"Reportedly, 'Buffy' creator Joss Whedon wanted Brendon for the role of Malcolm Reynolds on his other show 'Firefly,' but Brendon couldn't fit it into his schedule, so the part went to Nathan Fillion."

Whaa? Anyone else heard this? Without writing him out of Buffy it clearly could never have worked. And surely if Joss wanted to write him out of Buffy he could have...

zz9 | October 08, 20:37 CET

^ I was just about to post the exact same thing.

Well, that and those are some pretty awesome cast pictures. I wants them.

[ edited by Nolan on 2008-10-08 20:48 ]

Nolan | October 08, 20:44 CET

I've never heard that, either.

swanjun | October 08, 20:55 CET

Well, there has been talk of Joss having thought of killing off Xander pretty far back in "Buffy", so maybe it came up in that context. I'm still happy to see that -- it's a huge vote of confidence in Nick's abilities if Joss was willing to trust him as the lead in a demanding ensemble like "Firefly". A very validating piece of trivia to use against those who treat Nick like he was the weak link in the Buffy cast (there are far too many).

KingofCretins | October 08, 20:56 CET

They also didn't mention Torchwood in James' recent stuff.

ETA: Or the fact that Marc Blucas will be on Eleventh Hour.

[ edited by swanjun on 2008-10-08 21:01 ]

swanjun | October 08, 20:58 CET

I also never heard about Nick possibly playing Mal. Hmm...

It really seems like they were trying to find some of the worst current pictures of the cast as they possibly could (except for Mercedes, D.B., and Eliza).

And, oh yeah: forget Angel, I think David Boreanaz is the vampire. He looks to have barely aged.

bknick | October 08, 21:00 CET

Aaaand it didn't mention Amber's books or independent films...

swanjun | October 08, 21:03 CET

I'm wondering why some people consider Nick to be the weak link. Is it because his role was mostly comedic? Comedic timing seems like it would be one of the hardest things in the world (and since Buffy tended to zigzag between comedy and drama so frequently, it would probably be even harder). I've always been amazed at how well Nick did, especially considering the fact that he had so little acting experience beforehand.

deepgirl187 | October 08, 21:06 CET

I think this article should have simply linked to whedonesque. The intel seems like it would have been a bit more accurate.

daedreams | October 08, 21:09 CET

The Nicholas-Brendon-as-Malcom-Reynolds info is on Wikipedia. Granted, Wikipedia's not 100% reliable, but they do cite a Q&A with Nick Brendon at the Supanova Convention in Sydney, Aus. last year as the source of that tidbit. There are some clips of the Q&A on Youtube, but I haven't yet found one that contains that info.

JMaloney | October 08, 21:12 CET

daedreams; Not to be nasty but (haven't been able to look at the gallery yet, still at work) I don't think we've been mentioning the latest on 67 different people here :-) snerk.

DaddyCatALSO | October 08, 21:15 CET

I also don't mean to be nasty, but I don't think Nick Brendon is entirely 100% reliable either in some of his convention appearances. Granted, I don't have specific evidence of a time he's said something proven to be completely untrue, but I still take his claims with a grain of salt, which is unfortunate.

swanjun | October 08, 21:18 CET

@bknick: Aw hell yeah, Boreanaz actually looks better and younger now than he did on Buffy. Perhaps it's because he smiles more? ;)

peepiecheep | October 08, 21:27 CET

Interesting, they cover a lot of people. Though not necessarily well written- don't we all wish Doctor Horrible was a webseries, rather than just the one outing.

So far.

kishi | October 08, 21:36 CET

I'll spare you guys from having to page through the slow Flash interface to look at some very unflattering photos (what the hell with Warren and Spike?) and the awfully written, catty, and vague captions. From the linked-to gallery:

Buffy: "Grudge", "Wonder Maladys" in '09

Giles: "Little Britain", "Sweeney Todd", "Repo!", Duncan in "Macbeth"

Willow: married Wesley, "Veronic Mars", "HIMYM", movie career

Xander: "Kitchen Confidential", "American Dragon: Jake Long", ABC Family movie w/Cordelia, "Criminal Minds" story arc

Cordelia: baby, "Charmed", "Miss Match", "Veronica Mars", "Big Shots", "Greek", ABC Family movie w/Xander

Angel: "Bones"

Joyce: married to John Pankow, "quiet life", was in "New Amsterdam" episode

Spike: Ted Bundy, Braniac on "Smallville", "Dragonball" movie

Anya: "Darkness Falls", "Monk", "A Valentine Carol", passed on No. 6 and Starbuck auditions for BSG

Oz: Scott Evil in "Austin Powers", Chris in "Family Guy", "Robot Chicken", guest spots on "My Name is Earl", "Grey's Anatomy", and "Reno 911", "Sex Drive" movie

Dawn: "Six Feet Under" arc, Gossip Girl, upcoming "17 Again" movie

Riley: "We Were Soldiers", "First Daughter", "Alamo", "Jane Austen Book Club", ass't coach for Marymount H.S. girls' basketball

