Interview with Tony Bray

She dazzled one alien with her dark eyes and beauty. Now it's time for the actress to shine where everybody can see her. It will happen soon if she has her talented way.

ver since The WB's science fiction hit "Roswell" ended, I've wondered what would happen to the fine young actors who made up the ensemble cast, especially Shiri Appleby. She always made me think that she was hiding a dream about her career, one that would surface one day with the right role. That's why I wanted to talk with her after seeing the ABC Family movie "Everything You Want" in April. It was a romantic dramedy that could have been turned into a psychological horror flick complete with a maniac stalker and mucho slasher moments, but it wasn't.

Shiri starred as Abby Morrison, an art student who finally had a chance for happiness after finding Mr. Right in the form of Quinn Andrews (Nick Zano). Unfortunately, her childhood friend, Sy (Orlando Seale), was jealous and had the potential to destroy not only her relationship with Quinn, but with all the men she would ever encounter in her lifetime. Shiri was able to travel the fine line between mental terror and happiness her character faced because she is actually a fine thespian who only needs a few more quality scripts to come her way so that she can make that leap from a former teen star to an adult actress casting directors seek out for major roles.

I had a chance to talk with Shiri recently about "Everything You Want" and why she chose the movie from the pile of screenplays she is asked to read each month. Of course, I couldn't let the moment go by without mentioning a few things about creatures from another planet. That's the hardship she will have to endure for decades more from other interviewers as "Roswell" generates a new life of its own in syndication mode ... over and over and over and over again.

How did you find the delightful story "Everything You Want?"
They sent me the script. I was interested in playing the role of Abby. I read it. I really responded to it. I thought it was a little bit of a different take on a romantic comedy, which is what I’ve been looking for. I got together with Ryan Little, the director, and the producers. I really liked them. Then the movie just slowly started coming together. I think it was a few months before we actually started shooting. We got a great cast together and we all met up in Utah to make the movie.

I understand that you and the other actors were allowed to improvise.
I think it was more like improvising the ideas. We weren’t really playing around with the words too much, but it was more of the action that we were improvising. Orlando Seale and I did a lot of that together.

He was very good as Sy.
Yes.

And Will Friedle was out of his mind.
Wasn’t he great. I thought he did a really super job.

He reminded me of Hugh Grant’s roommate in "Notting Hill," played by Rhys Ifans. How many takes did it take for you to get that wonderful kissing scene on the ice without falling down?
(laughter) Oh, when we were falling down? I think it was just a couple of takes. We did all of that stuff on the ice in one entire evening. It was quite cold, but we had a nice time.

Is that rink a real rink, or did they make it for the film?
No, it’s a real rink.

That’s such an intimate, small rink. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen one that small before. What city was that in?
It was in Salt Lake. It was beautiful.

The camera likes you a lot.
Well, thank you. I really appreciate it.

I don’t want to discuss Sy too much. Do you think we should go into that area or leave it as a surprise?
I think it was definitely a draw for me when we were reading the script. I don’t know if it’s something that would draw people into wanting to watch the movie more or not.

No, I don’t either. Nick Zano's reaction after he found out who Sy is was justifiable.
Yes, definitely.

Although, if he hadn’t gone back and gotten you, I would have found him and spanked him, because I’m old enough to do that at 58.
(laughter) When we were dealing with the relationship with Sy, we wanted to make it as real as possible for her to show that she was at least finding comfort in something ... to give it a bit of heart and sympathy.

I don’t blame her, considering the parents. There’s just a lot in this movie to like. How long did it take for you all to shoot it?
I think it took about a month.

If I don’t ask you something about "Roswell," my readers will kill me.
Go ahead.

You were on the set with one of the best actors in Hollywood, Bill Sadler.
Yes, he’s so good. He was sort of like the father to all of us -- so much ability -- so much talent. There’s moments on the set when you can’t tap a certain emotion or you have problems communicating. He’s the sort of guy who would be there to shoot us a look to help get through it in a way that didn’t make us feel uncomfortable about not being able to do it ourselves initially. He was just very giving to all of us. He ended up directing an episode on the show. He’s just really very specific about what he wants and he knows how to deliver.

Do you stay in contact with him?
We did a movie together. We were both in "The Battle of Shaker Heights," but we were never in the same scenes. I saw him on the set one day. We sat around and talked for awhile, but I haven’t seen him since then.

Did you like the way "Roswell" ended?
Of course, for her I did.

You’re the second actress I’ve interviewed who was in love with an alien.
(laughter)

The other one was Julie Benz. She did "Taken" for Spielberg. Do you watch "Roswell" now that it is on in rerun mode.
I catch it every once in awhile. It’s sort of like looking at a picture of yourself for five years. You check it out and then move on to the next project.

I hope I didn’t take too much of your time today.
Oh, no. It was wonderful.

You do remind me of a young Audrey Hepburn at times.
You’re so sweet. Thank you.

Have a great week.
You too.

July 2005
by Tony Bray
TV-Now.com