I really love Castle, and that's why I have
a section of our site devoted to it
now. It's a fun show, and I've watched every episode. It's great to get the
third season DVD. I can't imagine anyone not loving this show. It's part police
drama, part romantic comedy. Nathan Fillion is great as Castle. He's a famous
and rich writer who follows the police around to get ideas for his books.
However, he never takes himself too seriously, and that's where all the humor
comes in. He also has a great mom and daughter. Stana Katic (don't you just LOVE
that name?) plays Kate, the no-nonsense detective that works with Castle. They
make a great team, and there is a lot of romantic tension between them,
especially in this particular season. Then there are other cops they work with,
who are all engaging. It's just such an enjoyable show.
I thought the first season was just so-so, but every season since has been much
better. The stories have really improved. I thought the cop stories in the first
season were very predictable, even though I liked the characters and their
banter. Now the cop stories are also good. The show is really at its best. They
also introduced a story arc about Kate looking for her mother's killer, which
has been intriguing.
You especially don't want to miss the last two episodes of the show, which are
completely shocking. If you are a TV fan, you must see this show. The DVD is
great. I loved the extras. Two of the episodes have commentary by the cast and
crew (something you don't always find on TV shows, just movies). One of the
features has some of the writers on the show sitting around and discussing
writing. Nathan Fillion drops in briefly during this feature. Another feature is
all about the special episode where they went to Hollywood. That was a fun
episode and the feature is great. There is another feature that talks about the
murder board they use on the show. There are deleted scenes and bloopers, which
I enjoyed. And finally, they do have a rap music video. It's from one of the
episodes, but here they show the whole thing. It is truly an entertaining set to
have.
More Info:
Walt Disney Studio's Home Entertainment has announced
that nine exciting ABC Studios Series, such as Grey's Anatomy, Cougar Town,
Brothers and Sisters, and more, will be available on DVD this fall! Each
collectible Complete Season DVD Set is packaged as a multi-disk set that
includes every episode in the season, as well as exciting bonus materials
including bloopers, outtakes, behind the scenes featurettes and more. Check out
the
press
release announcement, detailing each series release. You can watch the DVD's
uninterrupted by commercials, in the comfort of your own homes! You can order copies at the ABC
Store
* The Works of Richard Castle: How well do you know them?
Preview: Castle Widget
Alternate Von Mannschaft Deleted Scene
Castle Meets Jim Beckett Deleted Scene
Honorary Badge Deleted Scene
Multiple Murder Boards
Designing the Boards
Ferrari Castle Interactive
Quiz
We have for you never-been-seen interviews with Castle's Nathan Fillion,
Stana Katic and Molly C. Quinn! Castle: The Complete Third Season, and
Body of Proof: The Complete First Season, are available on DVD today,
Sept. 20!
Castle Interviews:
AN INTERVIEW WITH NATHAN FILLION
FOR SEASON THREE OF CASTLE
Actor Nathan Fillion is no stranger to the small screen. He’s appeared in a string of successful shows including Desperate Housewives, Firefly, Buffy The Vampire Slayer and the daytime drama, One Life To Live. However, it’s his portrayal of crime novelist Richard Castle in the ABC crime drama Castle for which he is currently turning heads. With the Season Three DVD of Castle about to be released, we catch up with the Canadian actor to find out more…
The relationship between Castle and Beckett heats up in Season Three. How is Castle going to cope?
I think Castle is a very simple man. He has very simple wants and needs – and things are more complicated in this relationship than he would ever like them to be. I think things have been very easy for Castle all his life and finally he's got a woman in front of him who represents a challenge, a challenge that he's never had before.
How is it unfamiliar territory for him?
Kate Beckett’s an authority figure, but Castle has never had an authority figure in his life. She's an expert and in a lot of ways, she’s smarter than he is. He's not used to that. He really likes this woman, and yet there are all these complications. He doesn't quite know how to tiptoe around, and he pushes too hard in areas when he ought to leave them alone.
Do you think viewers can relate to this dilemma?
Yes, I do. Particularly when Castle thinks he's doing the right thing, but it turns out he's doing the wrong thing. I think he wants everything to be a lot simpler in his life. He wants everything to go his way, which is how the rest of his life has been. It’s also one of those ‘be careful what you wish for’ moments because if the challenge and the complications weren’t there, could that take away some of the magic?
Castle and Beckett finally kiss in Season Three. What’s the story behind that?
What happens can’t just be described as a kiss. It is more of a melt at the lips. That's what it is; it's a lip melting. And without spoiling too much, I'll say this: Our writers and our creator Andrew Marlowe are very careful. When they push this relationship, they have this dance that they refer to. When they push things in one direction, they’re very careful to balance it again.
