When Buffy the Vampire Slayer creator Joss Whedon decided to hook up the show's heroine with a 245-year-old vampire with a soul, he didn't have high expectations. "I thought people would be like, 'That's so cheesy,'" he says. Instead, the chemistry between Sarah Michelle Gellar and David Boreanaz turned the 1997 pairing into one of TV's great star-crossed romances and transformed the unknown Boreanaz into a heartthrob and, in 1999, the star of his own WB spin-off, Angel.
This week, the drama celebrates a milestone — its 100th episode — with an epic installment that marks the return of original cast member Cordelia (Charisma Carpenter) in all her wisecracking glory. "She really is the person to say [to Angel], 'I was here when you started and look where you are now,'" Whedon says. Recently, Boreanaz and the man he affectionately calls "Boss" met up on Angel's Los Angeles set to talk about branching out from Buffy.
TVG: David, what was your reaction to the idea of having your own show?
Boreanaz: I'm very fortunate. I mean, to give me my own series — a character like this [who] is so diverse, so old. There's so much to him. When I read the breakdown for the character, it was something like, "245-year-old vampire with a conscience. If you knock him down, he'll get back up like Joe Louis." The Joe Louis line stuck with me.
TVG: Joss, you've said if you had to compare Angel to a superhero, it would be Batman. Is that how you always envisioned him?
Whedon: He does have the Batman thing of "I am all alone... with my 12 sidekicks." There are, like, 48 guys with keys to the Batcave. But, and I think this is a human truth, you are still alone. You can be alone in a crowd of people who love you. That is our curse. And that's why I think vampires as a concept register.
TVG: In 2001, Buffy moved to UPN but Angel stayed on the WB. Did you worry that splitting the shows up would hurt Angel?
Whedon: In terms of Angel I was pleased, just because it was time for people to realize that it stood on its own.
TVG: It must've been hard, though, to continue to deal with the WB after such nasty negotiations over Buffy.
Whedon: Yeah. This was a negotiation where both [then-20th Century Fox chairman] Sandy Grushow and [WB chairman] Jamie Kellner went at each other. And when elephants fight, mice get trampled. It was really just about money.
TVG: David, what did you think the first time you heard about the story line in which Angel's infant son, Connor, would age into a teenager within a few episodes?
Boreanaz: It's nuts, man. But when Vincent [Kartheiser, who played Connor] came on, I really enjoyed working with him. But now nobody remembers Connor [on the show] except me.
Whedon: It's gonna come into play again. Assuming Vincent's available.
TVG: Were you shocked at how resistant fans were when you put Angel and Cordelia together?
Whedon: "Resistant" isn't the word. They were chasing us through the streets with torches. They hated the idea. The Buffy-Angel [romance] has lingered.
Boreanaz: The Buffy-Angel connection has got to win out [in the end]. They're perfect together. — Shawna Malcom
For more on Angel's 100th epsiode, pick up this week's issue of TV Guide magazine on newsstands now. Or head to the TV Guide Store to buy this week's Angel cover along with the May 2003 Buffy and Angel classic cover.
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