Darla: "Dexter", Rambo, Saw V, Punisher remake

Wesley: diagnosed with Bell's Palsy, guested on HIMYM

Harmony: "Crossing Jordan", "Supernatural", "Reaper", "Psych", and "roles in independent horror films"

Tara: "Cold Case", "Supernatural", telemovies, straight-to-DVD releases

Adam: "All of Us", "Ghost Whisperer"

Faith: "Tru Calling", "Dollhouse"

Glory: married, kid, "Tru Calling", "Sabrina", "House", "Rules of Attraction", "D.E.B.S"

Master: "averaged less than a movie a year since his story arc ended in '02"

Dru: "theater", "independent movies", directed Gary Oldman documentary, voices characters on "Ben 10"

Mayor: "Las Vegas", "West Wing", "Dr. Vegas" and "Enterprise"

Jonathan: Gilmore Girls, Recount (Emmy nom.), wrote "The Crusaders"

Andrew: "Six Feet Under", "Joey", "HIMYM", "Eli Stone", European "Grease", "aspiring playwright"

Flutie: "Friends", "NYPD Blue", "West Wing", "CSI", "Without a Trace"; "The Ticket", "National Security"

Amy: "JAG", "Close to Home"

Snyder: "Grim & Evil", "Boston Legal", "Numb3rs", "Invasion"; voiced "Justice League", "Ben 10"

Kendra: "Dawson's Creek", "Save the Last Dance", "Breakin' All the Rules"

Warren: "Point Pleasant", "House M.D.", "Back to You", "American Dreamz"

Halfrek: "Meet the Fockers", "Will & Grace", "Teachers", "Law & Order SVU", "Boston Legal", "Grey's Anatomy"

Wood: Wayne Palmer (24)

Walsh: "Providence", "Frasier", "Alias", "CSI", "Law & Order", "Criminal Minds"

Caleb: "Firefly", "Serenity", "Lost", "Desperate Housewives", "Dr. Horrible"

Kennedy: "Drew Carey Show", "Without a Trace", video games

Joss: "Firefly", "Serenity", comic book, "Dr. Horrible", "Dollhouse"

WCityMike | October 08, 21:42 CET

And wasn't Charisma a San Diego Charger's cheerleader, not a Dallas Cowboy's cheerleader?

alexreager | October 08, 21:44 CET

Oh, come on! No mention of the kiss watched again and again? ;) James in Torchwood – come on! It had more impact on me than his underused stint on Smallville (and I don’t mean because of the manly lovin’) though seeing JM and Michael Rosenbaum on the same screen was a delight, those two are so great together, their Q&A at D*C08 was the best!

And let's not forget Ted Bundy, James scared me in that small role. AND his singing and Moonshot and *sigh* doing the audiobooks for the Dresden Files and hopefully much much more (good stuff).

Mirage | October 08, 21:48 CET

Has Alexis been diagnosed with Bell's Palsy then?

sueworld2003 | October 08, 21:55 CET

Thanks, WCityMike. I hate these "Where Are they Now?" stories. It's almost as if they're trying to make the cast and the show irrevelant compared to now. We may have "Twilight", "Moonlight", and "True Blood", and their paranormal themes, but some will always say Buffy and Angel did it best.

impalergeneral | October 08, 21:59 CET

Wait! Maggie Walsh ran the Syndicate? :-P

Miko | October 08, 22:00 CET

Nothing against Nick, but I have a hard time picturing him in place of Nathan in that role.

witchlover | October 08, 22:00 CET

That Bell's Palsy thing bugged me. They mentioned it like it was the reason why he's not exactly overloaded with work right now. I was under the impression it was a one-time thing. He was diagnosed just before Angel's fifth season. Then it gradually went away.

QuanticoMVP | October 08, 22:05 CET

Sueworld

Alexis had Bell's Palsy for part of the filming of Angel (I think it was series 5) There's a bit on the DVD commentary about how they had to shoot certain scenes to cover this.


Bell's Palsy is a temporary paralysis of some facial muscles and usually goes away in 4-6 weeks so I have no idea why it's included here

Ah well.

debw | October 08, 22:06 CET

Thank gosh for that; soem people do develop permanent forms of Bell's.

And thanks, not much info beyond what I already knew. I feel like writing to Parade magazine about the latest but I'd rather send them a letter on actor-athletes' talent rankings *wink.

DaddyCatALSO | October 08, 22:17 CET

Re: Nathan, didn't the Caleb role in S7 come in AFTER Firefly was cancelled?

jclemens | October 08, 22:18 CET

I believe that's what I heard, too.

MysticSlug | October 08, 22:29 CET

I was pretty underwhelmed by this: most of it is stuff that we know or have talked about; some of it neglects some of the actors' current goings-on (such as AB's writing, Torchwood, or the fact that SMG has done things other than the Grudge--some of them (shock!) not even in the horror genre).

And yet another time that they screwed up the Firefly/Serenity story, and I think you're right about Caleb in S7, jclemens. I will admit I hadn't heard about the NB for Mal tidbit; I must admit that I have an amount of skepticism about that, though I'd be very pleased were it true, for both the vote of confidence for NB and the fact that we had Nathan as Mal.

