The real bottom line is, it's not easy when one's horse is shot out from under
one. There's no way to take it lightly.
I've been saying for five years, "This is a five year story. When it's over,
it's over." But there's the statement, and the reality of the statement; two
different things. To the viewers, it's the end of the story. To an actor,
it's "I'm out of work now because Joe said it was a five year story instead of
a six year story."
I know that a lot of the cast have been in denial about this for a long time,
many of them said in interviews, "Yeah, well, Joe's said it's a five year arc,
but I don't see why it couldn't go longer." But if you live in that notion,
then when the reality hits, it hits hard.
So the reaction is perfectly understandable on an emotional level. When a show
is over, everyone's gone. In this town, that usually means "you're fired, the
network doesn't like you or the show." It's a personal rejection. Here it was
my decision, from the git-go, that this series would go five years and no more.
That's kind of a new thing, and takes some getting used to. You can only
interpret it by what you've experienced before.
One or two cast members may transition over into Crusade, assuming it goes
ahead, but that show *has* to be its own show, it can't be just a repackaged
B5. (And I'm referring to regulars here, there's plenty of room for
guest-starring roles for nearly all of our characters at one point or another,
plus the likelihood of more B5 TV movies, plus the real possibility of a B5
feature.)
It's an emotional reaction, and totally understandable.
jms
From: (jmsatb5@aol.com)
B5 Official Fan Club at:
http://www.thestation.com