LOOKING TO THE FUTURE - BTFB EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH AVERIE MADDOX


After the apocalyptic denouement of Millennium's second season the creative team had an undeniably difficult task in reintroducing the franchise to its fans and followers. The Innocents/Exegesis did this superbly and with much ambition. Averie Maddox must hold the rare distinction of playing the greatest number of roles in a single episode of the show. As Deena and her various 'sisters' she gave a memorable and gutsy performance, imbuing each clone with the right amount of individuality to make the portrayal so successful. Averie took time to speak to us recently and we cannot thank her enough for the warmth and friendship she has extended to the campaign and fans of the show. Be sure to share your comments about this fantastic interview as I know Averie will be dropping by to see what you guys think and I have a feeling you will love it.

BACKTOFRANKBLACK.COM: You have expressed a love of performing from a young age, describing it as something you have always done. Could you tell us a little about yourself before you filmed Millennium? In addition, I would imagine there are few certainties in your chosen profession and I wondered how you prevent yourself from becoming disenfranchised from this love when times are difficult?

AVERIE MADDOX: I remember being a little girl and knowing that I wanted to be in the movies. My grandma used to call me her "Little Movie Star" and I have been in love with the movies since I first saw "Charlotte's Web" at the theater when I was very little. I was also in love with singing, and Little Orphan Annie. My poor dog had the unfortunate luck of looking just like Sandy and so I would lock us in my bedroom and perform the whole thing over and over by myself. A One Girl Show! I attended The American Academy of Dramatic Arts in Pasadena and a summer program at Oxford University before appearing in my first role on television for "The Client" And the second part of your question about becoming down about this business? Like any love relationship, it has its ups and downs. But I am in it for the long haul. I write a lot of poetry and music, as well as lyrics to get my frustrations and ya-yas' out.

BTFB: I was very interested to learn that you consider your role in Millennium to be your big break and you credit Chris Carter for giving you such an opportunity and for his belief in you and your talent. Could you tell us you recollections of that time and of the great man himself?

AM: The day before I met Chris I was sitting in my car, at the ocean in Santa Monica with my door open and one foot hanging out my car. I had decided to give up and was feeing so horrible. It was a cloudy day and I felt so defeated. How could I know that the next day Chris would be sitting next to me in a cafe for breakfast, and the we would strike up a conversation? I never even told him my name. Some time passed and we ran into each other again. We struck up a friendship. At that time I had a ticket to fly to New York for another call back for RENT, and was planning on being a nanny for some friends of mine on the east coast. Chris told me he had an audition for me. After I had the audition and was given the part I had to decide between New York, or filming in Vancouver... umm, no brainer!

BTFB: Were you aware of Millennium prior to your involvement in the franchise and how did you find the experience of working with the show's cast and crew? I believe you recall your time with Lance and Klea fondly?

AM: I tried to take it all in and not take anything for granted. I got along well with Klea, and we kept running into each other at the hotel and on the streets of Vancouver. She is such a nice, down to earth person. I did not have as much interaction with Lance, but I loved watching him work and respect him greatly. The plane crash scenes and plane opener was about a 16 hour day, so I don't remember much. I do remember walking into the hotel after a 16 hour day and feeling like Jim Carey on crack. I was so happy and light hearted. That can only come from doing what you love and being passionate about what you do.

BTFB: Do you retain any single stand out moment from the experience either positive or negative?

AM: Everything was positive. From the first day to the last. I wish Chris could have been there more. He was in Los Angeles most of the time. I did not like all the sticky blood all over my face and hair. but it tasted pretty good! My first trailer was such a heart bursting moment. I was SO happy. It was a VERY nice trailer, too!

BTFB: I believe The Innocents/Exegesis required a month of filming. Did you find the experiencing at all overwhelming for you as your first major television role given the length of shooting and the complexities of filming yourself as numerous characters necessitating numerous death scenes?

AM: No. I do great pantomime and the U-Haul scene required that. Learning to drive a stick-shift was hilarious, as Nigel Habgood took me to a roof top parking garage to learn. It was horrible and we both had headaches from all my stops and starts. But we laughed through the whole thing. I did a lot of character work on my part and was ready for my scenes. I realized for the first time that I DO NOT LIKE watching myself on film. I guess I will be one of THOSE kind of actors. I say "Do I really look like that?" Oh well. I loved every second and kept reminding myself to not take anything for granted and to be grateful for every moment in Vancouver.

BTFB: The most immediately noticeable thing about the character you portrayed is her strikingly blue eyes? Do you have any insight as to why it was decided to give the character such vivid contact lenses? Samaria Graham [Tamra Caffrey of Human Essence] remarked to me that she had retained the lenses her character wore on the show, did you retain any memorabilia from your time on Millennium?