Do you feel there are boundaries for what can happen between Castle and Beckett?
There are definitely boundaries for them because once you cross the line, there’s no going back. However, the writers are very good at pushing the boundaries, and maybe even pushing the line ahead so that we go further than before – but then we retreat back again without making irreparable damage.
Do you think they will go any further than a kiss?
I don't want to spoil any storylines, so I’m not going to tell you. I don’t want to be the spoiler-alert guy. You’re just going to have to watch and see for yourself.
Doesn't Kate Beckett have a boyfriend this season?
Boy, she does. And he’s one hell of a guy! He is ten feet tall and he's made of bricks. Josh Davidson is his name. He's devastatingly handsome. He’s better looking than me. Plus, he's super tall. I'm a tall guy, so I don't usually look up to many people – but this guy is really tall.
How does Castle cope with the challenge of Josh’s arrival?
Josh is the perfect guy, which can be hard for an actor to play without being smarmy or smug – but the actor Victor Webster does a wonderful job with the role. Victor plays a charming, reasonable, intelligent, perfect guy. What's Richard Castle going to do? He’s pretty immature about it. It’s certainly a hurdle for Richard. It’s a thorn in his side, shall we say?
Is Castle afraid of Josh?
Castle is afraid of nothing! Okay, he’s afraid of sharks, bears, and heights…
Are you concerned that the dynamic between Beckett and Castle would change if they hooked up?
I am, and this is where Stana Katic and I differ. Stana thinks that if they got together, the relationship would just encounter different hurdles – but that everything would be fine. I am of the ‘jumping-the-shark’ school of thought. I believe that, if you have built up tension, you can’t just let it go again. As an audience member, I like being smarter than the characters on TV. I like watching them fail and saying to myself, “Oh, you know what he should do? Just admit how he feels.” I love that omniscient feeling that I know what's going on in their hearts and in their heads. If you reconcile that and you give everybody what they want, you release the tension – and that’s when people say, “Okay, I’m done. Let's change the channel and see what else is on.”
Castle has a funny and interesting relationship with his family. How did the producers ensure there would be a good connection between all of the actors involved?
They brought me in to do ‘chemistry reads’, as they call it. All these actresses would come in and read for Castle’s mom and daughter, Martha and Alexis. All you want is for them to come into the room and just set it on fire – and Molly Quinn did exactly that. It was ridiculous when she left. The door closed and they picked up the phone right away and said, “That's her. We need this actress.” It was a done deal and it was the same thing with Susan Sullivan. She came in and had so much of Martha about her. She walked into the audition room and she said to me, “Stand up, darling. I won't be looking down at you.” And she had me stand up to read with her. She was just so Martha.
It feels like Castle is ruled by women. Would you agree?
Yes, I guess I do agree that he has no male role models. I once applied for a job when I was 16 and the two ladies who were interviewing me said, “If you get this job, we will be your bosses. Do you have any problems taking orders from women?” And I replied: “My mom's a woman and I take orders from her all the time.”
Do you like that about Castle?
I think one of the really neat things about Castle is that he's not very macho. He's not very swagger manly. He's more boyish than anything as he's never had an opportunity to grow up. At one point I remember – and this was one of those wonderful times where we could collaborate with the writers – Castle was apologizing to Alexis for blowing on something, and I came up with lines saying, “Be patient with me. Be forgiving. I've never been a dad to a teenage daughter before.” And I think that part of Castle's truth is that he doesn't know what he's doing. He's just doing the best he can, but he has a good heart.
AN INTERVIEW WITH STANA KATIC
FOR SEASON THREE OF CASTLE
With the Season Three DVD of Castle about to be released, we sat down with the woman behind NYPD Detective Kate Beckett in the hit comedy drama to find out what Stana Katic thinks of her character? What does the actress get up to when she’s not working? And what’s in store for fans in Season Three?
What do you like about Kate Beckett, the character you play on Castle?
I like the way that Kate is imperfectly perfect. She doesn’t always make the right choices, but she will try to. When she doesn’t make the right choice, for whatever reason, she wants to get it right in the end. I like that about her. I like it when a person fails by accident, but they then step up to the plate in order to try and fix things. Kate always tries to do better. She always tries to improve.
Do you think that helps the audience relate to Beckett?
Absolutely. Beckett is not always going to make the right choices and I think that’s what everybody faces on a daily basis. Sometimes we screw up and in spite of screwing up you’re still given an opportunity to go back up to the plate and try again. Life says, “Hey, it’s a new day. Try it again and try to do it better.” Beckett is that kind of character. That’s probably what I like the most about her. She’s like a hero who is flawed and I think that’s why she really has a connection with the audience.
