Jason Priestly shows his dark side when he joins the cast of Tru Calling
Jason Priestly was the archetypal Mr Nice Guy in Beverley Hills 90210. But since his first regual TV role since he starred as teen Brandon Walsh, as Jack Harper in Sky One's supernatiral series Tru Calling, the 34 year old actor is playing an all together more sinister character.
Harper works as a morgue attendant alongside the shows heroine Tru Davies (Eliza Dushku), who can turn back time to save lives. At first, he appears perfectly normal, but it gradually emerges that his friendly exterior hides a darker secret. 'Jack's much darker than Brandon,' says Priestly, who joins the cast of the show this week. 'It was fantastic to play Brandon for as long as I did, but its more interesting to play someone malicious. And they don't come more malicious than Jack.'
After Priestly left Bever;y Hills in 1998, he appeared in a nember of movies, but made his biggest headlines when he was seriously injured in a motor-racing accident in 2002. While practising for a race at the Kentucky Speedway, his car crashed into a wall at 200mph and he was left with multiple injuries, including a fractured spine. 'I'm incredibly lucky to have made a full recovery,' he says. 'I don't race any more. I had 11 great years but the doctors told me it was time to close that particular chapter of my life.'
He is now concerntrating on acting, including the firth coming ITV1 prisoner of war drama Colditz, in wich Vancouver-born Priestley plays a Canadian pilot. 'I don't think I've suffered at all from being so heavily associated with Beverley Hills,' he says. 'The only time I haven't worked during the last 6 years was when I was recovering from my accident.'
Tim Oglethorpe
TV & Satellite Week
Jason Priestly was the archetypal Mr Nice Guy in Beverley Hills 90210. But since his first regual TV role since he starred as teen Brandon Walsh, as Jack Harper in Sky One's supernatiral series Tru Calling, the 34 year old actor is playing an all together more sinister character.
Harper works as a morgue attendant alongside the shows heroine Tru Davies (Eliza Dushku), who can turn back time to save lives. At first, he appears perfectly normal, but it gradually emerges that his friendly exterior hides a darker secret. 'Jack's much darker than Brandon,' says Priestly, who joins the cast of the show this week. 'It was fantastic to play Brandon for as long as I did, but its more interesting to play someone malicious. And they don't come more malicious than Jack.'
After Priestly left Bever;y Hills in 1998, he appeared in a nember of movies, but made his biggest headlines when he was seriously injured in a motor-racing accident in 2002. While practising for a race at the Kentucky Speedway, his car crashed into a wall at 200mph and he was left with multiple injuries, including a fractured spine. 'I'm incredibly lucky to have made a full recovery,' he says. 'I don't race any more. I had 11 great years but the doctors told me it was time to close that particular chapter of my life.'
He is now concerntrating on acting, including the firth coming ITV1 prisoner of war drama Colditz, in wich Vancouver-born Priestley plays a Canadian pilot. 'I don't think I've suffered at all from being so heavily associated with Beverley Hills,' he says. 'The only time I haven't worked during the last 6 years was when I was recovering from my accident.'
Tim Oglethorpe
TV & Satellite Week