I can't believe how much Principal Snyder has aged! I guess being swallowed and then exploded will put a few gray hairs on anyone's head. Kristine looks lovely and bookish...nice and low-key. Juliet looks great, as well.

I wonder if it's exposure to Joss that delays the ageing process? It's uncanny how good those folks look after a decade.

BandofBuggered | October 08, 22:42 CET

Yeah, they missed a number of things: besides Amber's books and productions, as already mentioned, Iyari did two movies that I know of, although one of those has not yet been released.

Rowan Hawthorn | October 08, 23:13 CET

Yes, I was rather surprised by the lack of Amber love, in that she has been rather busy all along, just not always in acting. Someone did not do due diligence.

Dana5140 | October 09, 00:21 CET

This thing doesn’t appear to serve any purpose – or have a point. It’s not a bit of fun. It certainly isn’t very informative. It isn’t a celebration of the success of the actors from the show, but at the same time it isn’t obviously couched in negative terms. It states, “We check in to see what the Scoobies, their friends and foes have been doing since their time in Sunnydale,” but each and every entry would seem to be, at best, incomplete.

It seems harmless, but also pointless.

alien lanes | October 09, 01:29 CET

As I was saying, a lot of these are old projects in abusiness where you're only as good as your last review.

Dana5140:Yes, the research on AMber was superficial as you and Rowan Hawthorn and others pointed out. But a susual you found the right current cliche, and in applying it, gave it new meaning. (But aren't you supposed to be -honest question, not a "remark"- not doing stuff like this place for 24 hours?)

DaddyCatALSO | October 09, 01:32 CET

That was a horrible "now" picture of Sarah. In fact, other than the smile, I'm still not convinced that was actually her.

ManEnoughToAdmitIt | October 09, 05:39 CET

To Man:

The picture of Sarah, is from September 27th. She hosted a charity fundraiser for CARE in San Diego. More pictures are available at Getty Image. There is a more conventional picture of her with a dolphin at Sea World the next day.

I'm always amazed by how cameleon-like she can be in all of her event/premiere shots. She's always in a different hairstyle or make-up. Interestingly, how high or low she parts her hair, seems to add or lessen her apparent age. It makes it very easy to remember what event or photoshoot she was doing at the time.

Anne 5_by_5 | October 09, 09:44 CET

The thing is, most then/now photos use a carefully lit, posed, professionally made-up and possibly photo-shopped promotional shot for the "then" and a very carelessly/direct lit, naturally posed, probably self-made-up red-carpet shot for the "now" (which is gonna have all those pesky little details like e.g. sweat - or in SMG's case 'glow' ;) - that tell us - HORRORS! - actors are human being type people, made from the same human being type stuff as the rest of us human beings).

And then add 11 more years of life into the mix, some changes aren't surprising.

Re: Bell's Palsy, not knowing anything about that condition I must admit, it has occurred to me to wonder if maybe it had recurred. Frankly, apart from his own personal choice, I just can't understand why else a guy as talented as Alexis Denisof wouldn't be in work (if it is personal choice then more power to his elbow of course. The selfish bugger ;-).

ET s/disease/condition/gi

(read the Wikipedia entry on Bell's Palsy and it seems like it's not a disease in and of itself - in fact, it seems like it's a "not-disease" in the sense that it's not a thing you have, it's a thing you have because you don't have anything else that causes facial paralysis)

[ edited by Saje on 2008-10-09 11:19 ]

Saje | October 09, 11:17 CET

Yeah, Saje, it's a catch-all term for facial paralysis. My mother has it, but she also has serious brain damage, so it's easy to see how it might be hard to detect a specific cause in her case. It's more disturbing to hear about in a young, otherwise healthy person, and I hadn't heard that about Alexis Denisof. It's really sad if true.

dreamlogic | October 09, 12:53 CET

I refuse to believe this.:)

...

It would be very sad if Alexis Denisof were not working because of a recurring illness or physical ailment. Am I right in thinking he appeared in a play in Liverpool not all that long ago?

I must admit I do not, as yet, have such a high regard for his acting as many people here seem to have. I thought he was very good in the role of Wesley, but it never struck me as an exceptional performance. Maybe I need to watch it again and pay more attention.

I wonder if he could find a niche, or would want to, behind the camera, perhaps directing episodes of television series - or films?

alien lanes | October 09, 14:58 CET

alien lanes; He appeared in O'Neill's All My Sons in Liverpool a year or two ago. Other than his one guest shot on HIMYM that's all I've heard in a very long time.

[ edited by DaddyCatALSO on 2008-10-09 15:27 ]

DaddyCatALSO | October 09, 15:26 CET

I wish to point out the AOL icon, .

Umm... when did Comedy Central own Adult Swim on the Cartoon Network?
I understood Cartoon Network was under the Turner Networks and Comedy Central was bought by Viacom a couple of years ago...

One day the press will have to be responsible for what they publish. Til then ... Robin, the boy wonder, is straight!

Wilhelm | October 10, 05:22 CET