now stuck in developmental hell (much like 'Taking on the Neighborhood.')

Buffy 4.18 Picture
Nika on the SMGfan Message Board posted a pic of Faith from 'Dirty Girls', Buffy episode 4.18.

Angel 4.15 Preview, 4.14 Screencaps, Ratings
I've posted the preview (zipped, in Windows Media format) for 'Angel' episode 4.15. Courtesy of alt.binaries.multimedia.buffy-v-slayer

Also, I meant to get this up before the episode had aired, but real life has been crazy. I've made low-res screencaps from the wildfeed version of 'Release', the last 'Angel' episode.

And according to The Futon Critic, 'Release' scored a 3.4 in the overnight ratings.

Casting for Fox Pilot
Variety reports that Shawn Reaves has been cast to play Harrison, the brother of Eliza's character in the Fox pilot.

From Variety:

Meanwhile, Shawn Reaves ("Auto Focus") has joined the cast of Fox's untitled Jon Feldman pilot from 20th Century Fox TV/Original TV. He'll portray the brother of the central character, to be played by Eliza Dushku. The drama from Rob Cohen and Jon Feldman revolves around a woman who graduates from college and discovers that she's able to save lives by changing the course of events. Cohen is set to direct. Cohen and Feldman are exec producing, along with Neal Moritz, Marty Adelstein and Dawn Parouse.

This was the pic of Shawn that I posted on the message board:

TV Guide and E! Online Video Clips
Many thanks to spider kelly: TV Guide posted a video clip of a new interview with Eliza. It contains a lot of spoilers for Angel 4.15, but she mostly talks about Nate, and what it was like working with him in the episode.

Many thanks to manon: the latest Watch with Kristin clip at E! Online is about the defunct Faith spinoff (there's a quick clip of Eliza from an old interview.) Kristin also talks about the comments James Marsters made at a recent convention, where he said that he had been slated to star alongside Eliza in the spinoff.

Buffy 7.19 Spoilers
Actor from the SMGfan message board posted a shooting report from a scene in Buffy episode 7.19:

But I did get to see Faith (so beautiful), Dawn, Kennedy, Rona, Amanda, and Chao-Ahn (funny to hear her speak perfect English in person when her character doesn't, hehe) Eliza Dushku introduced herself to everyone and shook their hands. She was really cool.

aphrodite-in-nyc from Television Without Pity has also posted spoilers from the script. Faith_Fan and spider kelly have been posting a summary of all her posts on the message board.

'Release' Trailer, 'Salvage' Rating
The WB has posted the trailer for 'Release' on their website. Also, according to The Futon Critic, 'Salvage' scored a 3.7/5 overnight rating, "the Frog's best series performance in its time slot since November sweeps."

Nate Dushku in 'Orpheus'
According to the TV Guide description, Nate Dushku (Eliza's brother) will also be in the cast for 'Angel' episode 4.14. :)

Faith's Back
Just a reminder that Eliza's first 'Angel' episode airs tomorrow on the WB. New episodes of 'Angel' air a day early in some parts of Canada. And the wildfeed is up already. (The wildfeed is the satellite transmission of the show - the wildfeed description is basically a blow-by-blow account of tomorrow's episode, so again, be careful if you want to be unspoiled for a day longer.)

A lot of favourable reviews from TV critics have already begun to appear. From TVGal at Zap2It:

I've seen this week's episode of "Angel" and it's pretty great. Alexis Denisof is heartbreaking in his scenes with Lilah and it sure is great to have the fabulous Faith (check out Eliza Dushku's moves) back in the mix. There are several gasp-out-loud moments that are way too good to spoil.

And Melanie McFarland from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer wrote an editorial on the episode, her opinion of the Faith spinoff, and her thoughts on Eliza's new pilot.

Kirstin Chat at E! Online
Eliza was mentioned a few times in this week's Watch with Kirstin chat at E! Online. Charisma Carpenter took part in the chat, and she was asked what it was like to work with Eliza:

And Eliza--I didn't get to work with her. But I did get to spend one day with all of us on set, and that was fun. We've worked together for years off and on, and she's going to be a big fat star. And let's just talk about her eyelashes for a minute--wench!

Kirstin also spoke about the pilot:

Supposedly they've scrapped the name Heroine. And here's what it's about: A woman (Dushku) who works in a morgue and gets messages from the dead. (Haunted, anyone?) The dead give her info about the crimes committed against them, and she wakes up each morning and relives the day (à la Groundhog Day) to try and set things right. It appears her mother died when she was little (ah, the old dead-mother plot twist!), and she's carrying around a lot of guilt because she couldn't prevent her death.

A bit more news about the Fox pilot because I don't want to start a new topic... according to the Vancouver Province newspaper, it'll begin filming in Vancouver in March.

Pics from Angel 4.15, Trailer for Angel 4.13
Comics Continuum and Fraz at the Fan Forum have posted a few new pics of Eliza from 'Orpheus.' You can find them here. The WB has also finally put up the trailer for 'Salvage' on their website.

New Eliza Movie?
Many thanks to D.: Eliza could be starring in 'Annika', a movie about a Russian girl helping the FBI bring down her mobster father.

This is from Peter Kelley's website:

Annika, Mr. Kelley's first feature screenplay, is in production with Alexa Fogel and Beech Hill Films and is scheduled to begin shooting in Spring 2003 with Mr. Kelley directing and starring Eliza Dushku as Annika.

Peter Kelley is an acting coach - according to his page on the IMDb, he worked with Eliza on 'That Night', 'True Lies' and 'Bring It On.'

I looked around a bit, and found this production description:

ANNIKA - Fall, 2002; Fresh Produce Films/Revere Pictures/Beech Hill Films, 172 W. 79th St., Ste. 6C, New York, NY 10024. Tel: 917-441-9667; Fax: 212-579-5546; Email: info@freshproducefilms.net. STORY: The film is about a Russian girl helping the FBI to bring down her mobster father.

The shooting date had also been moved from February 2003, in another listing I came across.

'Annika' sounds like it could be another indie that she's filming for a friend. It may be the case that there's nothing definite yet, given that Eliza has to finish filming 'Buffy' and then the pilot for Fox. But it's definitely something to keep an eye on.

Random Site Comments
Just wanted to round off a few things...

Yesterday, I moved the message boards to messageboard.elizadushku.tv. All the old posts were converted, and user names and passwords should work as normal. I've still got to work on some graphics and fiddle around with a few other functions, but it's basically done. It's prettier than before - please consider signing up and joining in on the discussions.

I've been working on the Faith News section for a few days, and all the info has now been posted. I've put things like the WB descriptions for all the 'Angel' eps in the spoiler pages, before realising that some people might not want to read both. Oh well.

eliza-dushku.com has been updated with a few pics that I don't think I've posted on the News Channel.

And I also bought the domain name at elizadushku.tv about a week ago (mainly because I needed a new domain for the message boards) but it's just a pointer to eliza-dushku.com at the moment. In the future, it might actually operate as a mirror site.

With the new message boards, I guess the site redesign is complete. It's taken about three weeks of work, but overall, I think I'm pretty happy with how all the sites are looking and running at the moment. Now I can get my life back...