Why was Sarah Michelle Gellar known as the 'Duchess'?
POSTED BY: rkwalsh
UPDATED: Thursday, January 22, 2004 07:44
VIEWED: 33796
PAGE 3 of 7
Okay, before anyone jumps down my throat to tell me that the Times isn't a crappy newspaper, I'll hasten to add, that's not what I meant. The Times is a perfectly respectable newspaper. But the "duchess" comment that was included in the Joss story in the Times doesn't mean anything to me one way or another. It's just tossed into the story without attribution. I'm not sure if the duchess comment is (a) something Joss repeated himself, (b) something the reporter has heard from various members of the BtVS crew, or (c) something the reporter read or heard elsewhere, which makes it third-party info.
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I don't claim to have any first hand knowledge, and would be more than willing to listen to the opinions of anyone from the cast or crew who had good things to say about SMG. The problem is we have only what we have heard to formulate an opinion. All that we have heard paints SMG as a spoiled Diva who walks off the set if things are not to her liking, who is late and holds up production, and who treats her costars as lesser beings.
Captain CDC wrote:
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Also, I believe in the commentary for the pilot Joss is talking about how great Nathan was on set but if you wanted to make him cranky, "like 7th season TV star cranky" hang him from cables to do a scene.
I actually laughed when I heard this. Who else could Joss be talking about but SMG? There are just too many unflattering comments flying around about SMG to discount them out of hand.
I agree that one should be hesitant to believe all that they hear, but when all the voices talking are saying the same thing, it is hard to ignore.
"May have been the losing side. Still not convinced it was the wrong one."
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That little quip from Joss on the Firefly commentary cracked me up, too, and was clearly about SMG. Who else could he have meant? But here's the thing, is it so crazy for someone who works their tail off for seven years to get cranky? I know very few people who never snap at any time under pressure. Maybe SMG turned into a bitch on wheels under the pressure. Or maybe she was born that way.
To complicate the situation, here are some recent positive comments made by people who know her: D.B. Woodside said something like, I love SMG. She's extremely funny and talks a mile a minute. David Boreanaz said something like, I'd do anything for Sarah. Michelle Trachtenberg said something like she's wonderful, she's helped me out so much on set, etc. James Marsters said something like, she's great; she's got a lot of power on the set and she uses it to see that the rest of us are comfortable.
Notably absent in recent years have been glowing statements about SMG from other members of the cast -- if they're asked, they all repeat the mantra about how SMG is so incredibly "professional."
I think it's pretty clear that things went sour between SMG and at least a portion of the BtVS cast/crew along the way. But again I'll say that I doubt it's a simple story. Painting the players in this sorry situation in simple black and white terms is, well, kind of un-Jossian, isn't it? And more to the point, all this nasty talk about someone none of us know as a person sort of depresses me. Just my feelings. I guess lots of other people feel differently.
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I guess it boils down to "if ya got nothing good to say, say nothing" and that is admittedly what other performers are doing in recent years. What else could JW refer to regarding the seventh season whiner remark? Anyone else who had been with BtVS for seven seasons, as well as Charisma Carpenter from Angel, who started on Buffy. Again. We don't know.
I DO know that the other performers are smarter than we are, keeping their mouth shut about it. And they ARE the insiders. We could learn a lot from their example. Ultimately it's none of our business whether SMG was an angel or a demon. If the cast & crew alumni of BtVS wanted to air dirty laundry publically, we'd know a lot more about it. It's just not important.
Whedon needs to move on anyway. I think he should start on a new tv series set in the Firefly world but with a whole new cast of characters. Start from scratch. Take what worked and learn from what didn't. Keep flyin'. Don't look back with anger.
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"Hang on, travelers..."
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Hello, marketing!
I have found it tough not to get involved/interested in these kind of questions. But ultimately I think whatever comments one has access to are ultimately there for marketing.
For example: Boreanaz's public crankiness over SMG's refusal to guest on Angel quite obviously had less to do with an assessment of her personality than the fraying thread keeping A GOOD SHOW DARNIT on TV. They had planned her two-episode guest spot to air during May sweeps to boost Angel's ratings and hopefully get the show renewed. Boreanaz's comments about "the fans" barely papered this over.
A lot of SMG's wierd comments indicate to me that she sees her work as a job rather than purely as art (BtVS as good "product," criticizing the 6th season because it deviated from the TV successful formula and cost the show ratings, etc.). I personally would love to believe that SMG etc. all think Joss is a genius and think BtVS was as great as I think it was, but it's also a job to them as well. Just like Mal, SMG's gotta keep flying in whatever she can.