AM:
Actually, I believe, and don't quote me on this, but Chris Carter told me that he made the characters after my eyes. I did not wear contact lenses. My eyes move back and forth because of a condition I have known as Nystagmus. Frank Langella also has this condition. Chris liked the movement of my eyes. It was the first time they were acknowledged in a positive way since I was made fun of in school! They gave my counter clone, Katie Boyer contact lenses to match my eyes. I bet you didn't know that, did you!

BTFB: Considering a decade has now passed since the cancellation of Millennium does it surprise you that such interest remains in the show itself and those who contributed to it? Lance is incredibly energized regarding his desire to see the franchise be given a movie adaptation would you be interested in contributing to it?

AM:
Are you kidding me? I would absolutely LOVE to be a part of it. Is that emphatic enough for ya? I loved the cast and crew and the story behind it. I hope Lance, Frank, and Chris will keep me in mind!

BTFB: What should Millennium fans keep their eyes open for with regards to the continuing career of Averie Maddox?

AM: An agent. I need a new one! LOL. Probably comedy and hopefully film. I am just starting out again and looking forward to the future! I can't wait to get to it!

BTFB: Thank you so much for taking the time to speak to us Averie and please accept our very best wishes for the future!

How can YOU help bring back Millennium?


We get some very nice supportive emails from Millennium fans at BacktoFrankBlack.com (info@backtofrankblack.com if you want to join such praised fans), and one question we get asked a lot is "what can I do to help bring Frank and Millennium back?"

So here are some simple tips as to how you can help, kind wonderful Millennium fans that you are!

Letters:

We mention this quite a lot - letters are oh-so-important. A campaign can succeed on letters. They demonstrate genuine consumer support. An internet petition is great (and yes we do have one, but let's stick to letters for now), but anyone can spend sixty seconds clicking a link and adding a name. If you can imagine being in the position of deciding on what multi-million dollar project you are going to green-light, would you put faith solely on a net petition? No. It may help give you an idea of interest in a show, but letters on a desk shows someone who has written, printed, posted their support - that's a far bigger commitment.

We appreciate letter writing isn't easy - so we have a page at BacktoFrankBlack.com to help you. Simply click here to be taken there!

DVD sales:
We don't want to harass you into buying DVDs, but if you are looking at a way to support backtoFrankBlack you can't go wrong with purchasing the DVDs - simply because alongside letters, a display of consumer power really turns industry heads. If the DVDs sell well, it shows people don't just like the show, they'll pay for it. Money - believe it or not - goes a long way in the entertainment industry my sweethearts. Click one of the links on this site to go and purchase from amazon.com, or pick your own method of purchase!



Doesn't really matter where, as you long as you support Millennium by buying Millennium - and you can get some pretty good deals on the DVD sets as well. If you don't live in the States, we recommend maybe looking at places closer to home that would incur delivery, for instance, amazon.co.uk or play.com for British followers. Look for the bargains!

Conventions:
We must confess, through this busy year the core BTFB team haven't headed out to the horror/sci-fi cons, but again, this is something we'd love to see people do: going to conventions and chatting about Millennium. Word of mouth - spread the word! We even have some handy flyers if you are feeling uber-focused. Don't be afraid to wag that tongue and tell people what's going on. Tell them about BacktoFrankBlack, tell them how Lance is keen to come back in the roll. And of course, let us know you're doing it! The more feedback we get back from you guys, the more we can use to promote ourselves! Show us you are spreading the word at the cons, and we can then tell industry/media contacts that is what you merry people are doing!

If you meet any of the cast and crew from Millennium, send us a picture of you with those talented people and we'll post it here!

Lance is very keen to see a Millennium theme run at a con - and willing to help trying and pull some support from the cast and crew! If we knew you people were interested, your feedback might make it happen. It's just talk at the moment, but who knows - if we get the interest the idea might sell!

Help us on this blog!
We have several inititives running at the moment - some with prizes!
Again, we're a platform for the fans, so we are very happy for fans to take the stage and show their love for Millennium! If you want to link to this blog - and vise versa - let us know and we'll add you as an affiliate!

Spread the word
  • Post about us on your blogs, put us in your signatures, tell the internets all about us! We have a load of banners and icons for you to download and even some wallpapers and avatars to help give you that BacktoFrankBlack identity you've always wanted!
  • Join us on twitter! Help grow our social network at www.twitter.com/back2frankblack
  • Our Myspace is a growing community as well! Link in with us at www.myspace.com/backtofrankblack!
Feedback:
Don't be afraid to tell us what you think. You may notice the DVD links on the blog and website. These are there because someone recommended we did it, so we did. We appreciate feedback. Contact us on info@backtofrankblack.com or if you want to speak to me jim@backtofrankblack.com. You can help us shape YOUR campaign. Because in the end, this campaign is for the fans.

Finally... don't give up hope!
We have Lance firmly on our side, the media has been very receptive, the cast and crew we've interviewed are very eager. Lance has even said he's noticed rumblings of interest within the industry towards the campaign. Your voice is vital - don't miss the opportunity to get involved!

