'Terminator' reboot adds Manson

September 08, 2008|By Curt Wagner

After its strike-shortened but promising first season ended with the "good" cyborg Cameron being blown up, "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" returns Monday to immediately pay off that Season 1 cliffhanger.

No spoilers, but it's appointment TV, airing at 7 p.m. on Fox.

The sci fi series based on the "Terminator" movies picks up with Sarah Connor (Lena Headey) and John, her son and the future leader of the human resistance against the terminators, under attack from both familiar and new foes.

One of those newbies is Shirley Manson of the band Garbage, who joins the cast as Catherine Weaver, the CEO of a technology corporation. Weaver's a badass with a surprising secret that will blow fans away.

Series creator Josh Friedman and Headey recently talked about Manson and what else to expect in Season 2. For more, go to redeyechicago.com/showpatrol.

A main character dies this season, What brings you to the point of saying, "Well, it's time to axe one of these guys?"

Friedman: "It's usually their behavior on the set. No, it's pure storytelling. It's painful to say goodbye to actors. ... All of a sudden you're having this dawning realization that you have a really good idea for something storywise, but it's going to end up costing somebody a job. And it's not easy."

This is Shirley Manson's first acting job. Why was she hired?

Friedman: "She's just got an incredible charisma. And also, she's just very professional. She's always prepared, and her learning curve in terms of the craft part has been very high. ... She was given no extra points for being Shirley Manson. I think, in some ways, she was given minus points by people who thought maybe she couldn't do it."

What will Sarah's progression be this season?

Headey: "I think that we're going to see a lot more of John taking control and then making steps toward becoming the man he has to be. ... And I think Sarah is kind of losing slight control over everything, and my feeling is that I think there's a slow madness sort of happening in her because she feels that everything's kind of out of reach right now."