I am reminded of how disappointed my wife was when she found out he dude who played Chris, the DJ/resident intellectual on Northern Exposure, confessed later that he rarely understood his lines. ACTING! GENIUS!!! THANK YOU!!!
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Oh, Zachsmind, you're so right! JW could have been referring to any of the BtVS/Angel stars whom he's worked with for seven seasons -- which includes many of the BtVS cast (not just SMG) and both David Boreanaz and Charisma Carpenter from Angel.
Thanks for pointing that out. Comments that appear to have an obvious origin may not be what they seem.
Onto other, more positive things, like Joss's next creation(s)......
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I DO know that the other performers are smarter than we are, keeping their mouth shut about it. And they ARE the insiders. We could learn a lot from their example. Ultimately it's none of our business whether SMG was an angel or a demon. If the cast & crew alumni of BtVS wanted to air dirty laundry publically, we'd know a lot more about it. It's just not important.
Whedon needs to move on anyway. I think he should start on a new tv series set in the Firefly world but with a whole new cast of characters. Start from scratch. Take what worked and learn from what didn't. Keep flyin'. Don't look back with anger.
Yeah... again.. not on board with you here..
1) I'm not of the mind that everyone need place so nice. That whole, say nice or say nothing is overrated, especially on the net.. imagine these message boards if no one said anything offensive to someone else.. if no one critisized anything about the show or the actors, there'd be nothing to do but compliment each other and that'd be a hell of alot of "boring".. to me anyway..
2) As far as new show with new cast in same verse? no way.. I'd watch it of coarse, but what a cop-out.. Joss has the balls to follow this show/idea/cast and I hope he does it all the way to the box office and second TV series..
Plus... the cast is the biggest reason I love Firefly in the first palce.. (and why IMO buffy can't compare to it)
::shrug::
~~Robb of Winterfell~~
~ http://winterfell.org ~
~High Fantasy Heavy Metal~
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Since I can contribute two first-hand stories (okay, one's second-hand, but it's my wife) that are at least food for thought, I'll share them.
First, my wife was an extra on "Buffy" during season 4 (you can see her in the ep "Primeval", in an orange shirt during the scene where Sarah, Alyson, Anthony and Nicholas are talking on the campus quad). As she relates the story, three of those actors were very friendly and talkative with the crew and extras, and one (guess which) was distant and dismissive. Apparently, Sarah also had a dog that did not take kindly to certain people (as dogs sometimes do). However, if that dog were to bark at someone, like an extra, they were removed from the set.
Second, we attended the LA Sci-Fi/Comic Convention where Joss and the cast appeared and signed autographs last month. My wife asked them all a question about the remarkable comeraderie (sp?) on "Firefly". When she mentioned that "on some shows, one cast member will become the star and be a real diva and make for tension in the cast", the entire panel laughed out loud-- primarily Joss, Ben Edlund and Tim Minear. Joss even replied in heavy sarcasm, "I don't know what you're talking about."
That said, I think Sarah was a remarkable actress on "Buffy", and I think it's just a shame that what appears to be one person's unfortunate attitude is so detrimental to so many other people.
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I withhold judgment until I have walked a mile in her stylish yet affordable boots.
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Of course I don't know for sure who JW meant by that comment, but there is only one person who has been the star of one of his shows for seven years and that is SMG. Boreanaz and Carpenter have been on two different shows and were not the stars for the entire time. I still think it was SMG he was referring to. Also, I would not expect her fellow actors to diss her publicly all the time, there are still some professionals in the business that do not air their dirty laundry in the press every day. What I base my opinion on of SMG off camera is from her own interviews, words from her own mouth and from her actions (like not showing up for the wrap party). Personally, I loved her acting on buffy. I am glad she was the one that portrayed the title character and not another actress. I think she needs to recognize and respect the people that have put her where she is today: the producers and crew, her fellow actors and actresses, and her many fans. I don't think she does those things, at least not with the producers, crew, and fans.
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Originally posted by phlebotinin:
Oh, Zachsmind, you're so right! JW could have been referring to any of the BtVS/Angel stars whom he's worked with for seven seasons -- which includes many of the BtVS cast (not just SMG) and both David Boreanaz and Charisma Carpenter from Angel.
Thanks for pointing that out. Comments that appear to have an obvious origin may not be what they seem.
Onto other, more positive things, like Joss's next creation(s)......
May have been the losing side. Still not convinced it was the wrong one.
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