'Buffy the Vampire Slayer''s James Marsters Says Show Is 'Relevant' in Trump Era

James Marsters as Spike on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer"

“Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” let’s face it, is the story of an inclusive (at least in Fantasy terms) group of friends, led by a young woman, who fight villains that are basically various expressions of patriarchy. What I’m saying is, speaking as a longtime fan, it feels especially relevant right now.

Co-star James Marsters, whose portrayal of the villain-turned-antihero Vampire Spike was one of the show’s enduring highlights, seems to agree. Speaking to the A.V. Club to mark the show’s 20th Anniversary, Marsters was asked what, in his opinion, the show can teach audiences today. His answer: “don’t give up.”

“Oh, my god, it’s so relevant. The world is hard. The world is not perfect, but we can’t give up. If I could condense the theme of Buffy into three words, it’s those: ‘Don’t give up.’,” Marsters said.

Also Read: Eliza Dushku Details Her Secret Struggle With Drug Addiction (Video)

“It began just as the story of an adolescent who’s going through a period in her life where she realizes that the world is messed up,” he continued. “Her parents don’t always know what they’re talking about, her teachers don’t always know the subject matter they’re teaching, and we’re going to watch to see if she gives up. If she’s going to continue to try to find answers and engage with the world or just going to cocoon and give up. I think it’s well done enough that someone who’s older or younger than that can still identify with that and say, ‘Oh, I know what that feels like.’ It’s hard to wake up every morning and not give up and [instead] say, ‘I’m going to try to help out today.’ I think that’s very important right now.”

Marsters didn’t elaborate further on whether or not he was thinking specifically about current politics, but considering the high probability that the mood he’s addressing is shared by a considerable number of the show’s biggest fans precisely because of politics, we’ll hopefully be forgiven for reading into it.

Marsters also had a lot of interesting insight into the character he played over seven years and two separate shows, as well as a couple of cool anecdotes. For instance, the time Joss Whedon insisted on reshooting a scene in a late-series episode after seeing what another director had done with the material, vastly improving it, but adding 12 hours on top of the almost 20 hours they’d already spent on it. Definitely read the whole thing.

Aaliyah's 'Queen of the Damned' 15th Anniversary: 10 Things You Didn't Know About Vampire Thriller

"Queen of the Damned" made waves when it was released in 2002 -- not because it was critically-acclaimed, but rather because it was the beloved R&B singer Aaliyah's last on-screen performance. On the movie's 15th anniversary, here are 10 things you probably didn't know about Aaliyah and the feature film that was released six months after her death following a small plane crash in August 2001.

TheWrap has teamed up with IMDb to share these little known facts. Go to IMDb.com for more trivia, goofs and quotes from the fantasy-horror film.
Aaliyah's brother Rashad re-recorded some of the late singer's lines. While she had finished filming all of her scenes, some of her lines needed to be redone because the Egyptian accent her character had was too difficult to understand.
CBS
The R&B singer said it was fun to play the role of an immoral and merciless character because she has always loved the dark side. "It's fun to just be that mean, evil and see how far you can really go," she said in an ABC interview. "I think everybody has a bit of a fascination with the dark side and I myself have always loved the dark side as well."
Warner Bros
One of the director's reasons for casting Aaliyah as an Egyptian queen was because he wanted the character to look like she was actually from the country she was portraying. "There were two factors for casting Aaliyah. I was very keen that Akasha, an Egyptian queen, not look like Elizabeth Taylor," he told Vibe in reference to the iconic actress' role in "Cleopatra." (Aaliyah was actually African American with Native American heritage.)
Warner Bros
Aaliyah finished recording her self-titled album while filming "Queen of the Damned." She would apparently shoot during the day and then record her album in the studio at night. She was shooting a music video for a song from her album in the Bahamas shortly before her death.
Getty
The film inspired a real life murder in Scotland. Allan Menzies stabbed his friend 42 times and killed him after claiming that Akasha, the Queen of the Damned, had ordered him to kill. He even drank his friend's blood.
Warner Bros
Aaliyah's acting career was just starting to take off before she died at age 22. "Queen of the Damned" was her second and last feature film, but she had starred in "Romeo Must Die" before that. She was set to star in "Honey," but the role went to Jessica Alba after the singer died. Aaliyah was also supposed to have a role in the "Matrix: Reloaded."
Warner Bros
Anne Rice, the author of "Queen of the Damned," said she "didn't care for the movie ... at all" and had begged the studio not to make it because her readers would rather see a movie based on Lestat the vampire.
Getty Images
Despite being billed as the star of "Queen of the Damned," Aaliyah didn't really get much screen time and she doesn't appear until well after the 30-minute mark.
Warner Bros
Tom Cruise played Lestat in "Interview With a Vampire" in 1994 and was asked to return to reprise his role in "Queen of the Damned." He apparently declined the offer. It was given to Irish actor Stuart Townsend, instead.
Warner Bros
Ian Baker, the cinematographer for "Queen of the Damned," recently told TheWrap his fondest memory of the late singer is "how beautiful Aaliyah was, both inside and out."

TheWrap has teamed up with IMDb to share these little known facts. Go to IMDb.com for more trivia, goofs and quotes from the fantasy-horror film.

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Film adaptation of an Anne Rice novel was late singer’s last on-screen performance

"Queen of the Damned" made waves when it was released in 2002 -- not because it was critically-acclaimed, but rather because it was the beloved R&B singer Aaliyah's last on-screen performance. On the movie's 15th anniversary, here are 10 things you probably didn't know about Aaliyah and the feature film that was released six months after her death following a small plane crash in August 2001.

TheWrap has teamed up with IMDb to share these little known facts. Go to IMDb.com for more trivia, goofs and quotes from the fantasy-horror film.

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Aaliyah's 'Queen of the Damned' 15th Anniversary: 10 Things You Didn't Know About Vampire Thriller

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