Dichen Lachman, Fran Kranz, Miracle Laurie, and Enver Gjokaj explain how Fox’s short-lived Dollhouse — and Joss Whedon — made their new movie, Lust for Love , possible.
BuzzFeed/Jarett Wieselman
Dollhouse, Joss Whedon's dark sci-fi drama, revolved around a black-market organization that rented programmable people — dubbed "Actives" — out to wealthy clients for "engagements" that ranged from sexual and illicit to dangerous and illegal.
Like many a Whedon series, Dollhouse was far from a ratings hit (the series premiere drew 4.72 million viewers and was the highest-rated episode ever) and was canceled by Fox in 2010, after 26 episodes. But in a turn of events that's fitting for a show about characters who are endlessly reborn, Dollhouse has found a second life on DVD and Netflix.
Cancellation was also unable to erase the bonds formed by the cast and crew, with many subsequent Whedonverse collaborations rising from Dollhouse's ashes. The latest is Lust for Love, a new romantic comedy available today in theaters and on VOD, which stars Fran Kranz, Miracle Laurie, Enver Gjokaj, and Dichen Lachman, who also co-produced. The film follows the hopelessly romantic but endlessly misguided Astor (played by Kranz) as he searches for love in Los Angeles.
At Lust for Love's Los Angeles premiere, BuzzFeed brought the four together backstage in the green room to talk about the fan-backed film, look back on the biggest lessons learned from Dollhouse's demise, and reflect upon life in Joss Whedon's ever-expanding troupe.
Gravitas Ventures
Was the plan to always cast the film with Dollhouse alums?
Dichen Lachman: Yes. I wanted to work with friends because we're still so close. It just became about shuffling the parts around to fit everyone's schedule because, obviously, these guys didn't get rich doing this movie.
Miracle Laurie: What? I didn't? (laughs)
Dichen: So it was about working with people's schedules and finding the right role in the right time.
When Dichen called, was there a discussion about your roles, or did you simply ask, "When do you need me?"
Miracle: "When do you need me?"
Fran Kranz: To me, it felt like an opportunity to get the gang back together and have fun while also creating something amazing in the process. And I was promised I'd get to kiss multiple beautiful girls, which I did.
Enver Gjokaj: As an actor, you're so powerless. You're always waiting for someone to say you get to do something, so it's amazing when we can be the ones to create the opportunity to work with each other again. This was the perfect opportunity. But for Dichen and Anton [King, director], I'd be the guy wearing a silly mustache saying, (mimics Italian accent) "Sorry, wrong room!"
Miracle: That's a really bad Italian accent. (laughs) You sound like Mario.
Enver: (laughs) What I'm saying is, I'd have done whatever they wanted.
Miracle: Enver is right. You are blessed enough to be on a TV show for a couple of years, and that opens a lot of doors — but then not so many. And you have no idea what this business is going to turn into for you, what opportunities you'll be afforded, and what power you'll have ... which is none. I think it was wonderful of Dichen and Anton to create this happy pocket to dive back into after the show.
There seem to be two acting "troupes" currently thriving in Hollywood: Ryan Murphy's (Nip/Tuck, Glee, and American Horror Story) and Joss Whedon's. Why do you think graduates from the Joss Whedon school have become so omnipresent?
Enver: I think he has an amazing ability to pick really talented and really cool people — I haven't met a single person he's ever worked with who I think is an asshole. And what happens when you're in that group is you start meeting other people he's hired and you realize they're awesome too. He's so creative and he's so talented, it's almost like Joss leaves creativity in his wake.
Miracle: That's so true. I've met people at conventions from Buffy, and now I'm honestly good buddies with Nicholas Brendon, who I loved as Xander, because I actually watched Buffy. And that happens all the time. You just connect with these people who have been on the same journey because, I think, the community of actors and writers in the Whedonverse are very specific kind of people. I think we all know how lucky we are, I think we like to celebrate that and now have one another's back in a very bizarre way.
Dichen, do you think Lust for Love would have been able to meet its Kickstarter goals if it wasn't for the Dollhouse connection?
Dichen: Absolutely not. This movie would have never been made if we hadn't had the opportunity to work on the show with someone like Joss.
Miracle: The proof of the Whedonverse's power is in the Kickstarter. The fans were like, "My Dollhouse people back together? Yes, please!" (laughs)