Bruce Campbell injured on Burn Notice set
In case you didn’t know it, Bruce Campbell is my new BFF. Ever since my visit to the set, I have a new appreciation for the man. So, it pains me to report that Bruce recently was filming in Miami when he came up lame.
While chatting with Maureen Ryan of the Chicago Tribune, creator Matt Nix was talking about the new season of Burn Notice — more on that below — when he casually mentioned Bruce Campbell was hurt on the set. “He actually just pulled his hamstring doing a stunt, I just got a call, he’s on the way to the hospital.”
Excuse me! The hospital. That’s Bruce, man, aren’t you concerned? I am. Apparently, trouper that he his, Bruce wasn’t worried about himself, he was thinking about Sam, his character. “He called me on the way to the hospital to say, ’Here’s my idea of how we’ll write it into the show.’”
Like me, Nix has a crush on Bruce. Okay, I have a crush; he just admires him. He loves the Bruceness of him. To me, that’s like the cool of Sinatra. Nix told Ryan, “I kind of don’t know what the show is without Bruce. We were incredibly fortunate to get him. That character [of Sam] is one thing, then there is that Bruceness to him as well. The Bruceness is irreduceable [laughs]. It’s hard to put your finger on. …I think he buys us a lot of goodwill.”
There’s more news from Burn Notice on the casting front: Michael Shanks has been cast as Victor, another spy who was burned like Michael. Shanks, you may recall was Daniel on Stargate SG-1. Victor shows up in the second episode and will be on at least four episodes. When Jeffrey Donovan was asked to describe Victor, he told Ryan, “Victor is what Michael would be if Michael had rabies.” Eww!
Nix added: “We have some other fun guest stars, Oded Fehr (Sleeper Cell), Larry Miller (Dirt) is in the fourth episode and also Andrew Divoff (Lost).”
Burn Notice Finale Postshow with Matt Nix!
I don't know about you guys, but the Burn Notice finale had me panting for answers. And something tells me I'm not alone. So, it seems a good time for a quickie Q&A with creator Matt Nix, who tackles a few Burn-ing questions about the finale and season two…
Are the four main characters coming back for season two?
Yes!
This season Michael had to create a new life for himself in Miami. Is he going to develop that life or reject it in season two?
Michael's stuck in Miami…he may get off the leash occasionally, but he's not going anywhere.
Where's the truck going?! (Just kidding.)
Wouldn't you like to know!
Does the appearance of the truck imply that Michael is going away to parts unknown for a while?
He's going off to learn a thing or two. We'll see where he lands.
What's in store for mama and bro Weston? More spy family action?
Michael's family will be causing more problems for him in season two.
Is it going to be very, very bad for whoever has Michael if/when Fiona gets her hands on them?
It's bad for whoever Fiona gets her hands on, for any reason.
Got your own ideas about the finale and Michael's future? Post in the Comments!
—Reporting by Jennifer Godwin
Burn, Baby, Burn: Creator Matt Nix Puts Us on Notice
I giggled and cheered my way through the first episode of Burn Notice, which premiered Thursday on USA, and based on the email I'm getting, so did many of you. In order to find out a little more about the spy Michael Westen (Jeffrey Donovan) who came into the heat of sweltering south Florida, I rang up Matt Nix, the show's creator, to chat about spy codes, chasing skirts and what's in store for Michael in Miami. Read on for more…
What drives Michael Westen?
It's like asking what drives The Fugitive—is it just finding the one-armed man, or is there more to it? I think, certainly, there is an element of "Who burned me and why, and how do I get out of this situation and back to what I was doing?"
Does he have a code?
I think in terms of his code there is a line in the pilot, "A spy is a nice name for someone who is a criminal working on foreign soil.” He has a lot of the skills of the bad guys—spy skills are basically bad-guy skills. We send spies over to other countries to break into places and steal things and do a lot of stuff you are not supposed to be doing, and so he has a lot of those skills. He is not someone who runs around saying "How can I help?” Yet at the same time, if he finds himself in a situation where he can help somebody, he knows he is in a position to do good. Ultimately, he can never actually resist that opportunity.
What's up with Michael and Fiona? He seems ambiguous about her—she's drunk and all over him, and he's all, "Go home."
The thing about the relationship with Fiona is…They are two people who really don't have anybody else that they can be with. Anybody else is going to be afraid of what Michael does, and it sort of turns her on, and anybody else for Michael is going to be uninteresting. He is attracted to her, but part of what we explore over the first season is that they really are attracted with each other, and yet there is a reason they broke up. She is an incredibly chaotic person who just thrives on disorder…Violence is foreplay for her.
And Bruce Campbell's Sam is the perfect Miami character. He's drinking and chasing skirts, but he's also a semi-effective retired spy. Is he sort of the surrogate father figure/drunk uncle Michael never had?
I think Sam emerges as Michael's buddy; his friend who also has this additional dimension of being Michael's last tenuous thread into the official spy community. Sam's the guy who knows a guy, but the other big thing for him is that Sam was getting bored drinking and chasing skirts—he still wants to do fun stuff…
And do good…
Exactly.
So, season one, I presume, is Michael trying to find out why there was a burn on him, and if he's out, why they didn't just kill him? What happens after that question is answered? Does he stay in Miami? Does he go back to his old job?
We didn't want to do the perpetual unfolding single mystery that runs out of steam halfway through the second season that you have to keep pushing it along. Basically, by the end of the first season Michael knows much about what happened to him and why, and yet the discovery of what happened to him and why does not result in him being able to go back to Afghanistan. It allows for him to stay in Miami and complete 100 episodes. [Laughs.] That's the goal there.
So, what did you guys think of Burn Notice? Is it going to make it to syndication? Post your thoughts in the Comments below and then come back for the spoiler chat on Monday for more Notice news!