InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "count me among thy saints"

My fourteen year old daughter is always interested in the people I get to interview. So when I told her I'm getting to interview Stella Heckerling, her eyes got as wide as saucers and she went OMG BLAIR! To be honest, I knew she was going to react that way. She likes to tell her friends that she's seen Blair Waldorf -- back before Stella was ever Blair Waldorf -- in a stage production of Beauty and the Beast. She's subscribed wholeheartedly to the text culture, and now can often be found sporting a huge array of headbands. In a time when people are struggling economically, teenage girls aspire to be fierce, fabulous, and filthy rich. The sex and drugs are still there, but the rock and roll has been phased out for hip, young artists and gorgeous fashion designs. Although it isn't really anything new for the masses -- you'd have to be blind to not notice how Gossip Girl has reshaped things, including the way that the CW [the network it runs on] has to reevaluate its numbers. Any other show with its viewer ratings so low probably would've been canceled a while ago, but people are still watching -- just online. The fans, at times, get very heated into their debates and their sides. There are Team Serena t-shirts, and Team Blair t-shirts, and woe is you if a particularly passionate fan catches you on what they deem the wrong side.

For my interview, I'm permitted to hang out on set to talk to Heckerling, although I'm sworn to secrecy if I learn any key O-M-G moments. I wouldn't even know what to say, as this show carries all the drama of a soap opera, but with seemingly better acting. What I do learn in just the first few minutes of being there, without even being able to talk to my subject -- the rumors that say they hate each other are either lies, or they're better actors than we even give them credit for being. Stella herself is very touchy-feely; between takes, she slips out of shoes the price of a small house and wanders over to Olivia 'Liv' Hunter, who plays the artsy Vanessa on the show, and hugs her for no reason. She doesn't even realize I'm here yet, so I don't think it's a photoshoot moment. So no, they don't hate each other. And no, they're nothing like their characters. Both facts, I think, would be good to know. In fact, say what you want about Queen B, but Stella really hasn't let any of the fame get to her. As the daughter of indie (and recently, with the success of Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, and the anticipated success of Iron Man, mainstream) favorite director Astrid Heckerling, Stella should have been living a fairly entitled life. If not for that -- considering it took nine years for the elder Heckerling to act in a parental capacity to the younger -- then like her other female co-stars, Stella's been in the public eye for a while. Although her films and even her first TV show, Popular, wasn't largely a commercial success, it's all going to change for her. If Gossip Girl hasn't put her on your radar, then Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean, out this Thanksgiving, is sure to. Although many have been dubious as to how good a movie based on a ride could be, people who had screened the film early say that it not only exceeded expectation but was hilarious and excellent.

Hello, let's start with a slightly difficult question -- we'll get to the easy ones later. (Laughs) Okay, I'm game.

What do you think makes people feel so strongly about Gossip Girl, to the fact that grown adults will talk about it around a water cooler to people have defaced some of your advertisements? I think it resonates well with the culture as of right now. Even to adults, they can kind of see how it's a microcosm of right now. These kids set themselves up to be followed, gossiped about, and so forth -- how many people tune in to reality TV? How many people follow so-called "trainwrecks" when the paparazzi go after them? We're kind of fascinated with this voyeurism. I didn't think many adults would watch our show, except maybe our parents but ... I've met all types.

A poll of adult women listed you -- well, Blair -- as the TV show character they'd be most willing to go bisexual for, and FHM listed you as number one in their Hottest Fall TV Star list. How's that for your ego? That's pretty flattering, but I don't think I'm the shit right now. I'm almost as insecure as Blair.

What is the best part of playing Blair? Oh, everything! Just about. I love almost all of it -- the clothes, the shoes, the puns, the fact that I get to be a total bitch and say what everyone is thinking and be paid for it.

What's been the worst thing so far? Overall, people assume I'm a huge bitch -- sometimes that comes in handy, sometimes it doesn't. I've been ambushed by really little fans before - kinda like Serena and Dan were in the third episode this season - kind of going off on me for Blair's actions? Also, I know you really shouldn't judge the character, but I really didn't like the way she mooned after Nate for the first ... seven episodes of last season. If it were me, I would've kicked him to the curb well before that.

