A new Spike movie?
TV GUIDE
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Question: Now, I think we all know where you stand on the casting for Joss Whedon's Wonder Woman (Entertainment News 3/17), but I feel obliged to mention my best friend's belief that the one and only (aside from Lynda Carter, natch) choice is Lucy Lawless. If ever the opportunity presents itself, be sure to pass on to Joss this viable second choice (since you would naturally push for Lauren Graham). "” Brian Edwards
Ausiello: I've got good news and bad news for you, Bri. The good news: Such a chance actually did present itself last Thursday, when Joss phoned me during a break from editing Serenity to chat about lassoing Wonder Woman and resurrecting a certain 150-year-old, English vamp on WB (more on that later). The bad news: I never got around to pitching Lawless. I did, however, find out that Whedon is months away from finding his ideal Woman. "Everybody is in agreement that casting is not an issue right now," he says. "It's not a vehicle to be built around a particular star. We want to write the thing, find the right character and then figure out who should play her. There are various famous people whose names have come up, because that always happens, but you know, we're talking about Wonder Woman here. Those are tough booties to fill." That said, it sounds like Whedon knows enough about Lynda Carter's successor to rule out Lawless and (sigh) Graham. "I think we will go a little younger than the traditional idea of Wonder Woman," he says, adding that the new Princess Diana will likely be played by someone outside the Buffyverse. "It's a movie, not a party for my friends." That certainly bodes well for rumored front-runner Jessica Biel. (And I repeat: Sigh... )
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Question: Are we getting any closer to a Spike movie? "” Heather
Ausiello: Based on my conversations with both Whedon and WB entertainment president David Janollari last Thursday, it certainly sounds like we are. When I asked Janollari if he had given any further thought to the Spike telepic I pitched him at press tour in January, he said, "I have given it more thought since you brought it up. It's certainly something that I continue to get many fan letters and e-mails about, and it's something that we discuss a lot around here. But no decision has been made." Well, literally 15 minutes after I hung up with Janollari, Whedon called to weigh in on a William the Bloody revival. "I'm really for it, but I have never really spoken to David Janollari," he said. "I occasionally would bring it up with [execs at 20th Century] Fox, and they'd be like, 'Yeah, that would be cool.' And I'm like, 'Who do we need to talk to?' And then nothing has really happened. I've been really busy in post [-production] on Serenity and haven't been able to get the wheels turning, but I definitely intend to investigate it." When I relayed to him that Janollari had just told me that he was open to the idea, Whedon responded, "Well, that's something that I hope to get a chance to pursue." And what about his Wonder Woman commitment? Wouldn't that further delay things? "[Spike] is not necessarily something that I would write and direct myself," he suggested. "I have a lot of brilliant friends who worked with me for many years who might be able to take the helm "” somebody who both James [Marsters] and I would trust." Whedon also revealed that the Spike pic would not be a prequel, thereby alleviating the age-related concerns Marsters recently expressed in Ask Ausiello. "For me, Spike is a very contemporary guy," he said. "It's sort of what distinguished him from Angel." So let me get this straight: Not only did I pitch this movie to Janollari, but I secured the participation of its star and creator. If that's not enough to land me a producing credit, then something's wrong with the system.
