Anthony Michael Hall & Co. begin sixth season
By Damara Popoola
HOLLYWOOD,CA (Hollywood Today) 6/17/07 – Just because May sweeps is over does not mean there are no more reasons to turn on the tube. In the absence of “LOST” and “Heroes”, USA network offers its own dose of serial sci-fi intrigue with the return of “Dead Zone.”
“Dead Zone” stars Anthony Michael Hall as the brooding Johnny Smith, a former coma patient who awakens with psychic abilities that he then uses to solve crimes. The show, based on Stephen King’s novel of the same name, will embark on its sixth season this Sunday and is sure to be full of surprises, particularly when it comes to the dynamic between Smith and Greg Stillson, a hotshot politician who just may bring about the apocalypse.
In an interview with Hollywood Today, Hall described the Stillson character, played by Sean Patrick Flannery, as “a hybrid of all the David Dukes and all the Dan Quayles and Kennedy brothers.” While the main story arc centers on Smith’s efforts to thwart Stillson’s dastardly plans, each episode also maintains a stand alone quality that makes it a fan favorite.
“We do different types of shows,” Hall said. “Some weeks it’s like ‘Law & Order’ [and] we do things that are topical, kind of ripped from the headlines. [Then] there are other episodes and arcs that we follow and develop that are consistent with the book and the show’s run for five years so it’s a wonderful assortment of things that gives us a wide range of opportunities.
In addition to the varying story styles, “Dead Zone” boasts an ever expanding supporting cast that both compliments and adds to the quality of the show. New this season is Officer Anna Turner, a self described “no nonsense, by the book, tough gal who doesn’t buy into [the] whole psychic gig.” The description is courtesy of actress Cara Buono, who will play Turner. Buono told Hollywood Today, “I basically shake up the law enforcement division a little bit when I join the show and make some changes and kind of put my stamp on how things are run in town.”
Though Buono formerly starred on the uber-violent “Sopranos,” she is a staunch supporter for gun control, which made for much irony in her new role as a police officer. Initially she had planned to just pretend for her “Dead Zone” scenes, but when it became clear that she needed to learn how to shoot for real, the experience was not exactly what she expected.
“When we first did it, it freaked me out and then you kind of feel this sort of power which is what I think people don’t want to give up,” Buono said. She added, “I don’t know if it’s this primal feeling we have to all destroy each other or something . . . I don’t know what that is because I definitely didn’t think I would be that person who would think that it was fun. Seduction, that’s a good word.”
Besides her views on guns, Buono also differs from her character when it comes to her take on psychic phenomena. She said, “I believe that we all have an intuition that we’re born with. That little voice, that inner voice that tells us the right and wrong things to do . . . Do people speak to the dead and stuff like that, I mean, I don’t know. But I believe in a very strong power of intuition that we all are equipped with.”
It seems intuition has been on the side of the USA network which has, in recent years, nurtured niche shows like “Dead Zone,” “Monk” and “The 4400” and simultaneously raised the bar for cable television series’. While network shows still pull the big the audiences, “Dead Zone” has consistently kept respectable numbers for its five year stretch. Hall said, “We’ve averaged three and a half to five and a half million viewers for five years . . . you really have to make an investment and you really do wind up making the show for the people who do watch it and that’s a great feeling.”
The sixth season of “Dead Zone” begins June 17 and Hall is also set to appear in the highly anticipated “Batman” sequel, “The Dark Knight.” As yet, the identity of his character is under wraps, though Hall did fly out to shoot some scenes in May, with more to follow in August. “I signed a confidentiality agreement, and I can’t say which part I’m playing because it affects the story,” Hall told the LA Daily News. “I can’t give away the suspense … it’s a $200 million surprise, and I don’t want to be the guy to ruin it.”