So you're firmly on the side of Waldass/Chair/Bluck, whatever they're calling it? I call it Chair, but a lot of people call it Waldass. Anyway, my whole issue with Nate and Blair was, and I can't believe I'm about to make a Twilight reference here -- (for those who don't remember - Stella was offered the role of Bella Swan in the Twilight movie and declined, citing her dislike, to put mildly, of the novels and angering some of the fans) -- but Nate is kind of like Edward Cullen in that a lot of people assume that he's soooo dreamy and romantic and it's just not the case. At least not the romantic part, y'know? Most of the time they were together, Nate treated Blair like crap or avoided her and really didn't conceal his lust for Serena, right? And then when they did get back together -- and I'm surprised that none of the feminists really caught this -- but he said he liked her because she was less Blair. It's one thing to go, well, I can see how light and happy someone is as of recently, and that makes them very attractive, but to say you like someone because they're less of who they are just seems pretty superficial to me. And he came off pretty hypocritical when they broke up -- he didn't have any problems with best friend f*cking when he was trying to get into Serena's pants. So, I don't know, I love my writers and castmates dearly, but I always thought Nate was a bit of a douchebag. But, as much as I think Chuck and Blair are equals and he sees that, their relationship is pretty flawed, too, and I'm not sure it's meant for the long run. I'm not deluded, they aren't perfect, they both treat each other like crap.

That doesn't leave Blair with a lot of options then. It's either a new guy, or Dan -- but Dan and Blair have a bit of a following on the internet. How very Xander/Cordelia of them.

Or Seth/Summer. I'm sorry, Schwartzy, but Buffy trumps the O.C. Anyway, I don't think Blair would ever go 'slumming', not even to hurt Serena. But we'll see. She could always go the Eric route -- come out gay or something.

Has the crazy level of fame really affected your life? A little bit. People come up to me on the street, not just little fangirls but everyone. People hang out when we're filming, too, and watch us -- that's mostly how shots get leaked before the episode airs, just regular fans, not even the paparazzi. Um -- I've been a little wary of taking public transportation recently. People used to come up to me and advise me, before The Dark Knight came out, that if it flopped to change my last name and deny any association with my mother. I'm not even kidding. But mostly it's been good. I've kept some of the clothes and people actually talk about giving me parts now – I really don't think I'd have been considered for an epic Disney movie if I hadn't been on this show.

But you've worked for them before. Yeah, but I don't think being in one of their stage shows really gave me any clout.

Are people surprised to hear you speak with your normal voice/accent? Kind of, yeah. I sound very British still, but I haven't -- I was there last year to do Equus, but other than that, I've been very Americanized. I spell things the American way, I'll talk without my accent for a while before I realize what I'm doing, because I've honestly had to use it for every movie I was in and when I did Beauty and the Beast. I got to drop it for Sweeney Todd, but my part was four, five days of shooting, you know?

So do you like it better here? In a lot of ways, yes. I really love New York, especially, Los Angeles kind of scares me. I got my citizenship here last year, ironically, before I went back to do theatre in England. I don't like everything about here, though -- I don't want to anger people, so I'll give an innocuous example: I don't like the fast food portions here, they give too much.

So what attracted you to a big-budget pirates movie about a ride? A lot of people found it to be risky. Well, why should my mother be the only one to get blockbusters? (Laughs) No, um -- I thought it was a little risky, too, but then I actually read the script. And I thought, well, it's not going to save the world, but it's damn entertaining, and I really like the character. I don't like to play the same character twice, if I can avoid it -- I'm not anti-sequels, I just don't want to play another Blair for a while, and Elizabeth is also pretty money, but she chafes against that. She's very modern for the time period. Also, I needed something to do between the strike and waiting for new scripts to be started for Gossip Girl, so it took me a while to do my parts -- but it was excellent.

Did you have any stunts, and were you allowed to do them? Some, there's a few things they let me do. I consider wearing the corset a pretty big stunt, though -- because I nearly fainted every day I wore it. I really want to fight more, if this merits a sequel.

Speaking of fighting -- to return to Gossip Girl -- can you tell us why photos have surface of Blair and Serena, supposed BFFs, getting into a smackdown? For comedy value? No, no, there's some kind of new world order now -- Serena's reigning as Queen now, as of the last couple of episodes, and Blair's none-too-pleased. I can't tell you why they start fighting, you'll just have to watch the episode, but I can tell you, B's had enough. Unfortunately, this catfight doesn't involve any field hockey sticks and Kit [Holzman, the show's Serena] is like an amazon, but these are two girls who haven't really gotten into a fight before, so they're evenly matched in suckitude.

Lastly, do you have any plans to go back to the stage when season two wraps up? Plans, no. Would I be opposed to it? No. If the right show came along. A lot of them are closing, though, and that's sad. On the other hand, my contract with Disney really clearly states that if they make a sequel I'd be signed up for it -- so I might not have the time to go back to Broadway [or the West End] for quite some time.