Butt-kicking babes are back in a big way this fall, and The CW’s ‘Nikita’ has more than its fair share of sexy action heroines.
The new series is an update on the 1990 movie ‘Nikita,’ the movie’s 1993 remake ‘Point of No Return’ and the 1997 Canadian TV show ‘La Femme Nikita.’ In The CW’s version, Nikita (Maggie Q) is a rogue assassin conspiring to topple Dvision, the secret government agency that trained her.
But Division has weapons of its own, including Melinda Clarke’s Amanda, a manipulative psychologist who may just have been a former assassin herself.
Clarke spoke to TV Squad about learning to kick butts alongside Maggie Q, her mysterious character and whether we’ll see her again on ‘Vampire Diaries.’
How did you get involved with ‘Nikita’?
There’s a process in Hollywood, and one of those processes is pilot season, where you’re just going on auditions. But for me, this particular project, ultimately became a perfect storm, and it traces all the way back to ‘The O.C.’ McG is a producer, Peter Rob is the head of Warner Brothers and the relationships that were cultivated then led to this project. So, usually pilot season is very busy, and there are lots of auditions and lots of near misses and rejections. This year, I had two auditions, landed this role and it felt like being home again.
It seems like a really great fit.
Yes, it does. I was teasing that all of my roles have led up to this one; I told Craig Silverstein the creator, and writers, executive producers this the other day. As we were speaking about the character and what they have planned for Amanda, it just sounded like everything I’ve done has just led up to this one.[Clarke’s phone cuts out] Where are you driving to?
I’m on my way to training with the cast. Maggie Q has set up these intense training situations and I have a feeling I’m going to be hurting tomorrow.
What kind of training is it?
Well, I haven’t been yet but I”m assuming it’s conditioning and hand-to-hand combat work and getting ready for looking good on camera, as if you know what you’re doing, which she does. It’s been years since I’ve had this kind of training. I’ve done it in the past but ‘The O.C.’ didn’t really need that kind of training — you just need to know how to put mascara on and walk in heels.
Do you enjoy this kind of training and doing action scenes?
I’ve always loved it. I did an action series back in ’97, and did very intense training; weapons, knives, hand-to-hand combat. The more an actor trains in that way, the more we can do on screen and the better it looks. Nowadays, they want the actors to do as much as possible and stunt doubles are primarily used for the dangerous things that aren’t covered by insurance.
Can you talk a bit about your character and what her role is on the show?
Of course, we all know this is part of a franchise based on the French film, ‘La Femme Nikita,’ and of course an updated version of the series that was in the ’90s of ‘La Femme Nikita.’ Now my character represents the more experienced, older woman who’s …
A mentor?
A female mentor, whose responsibility is going to cover more than just teaching girls how to walk and talk and look pretty and use their sexuality. We’re going to find out that she has a lot more to offer Division and she’s more than just that mentor. She’s high up in Division, she’s trained and very skilled and maybe she was the original “Nikita” type female. Now we have the generation of Lyndsy Fonseca, who plays Alex, and she’s the brand new Nikita. My character probably represents someone who has been there and is now into a different level. But it’s always going to be somewhat mysterious and enigmatic to start, which is good because there’s always going to be a mystery behind some of these characters. And for Amanda, I think she’s going to be quite the enigma for a while.
So we’ll definitely learn more about her in the future?
We’re going to find out that she’s not only a psychologist and probably a student of human behavior, but she’s also a manipulator. And I said something about, the producer actually said something about her having these psychological sessions … she’ll be a lead interrogator. And I said, “Like Lorraine Bracco in ‘The Sopranos’?” and I think her character is Dr. Melfi — Dr. Melfi meets Dr. Wexler, though. Which could mean a lot of things, so I’m really, really excited.
I don’t think any of the characters are just good and bad. Nikita’s not all good, Amanda’s not all bad. I think everybody’s everything, compromising themselves on a daily basis. I’m really excited for this show, especially on the CW, their first straight-up action show without some sort of supernatural or vampire or something. They’ve been really successful with those, but this is a big leap and it’s a great cast, great crew.
The show has a darker, grittier feel to it than most CW shows, which was pleasantly surprising.
Well, I think the network is making very smart decisions. They’re expanding their network and they want to expand the demographic — get more male viewers, maybe some older viewers — and they’re doing it with this show. And it has a huge international appeal. There’s a lot of excitement and we all have high hopes that people will enjoy it.
Since ‘Nikita’ is on the CW, does this mean that there’s a still possibility we might see you on ‘Vampire Diaries?’
Believe me, I’ve been campaigning for that. It’s fun to work and that’s a fun show.
There’s still a lot to explore with your character, Kelly Donovan.
Yes, it would just be a matter of the network and producers and writers working that out. They’re two totally, absolutely different characters, which is great, but it would be kind of up to the network to decide if they wanted to see my face two hours in a row. Although, right now, Amanda is definitely a supporting character. She’s kind of mysterious and enigmatic, you don’t really know much about her and I don’t think there will be very much revealed in the beginning. But yeah, I talked to Kevin Williamson, I talked to Peter Roth, the head of Warner Brothers … but, yes, in a perfect world it would be great to go visit Mystic Falls and just ruin Matt’s life even more.
It feels like you really relished that role in particular.
Those kind of roles are a little more … they feel very loose and there’s freedom. Those are the kind of roles where you can really take risks and this woman, Kelly Donovan is such a train wreck for whatever reason. I think I suspect what the reason is, but I had my own ideas about it as an actress. Clearly, she’s damaged and hurt, and because she’s such a train wreck, those are the roles you really can play outside of the box as an actor. Throw in the humor, throw in that personality, try things you wouldn’t normally try. Julie Cooper was like that on ‘The O.C.’ Amanda of course is a lot more refined and sophisticated, so the risk-taking and non-obvious choices have to be a little bit more predetermined and specific. I’m thinking out loud as an actor right now …
I was excited to see Maggie Q was cast as ‘Nikita.’ The whole cast’s pedigree is really top-notch. Were you excited to work with everyone? Is the cast gelling together?
Oh, it’s great. We all came together in Toronto and spent many days and evenings together since. Everyone gels and it’s fantastic because we have actors as young as 22 or 23 and a few of us who are a little bit older. But we all are together like a family together already. We’re definitely united. And we’re also recovering from one of the worst times in Hollywood history, [after] the writer’s strike … It’s felt like slim pickings for the past few years for some of us and we’re just very humbled and excited. Getting a pilot made is like winning the lottery, let alone have it become a successful series for years.
Have they talked to you about upcoming storylines? Obviously, Nikita will continue her fight against Division, but have the producers and writers gone into more detail?
You know we’re in an age of absolute secrecy and there are guidelines.
Yeah, I confess, I’m trying to get spoilers out of you. Is there anything you can reveal?
As the show goes on, I think there’s going to be back story on all of the characters and how they got to these points in their lives. But ultimately, I don’t have knowledge of how this show is going to go, I just know that my character isn’t about makeup and hair. She has a lot more to offer and she’s definitely going to represent the female villain in this situation. I guess Division is the villain and Maggie Q is the hero, but like I said I don’t have specific plots. But the next episode is just as exciting as the pilot in my mind. And I can’t wait to have a catfight between Maggie and myself.