How does Beckett cope with relationships in Season Three?
I love the way that she handles relationships this season. I understand that she is a girl who doesn’t want to break up something that’s really great. She doesn’t want to break up a great friendship and a great working relationship. I think any girl in Beckett’s situation would probably make the same choice.
Does she continue to investigate the murder of her mother in Season Three?
Definitely. And there are some huge revelations that happen this season, too. Beckett might not show it during other episodes, but she is continuing to do her own pursuit at home for sure.
How do you keep your character so fresh on a long-running show?
It’s my job to keep it interesting for me, as well as for the people who are watching. As an actor, you try to attack a scene that you might have done 30 different ways already. You have to find the 31st way. As we keep exploring Beckett’s inner life and peeling away layers of her, there will be so many more beats to play.
There are rumors that the cast gets to sing together this season… Is that true?
There is an episode in Season Three that revolves around an old bar in New York. If you’ve ever been to New York, you’ll know that there is a great pub culture there where people circulate around the same bar. It’s a hangout for people, and in a way, it’s almost like Cheers. That episode is all about finding a community around a place and Castle ends up buying the bar at the end of the episode. So, we all had a Cheers moment and sang together.
We don’t usually get to hear the cast sing… How did everyone do?
Everybody on the cast has a beautiful voice, from Nathan and Seamus to Ruben and Jon, who is actually recording his own CD project on the side. It wasn’t difficult to film, other than we had to have a series of close ups singing, so they did extra takes just to get those. But everyone’s voices are really fantastic.
Will the bar become a new set on the show?
I hope so. I know that’s probably on the writers’ radar, but we’ll have to wait and see what happens.
Beckett often gets into scrapes in the show. Do you enjoy playing the physical side of the character?
I love it! I have a lot of brothers, so I had to survive when I was growing up. In that way, I’ve had a lot of practice and I find it easy to do physical stuff. I really love it, and I’d love to do more of it. I want to do action films one day. I want to go and hang from wires, and jump off bridges, and hang on bungee cords. I’ve always really loved it.
What are your main priorities when you’re not working?
The most important thing for me in life is to explore and to live as fully as possible, to be as fully engaged and fully alive as I can be.
Have you reached the point where you are recognized wherever you go now?
No, I’m not fully there. Occasionally people recognize me. When I went to the Oscars, somebody asked me to sign their program, which was really nice and very flattering.
Can you tell us about the environmental project you’re involved with?
Sure. I started a scheme called The Alternative Travel Project and the idea behind it is very simple: that by making a small change in your own life, you can affect the world. If a big group of people decides to make a decision together, the ripple effects across the globe can be life altering.
Are your Castle co-stars involved with the project?
I recorded a series of videos with Seamus Dever, who plays Detective Kevin Ryan on the show. We gave up our cars for seven days to see what would happen. The idea was to ask people across the globe to go car-free for just one day – and it worked. People began writing in to pledge their own day without a car. And now it’s cascading into something bigger because schools want to be a part of it, too.
Are you proud of the effect the project has had so far?
Absolutely. It’s wonderful because people are discovering new ways of traveling and it’s opening up different lifestyles to them. We have a school in Romania that goes car-free every Friday, and we’ve heard beautiful stories from places like Columbia where they have had car-free days for years. We have supporters across the globe in countries like Belgium, France, England, Saudi Arabia, Japan, all over North America and Latin America. Everyone is trying to give up cars for a day. There’s even a girl in Michigan who started traveling to work on a surfboard everyday. It’s really neat.
What are your ambitions for The Alternative Travel Project?
My end goal is to hopefully change the experience of travel and lifestyle here in Los Angeles. I want to start on a small scale with L.A. and then maybe encourage people across the globe to have that same experience in their own cities. For Europeans, it almost seems absurd because not traveling by car is ingrained in their culture. But Los Angeles is a really car-centric society, so for us to find ways of traveling without automobiles is a little more difficult.
What do you like to do during your downtime?
On set, I might read in my trailer. I’ll put on some music or watch a DVD. And if we have a lot of time off from the show, I’ll go and travel. I read a lot of film projects, too. I’m always looking for the next movie I would like to do during our Castle hiatus, so that takes up a lot of my time.
What are your favorite books?
I have a number of favorite books that I have talked about in the past like Zorba The Greek and The Master And Margarita. I just finished a book called City Of Refuge by Tom Piazza, which is about the hurricane floods in New Orleans. It’s a fascinating read.
What kind of music do you enjoy listening to?
