Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Courteney Cox Talks Dirt

Courteney Cox has been spending the past few days in New York City to promote the second season of her television series Dirt, appearing on David Letterman’s Late Show just last night (February 26).

The former Friends actress’ FX drama returns for a seven-episode season starting this Sunday at 10 p.m. - with Cox playing “the hard-charging” Lucy Spiller.

Recently chatting with TV writers about her FX series, here’s some highlights of the conversation courtesy of Palm Beach Post:

On playing take-charge characters: “Monica (from Friends) was a ruthless, competitive girl, so I guess I have that streak in my personality. (Scream’s) Gail Weathers was really campy. In Scream 3, I had the worst hairdo in the world. I can’t believe it’s forever on film.”

On why she took the role: “She’s ruthless, but with a heart. When I originally pitched this show to FX, it didn’t even have a woman character in it. It was really about a Hollywood young actor who was willing to sell his soul to the paparazzi to keep up in the world of Hollywood. FX came up with the idea of making it centered around a female tabloid editor.”

On the show’s sensational storylines: “We don’t ever intend to hurt anyone. And as a matter of fact, sometimes we make the characters sympathetic. It’s all in fun.”

On sympathizing with the paparazzi: “I would say that playing this character and working on this show has definitely shown me how hard (this business) is and how competitive it is. It’s just really hard to run a successful magazine. And I (understand) just how many paparazzi there are out there and how hard it is to get the exclusive picture. I guess I’ve learned (how the paparazzi operates), but that doesn’t mean I agree with it all and I definitely don’t agree with the obsession on certain celebrities. I understand the fascination, but when it gets obsessive, I think it gets dangerous.”

On truth being stranger than fiction: “We come up with these storylines and sometimes we think, ‘Wow, there’s no way this could happen, but man it would make for a good episode.’ And then you find out after you filmed it...that something even more outrageous has happened.”

On Lucy and Don’s relationship this season: “Don (Lucy’s best friend celebrity photographer) is on medication now so his schizophrenia has been toned way back and he’s much more in control, which makes him have to look at what he does for a living and how far he goes for Lucy. So we’ve kind of revered the roles a little bit. As opposed to her taking care of him, he’s taking care of her more.”

On how Lucy has changed after being stabbed last season: “She is ruthless, but she definitely has a different outlook on life. She doesn’t take it quite so seriously. I think she’s a little more appreciative of what she has. I think she’s a little more daring in a certain way, but for a better reason—more for fun as opposed to some personal vendetta against people.”

Gossip Girls

Enjoy the pictures of Courteney in NYC and at the Late Show (February 26).