We have more stuff planned: big interviews, interactive events, more press updates and a very unusual little scheme that will give you guys to hear a little of Frank once more..

Bookmark us, talk to us, and let's really work together to bring Frank Black back!

THE ART OF MILLENNIUM

As fans of Millennium it will come of no surprise to our readers that many of us regard it as one of, if not 'the', finest television franchises ever created. Testament to this is the countless ways in which fans have been inspired to explore the series in a variety of mediums. During the years I have been active in Millennium's fan communities I have seen virtual seasons, fan filmed sequels, original musical compositions, poetry, graphic design and much more besides be shared and enjoyed by the passionate individuals who have been so inspired by the tremendously multifaceted stories they have enjoyed over the years. I was overjoyed to discover that 'Frank Black' and 'Lance Henriksen' continues to inspire in this way far beyond the confines of the fan communities that exist to support and celebrate him. Allow me to share with you a few wonderful pieces of art I discovered on my travels. My thanks to the artists for allowing me to post these here and please take the time to check out their respective sites and blogs for more stunning examples of their considerable talent. That said, enjoy!

Created by Felipe Sobreiro please click here to check out more examples of his work.

Created by Woody Crompton please click here to check out more examples of his work.

Created by Mike Torrance please click here to check out more examples of his work.

Created by Kara Boulden please click here to check out more examples of her work.

BACKTOFRANKBLACK.COM - FRENCH UPDATE!


"MISE À JOUR

Il était bien temps de s’occuper un peu des fans francophones, la dernière mise à jour française remonte au mois dernier. Alors, quoi de neuf sur BacktoFrankBlack.com? Des interviews, des articles, des projets et toujours de l’espoir… récapitulons tous ça si vous le voulez bien.

Tout d’abord, Lance Henriksen lui-même a pu constater sur le terrain que la campagne commençait à attirer l’attention de certaines personnes du milieu. Il n’en fallait pas plus pour redoubler nos ardeurs! On s’est donc empressé de compléter quelques interviews avec des membres de l’équipe de Millennium; soient entre autres Kristen Cloke, Tucker Smallwood, Stephen E. Miller, Doug Hutchison et bien sûr la seconde partie de notre entretien avec Lance Henriksen. L’acteur derrière Monsieur Noir nous a d’ailleurs aidé à propager la bonne nouvelle lors d’un podcast bien intéressant avec Fangoria Radio. Et d’autres médias professionnels prennent un intérêt bien sérieux avec notre mouvement qui a maintenant gagné une notoriété respectable. À ce sujet, nous sommes très fiers d'annoncer que le magasine de science-fiction anglais SciFiNow publie une interview avec James McLean (un des coordinateurs principaux de la campagne) dans leur dernière édition. Notre tribune prend donc beaucoup d'importance et d'autres annonces officielles du genre devraient bientôt voir le jour!

Pour continuer d’attirer l’intérêt des fans, nous avons également plusieurs projets en cours comme des concours entre les fans (avec des dvds inédits à gagner), des projets mineurs (vidéos, arts plastiques ou autres créations personnelles) et certains très impressionnants (dont le dévoilement reste à venir). Malheureusement, aussi longtemps que les fans francophones resteront moins vocaux que leurs compères anglophones, nous serons forcés pour une question d’efficacité de nous concentrer sur le portail anglophone de la campagne. Nous vous invitons donc à vous y référer pour avoir accès à plus de matériels d’ici à la prochaine mise à jour francophone.

Dernièrement, nous ne pouvons souligner suffisamment l’importance de vous faire entendre par des lettres aux exécutifs de FOX! Si vous n’avez pas participez à cet aspect « actif » de la campagne, on vous demanderait de vous y engagez le plus rapidement possible! Les choses sont en marche, le temps est proche…"

BTFB IN THE MEDIA - SCIFI NOW #25 NOW ON SALE!



Allow us to bring the latest campaign news to you, quite literally, hot off the press. The 25th edition of Britain's premiere science fiction magazine, SciFiNow is now available for purchase at all good news agents and has brought the campaign to the attention of its readers.

Written by fans for fans, SciFiNow is a sophisticated, accessible, fresh and authoritative look at science fiction, fantasy, horror and cult television. Offering in-depth coverage of every aspect of sci-fi, the magazine breaks new ground with its cutting-edge approach to features, reviews and news. As relevant to those who grew up under the influence of Glen Larson as it is to those who only know the genre through JJ Abrams, the magazine also includes a unique retro ‘Timewarp’ section offering unprecedented access to the classic shows and films that made sci-fi what it is.

We thank all the team at SciFiNow for being so receptive to our cause and a special mention too to campaign coordinator, James McLean for providing them with an interview about the campaign. The best way to return the support of the SciFiNow team is to buy a copy of the issue which will additionally support the cause by showing that Millennium is still newsworthy a decade since it left air.


To read more about the Magazine, the latest issue or to purchase the magazine online please visit the following website!