Post by Katie Warren on Jun 20, 2019 18:13:00 GMT -5
Angel cast and creators reunite for 20th anniversary of beloved vampire drama series
In the City of Angels, the sun is shining brightly on Good Friday. But beyond a heavy black door, away from harsh light, vampires, demons, and a rogue demon hunter or two gather in the darkness of an abandoned warehouse.
Okay, so the Hollywood studio that’s serving as the location for EW’s Angel reunion shoot isn’t actually a warehouse, nor a meeting place for the undead. Rather, the cast of the WB drama is very human, and expressing very human levels of excitement at being together again, 20 years after their show debuted.
“It’s good to see everybody!” says David Boreanaz, 50, the show’s titular vampire who, upon arrival, immediately makes a beeline for the dressing room to find his costars. Spotting Charisma Carpenter (shallow cheerleader-turned-champion Cordelia) and Amy Acker (shy Texan physicist Winifred “Fred” Burkle) in makeup chairs, he plops himself on the counter and sits, legs swinging giddily, catching up with them while they’re curled and coiffed. “Look at that smile,” he says, gesturing to Carpenter with affection. “We just picked up where we were last time we talked to each other.” Speaking of picking up, Acker, 42, enjoyed the series’ experience so much, she has already declared she’d be ready for a revival, which would be season 6. “Every show should be this fun,” she says. “We were so spoiled.”
Angel premiered on The WB on Oct. 5, 1999, as a spin-off of creator Joss Whedon’s original vampire series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and furthered the story of a bloodsucker whom the Romany cursed with a soul as punishment for a century of mass murder. Leaving Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar) and Sunnydale behind, Angel arrived in Los Angeles to continue his quest for redemption by helping the helpless, one at a time. Over the course of five seasons (all of which are available to stream on Hulu), Angel was aided by fellow Buffy expats Cordelia Chase (Carpenter), Wesley Wyndam-Pryce (Alexis Denisof), and Spike (James Marsters), and new allies Fred (Acker) and vampire hunter Charles Gunn (J. August Richards), among other humans and demons along the way until The WB abruptly canceled the show in 2004. (We will get to that unmerciful killing later.)
Angel was the brain spawn of Whedon and Buffy writer David Greenwalt, who’d been the one to pen the first kiss between the Slayer and her vampire-with-a soul boo Angel. “It all made sense on paper,” says Whedon, 55. “But until you have a show, you don’t have a show.” The duo began carving out a heavier series than Buffy — for a minute it even got too dark and the network had to intervene — that would explore a different message from Buffy’s what-kind-of-person-will-you-be? themes. Instead, it would focus on the idea of dealing with the consequences of your actions. “We thought, let’s do a noir thing that’s about addiction and redemption, and we’ll put them in L.A.,” says Greenwalt. “The stories will be darker and, more important, he’ll be darker.” What they ended up with certainly had intense moments, but also plenty of humor and heart, too.
Okay, so the Hollywood studio that’s serving as the location for EW’s Angel reunion shoot isn’t actually a warehouse, nor a meeting place for the undead. Rather, the cast of the WB drama is very human, and expressing very human levels of excitement at being together again, 20 years after their show debuted.
“It’s good to see everybody!” says David Boreanaz, 50, the show’s titular vampire who, upon arrival, immediately makes a beeline for the dressing room to find his costars. Spotting Charisma Carpenter (shallow cheerleader-turned-champion Cordelia) and Amy Acker (shy Texan physicist Winifred “Fred” Burkle) in makeup chairs, he plops himself on the counter and sits, legs swinging giddily, catching up with them while they’re curled and coiffed. “Look at that smile,” he says, gesturing to Carpenter with affection. “We just picked up where we were last time we talked to each other.” Speaking of picking up, Acker, 42, enjoyed the series’ experience so much, she has already declared she’d be ready for a revival, which would be season 6. “Every show should be this fun,” she says. “We were so spoiled.”
Angel premiered on The WB on Oct. 5, 1999, as a spin-off of creator Joss Whedon’s original vampire series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and furthered the story of a bloodsucker whom the Romany cursed with a soul as punishment for a century of mass murder. Leaving Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar) and Sunnydale behind, Angel arrived in Los Angeles to continue his quest for redemption by helping the helpless, one at a time. Over the course of five seasons (all of which are available to stream on Hulu), Angel was aided by fellow Buffy expats Cordelia Chase (Carpenter), Wesley Wyndam-Pryce (Alexis Denisof), and Spike (James Marsters), and new allies Fred (Acker) and vampire hunter Charles Gunn (J. August Richards), among other humans and demons along the way until The WB abruptly canceled the show in 2004. (We will get to that unmerciful killing later.)
Angel was the brain spawn of Whedon and Buffy writer David Greenwalt, who’d been the one to pen the first kiss between the Slayer and her vampire-with-a soul boo Angel. “It all made sense on paper,” says Whedon, 55. “But until you have a show, you don’t have a show.” The duo began carving out a heavier series than Buffy — for a minute it even got too dark and the network had to intervene — that would explore a different message from Buffy’s what-kind-of-person-will-you-be? themes. Instead, it would focus on the idea of dealing with the consequences of your actions. “We thought, let’s do a noir thing that’s about addiction and redemption, and we’ll put them in L.A.,” says Greenwalt. “The stories will be darker and, more important, he’ll be darker.” What they ended up with certainly had intense moments, but also plenty of humor and heart, too.
A 20th anniversary panel will occur at New York Comic Con in early October during the shows actual 20 year anniversary on its debut back in 1999.
Nice to see, of course, Charmed never would have never gotten this, if the stars couldn't just suck it up for a day or weekend for the fans, and or the reboot took attention away from them doing anything big. Sad, that everybody else has big events, but Classic Charmed.
But makes me feel old, that now the 90s are over with anniversaries, and shows that started in the 2000s are coming up for 20th anniversaries.
