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'V' returns with a darker edge

Tale of alien visitation a slick remake of '83 series.

Published online on Tuesday, Nov. 03, 2009

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LOS ANGELES - When "V" returns to TV tonight, it will have a darker, more realistic look than the original miniseries.

"V" tells the story of an alien race arriving on Earth in massive spaceships. Earth is shaken by the arrival of the Visitors, who bring advanced medical and technical knowledge. The fact that they are willing to share this knowledge appears to be a blessing. But not everyone trusts the visitors - and it's soon revealed there's a good reason for such concerns.

Executive producer Jeffrey Bell says the updated "V" will make it less obvious which characters are good and bad.

"I think one of the things we're trying to do is we have humans, and we have humans who are traitors, and we have Visitors who have a nefarious agenda, and we have Visitors who are heroes. We're not a country at war the way we have in the past, but we are a country very much fractured and struggling with all these issues," Bell says.

Series star Morena Baccarin, who was just 4 years old when the original "V" miniseries aired in 1983, plays the leader of the Visitors, Anna. Her character will be a manipulator who presents a warm and loving face to the public but hides a cold and calculating heart.

"Our version will be darker, more realistic. It will be something that will be easier to connect to than the original series," says Baccarin, who has been cast in sci-fi series before on "Stargate SG-1" and "Firefly."

"You can play this kind of character very wooden," Baccarin says. "I wanted to avoid that very much. I see her more as a politician because politicians try to get you to trust them. They do that through charisma."

Baccarin has no theories as to why she keeps getting cast in sci-fi roles such as this TV series. Her acting plan was to do a few TV shows and movies so she could eventually work on stage. But, she's OK being drawn back to sci-fi the genre because it touches on complex topics including religion and politics.

"I think the idea of aliens, in general, is interesting," Baccarin says. "In this show, through aliens, we are discovering the human race and I think that is very fascinating."

The new "V" has changed to reflect a modern world, but that didn't stop Bell from keeping the odd diet for the aliens when he discovered that was the one thing everyone remembers from the original "V."

One of the most memorable scenes from the miniseries was Diana (Jane Badler), leader of the aliens, scarfing down live mice like they were bon bons. That unusual dinner menu was both disturbing and campy. "We would be morons if we didn't find a way in the series to pay homage," Bell says.

Baccarin's co-star, Elizabeth Mitchell, points out the irony of some of the casting: "You found like the prettiest girl you could possibly find, and you're going to make her eat a rodent."