I love everything from classical to independent music, as well as folk music from across the globe. Today, I’ve been listening to The Raconteurs, Florence And The Machine and U2. I listen to whatever you can possibly imagine. I really, really love music. It’s an important part of my day to just sit down and listen to some extraordinary compositions. I love it. It’s the perfect way to relax.
AN INTERVIEW WITH MOLLY C. QUINN
FOR SEASON THREE OF CASTLE
Texas-born actress Molly C. Quinn stars as Alexis, the teenage daughter of crime novelist Richard Castle in the hit ABC comedy drama, Castle. While her father helps to solve crimes with the NYPD, Alexis faces the trials and tribulations of teenage life, and the perils of growing up with an absent mother. What’s in store for Alexis in Season Three? Is love in the air for the character? And what advice does Molly have for wannabe actors? With the Season Three DVD of Castle about to be released, we catch up with the talented young actress to find out all this and more…
What’s in store for your character in Season Three of Castle?
Alexis Castle is growing up in the show. She gets her first serious boyfriend, which is a very exciting storyline for me because it’s a whole new aspect to the character that we haven’t seen before. It’s been really fun to see her navigate love on the show!
What happens when Alexis falls in love?
Well, we get to see how far Alexis is willing to go for love and how deep into a relationship she wants to get while still staying serious in school and taking care of her dad. She knows high school relationships don't usually last, so she’s wondering whether she even wants to be involved with anyone right now. Maybe she should just focus on getting into Cambridge, Yale or Harvard instead?
Did you always want to be an actress?
Acting has always been in my blood. I love portraying different people and I've always loved self-discovery and meeting people. Through meeting people, you learn a lot about yourself, too.
What advice would you give to people who want to follow in your footsteps and act?
I would say, “Max out your hometown!” Do all the theater you can. Get into serious acting classes and really start focusing on a technique whether it’s Uta Hagen, Meisner or Stanislavski, whichever one you’re drawn to. And then, once you've done every single play and every single part in your hometown, go to the next level and try to do some acting for your State. Slowly build up and follow your dreams.
Is it important to build up slowly?
I think so. Don't try to go from nothing to Hollywood. It rarely works out. Personally, I think working your way up is the most fulfilling aspect of becoming an actor. I’ve loved my journey here.
Alexis is quite a serious teenager who never seems to get into trouble. How similar are you to this character?
I would love to say that I'm like Alexis in that respect, and I guess I am a bit – but I’m not totally like Alexis. One reason Alexis doesn't rebel and do all these things is because she's worried to death about her dad. He really scares her, especially right now when he’s involved in all these crazy murder cases.
How do you rebel at home?
In my real life, if I rebel, it means staying up till 9.30pm and watching one more episode of The Big Bang Theory or something like that! I’m not much of a rebel at heart. I’m too busy to rebel.
How does it feel to play a character who grows up on screen? Is it tough to go through some of the more awkward and strange moments in a young girl’s young life in front of the camera?
I’m a pretty private person and I don’t really talk about what’s going on in my life, but the writers do an amazing job of portraying teenage life. I'll get a script and somehow there will be things in it that are exactly the same as what I'm going through in my day-to-day life.
Is it tough to act out those scenes on screen when you’re living them for real away from the set?
Not really. Being on the show has been a blessing because it’s given me a lot more minds that I can draw from and get advice from on how to deal with these situations in my life.
Do you feel pressure to be a good role model for other teenagers?
I try to be a good example for girls my age because I know how difficult it is. There are so many distractions, like boys and parties, and it's really difficult to compartmentalize what you want to do whilst having fun at the same time. I try to find a healthy balance. It’s tough, but I think I’ve got there now.
How do you manage to avoid the showbiz scene?
When people who watch the show come up to me, I just try to be humble and thankful because in reality I’m extremely lucky to be doing this.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
I play violin in the Kadima Philharmonic, which is a very small orchestra for teens. I also teach violin lessons at public schools. I take classes where about 50 little kids are fighting with their bows, but it’s so rewarding to hear the little scratches they make. I also baby-sit, but something I am passionate about is volunteering at orphanages.
If we listened to your MP3 player, would it be more Mozart than Nicki Minaj?
There's a healthy mix of music on there. Sometimes I listen to a little bit of Hollywood I'm Dead, but I love classical music. This is going to make me sound terrible, but I love going to The Getty Museum and I love listening to classical music. These are the things that calm me down. You’ll find a lot of classical music and Mozart on my MP3 player.
Do you have any plans for the future?
I may go and work overseas with children. I've been offered the opportunity quite a few times and I haven't been able to go because of our shooting schedule on Castle. I will definitely take time off to either go to college or to go overseas. There will be a time when I get a broader education; I just don't know which one yet! I guess we’ll just have to wait and see what the future holds…
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