William Sadler Interviews & AOL Chats




William Sadler - Sheriff Jim Valenti Jr.

I don't have the dates of all the articles, but I tried to put them in roughly the correct order based on content.
(I wasn't always great with saving sources. If I know where and when the article came from it is listed)

Here is a list of the articles and interviews below
Click a title to jump to the article












Sadler's Roswell Character, Cinescape.com - Sept 1999

William Sadler is likely to be a familiar face to regular Cinescape readers due to his work in such films as Bill and Ted�s Bogus Journey (as Death), Tales From the Crypt: Demon Knight and The Shawshank Redemption among many others. Now, Sadler has a regular role of as the sheriff on the new TV series Roswell. While talking to Eon Magazine, series creator Jason Katims talked of Sadler�s character who is being described as the major obstacle the three alien teenagers on the series face along the way. Katims reveals, "I mean, the place that [Sadler�s character is] coming from� his entire belief system is going to be, I think, turned on its head slowly as he collects the pieces of the puzzle. My guess is that finally we'll see some sort of sea changes in his attitude. He's very single-minded and determined to get to the bottom of this mystery at the beginning, because of his father's being chastised for believing in aliens and so on. And all of a sudden, it's happening to him."

September 1999









William Sadler: A Clown Trapped In A Sheriff's Body
Author: Mandy McCarthy
Date: Feb. 1, 2000
Source: tv.zap2it.com
Though he has a history of playing the bad guy in his 30-year acting career, in real life, William Sadler is an all-around nice guy. But with such credits as the slow-witted Haywood in "Shawshank Redemption," the Grim Reaper in "Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey" and--currently--"Roswell"'s sinister small-town sheriff, Sadler has made a name for himself playing big and small screen's most offbeat characters.Sadler began his career on the New York stage in a variety of productions that earned him Obie and Villager awards. Before heading to Los Angeles, he made his Broadway debut in the original cast of Neil Simon's "Biloxi Blues." But Sadler doesn't consider himself a character actor.Rather, he says, "I'm an actor who creates characters." One of those characters, "Shawshank" 's Haywood, is Sadler's personal favorite. "I like what I did in 'The Shawshank Redemption,'" Sadler says. "It was a stretch forward for me in some ways to play finally someone who doesn't know all the answers. And he's a tough guy, but he's not all that tough. That was just a beautifully written script."

TWISTER, NUDITY AND COMEDIC DREAMS

Though he co-starred with Bruce Willis throughout the action sequel "Die Hard 2" as Colonel Stewart, Sadler made his biggest impact in the first scene, practicing tai-chi in the nude."I worked hard to get into that kind of shape. I was highly motivated because I knew I was going to appear nude in the year's biggest action thriller was a great motivation. I worked like a maniac for three months with a trainer at Gold's Gym to get into shape because I did not want to look at that scene when I was 60 and say 'Ah, man. I wish I had done some sit-ups.' So I am actually kind of proud of how it turned out." He also showcased his comic abilities as the Grim Reaper in the Keanu Reeves cult classic "Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey," providing some of the film's best-remembered moments (who could forget watching the harbinger of doom play Twister while Bill and Ted cheered him on?)."I had a blast. I had total license to be as silly as I wanted and since I have a pretty well-developed silly streak, it was fabulous to be able to exercise it." Sadler continues, "Awful make-up. I mean, it was three hours in make-up every morning...There were people in the crew that didn't know what I looked like until the end of the movie because I would get there three hours before they would and get under all of this make-up. But the character was just a joy and a pleasure just to be able to be that goofy." He got the chance to behave this way because of his part in "Disturbing Behavior," in which he was directed by "Roswell"'s David Nutter, who also cast "Disturbing" alum Brendan Fehr.

BUT SERIOUSLY, FOLKS

Currently, Sadler can be seen on the big screen in "The Green Mile" alongside Tom Hanks and Michael Duncan Clarke.Sadler becomes somber as he discusses the seriousness of the role he played in "Green Mile" and the toll it took on him while shooting the film. "I played the father of the two murdered girls that start the movie. I have a daughter who's 13 now and to even imagine...as an actor, you have to put yourself in that place." Though he's widely seen in dramatic roles, Sadler readily admits that "comedy may be my first love. I find that when I am given a chance to be funny, I pack it with tremendous gusto like The Grim Reaper...My creative juices start flowing and overflowing and running all over the place and I can't shut it off." "But drama is what I tend to get used for in my career. I would like to see more comedy in my future. I think it's something I do intuitively and it's fun and it's effortless and I'm good at it." So why the typecasting?"I suspect because of the bones in my face and the way that I look people shy away from that," Sadler laughs. "If I were a goofy looking guy, it would be an automatic..I would have been slammed into comedy. But as it is, I get automatically slammed into heavies partly because of my face and partly because I do them well." Sadler's comic talent will once again take center stage when he stars in "Skippy," a film a friend of his did, scheduled for release sometime in the next few months. "I don't know if many people will get to see it...I play Ringo, the head of a temp agency in L.A. and a very silly man."

EVEN LAW ENFORCEMENT NEEDS LOVE

Meanwhile, millions see Wednesday nights on The WB as Sheriff James (Jim) Valenti on "Roswell." Sadler has once again proved he can play the character fans love to hate. Does he consider the Sheriff to be a villain? "I don't think anyone who is evil especially thinks of themselves as an evil person. But I certainly don't think of Jim Valenti as an evil man and I think he's very driven by some very real concerns." Sadler hopes that his character will get some much-needed action in the romance department. Last seen on the show sipping drinks with Amy DeLuca (Diane Farr, formerly on MTV's "Loveline"), the mother of teen investigee Maria, Sadler hints, "There is more Amy in Jim's future. I think I can say that with great certainty and I'm very happy that that is true. I think that (Kyle and Maria) will be horrified, as any good teenager kids would be. I think the idea of your parents having a love life of any kind is horrifying and for Maria, if it comes to that, for Maria to be sharing a house with the Sheriff would be her worst nightmare because she has so much to hide from him." In what little free time he has, Sadler likes to fine-tune his love of music, including strumming on the guitar. "I'm self-taught so I progress slowly, but it makes me happy to learn a new piece or get good at an old one. I also write songs which a lot of people don't know about. I think I have about 20 or 25 that I have written." "Every once in a while, I get the nerve to do to a open mic night at a coffeehouse somewhere. I try to not tell anybody so I can sneak in under the radar and sing an hour's worth of songs and get out."









William Sadler
Author: Kathy Wyman
Date: August 13, 2000
Source: efanguide.com

With over 30 years of stage, screen, and TV credits behind him, William Sadler is the man whose face you recognize, but can't quite find the name. However, with his current role of Sheriff Valenti, in the WB TV show Roswell, and his success in such movies as "The Green Mile, The Shawshank Redemption, and Die Hard II," William Sadler's recognition level has definitely gone up. efanGuide recently interviewed William (Bill) Sadler. He is witty, charming, and downright funny. Sit back and relax - you are in for a ride into the world of William Sadler!

eFG: Ready?
WS: And the 64 thousand dollar question is???

eFG: Bio Stuff!
WS: Bio Stuff!

eFG: Yeah! Bio Stuff!
WS: Okay!

eFG: What's your favorite color?
WS: My favorite color, hmmm, Blue!

eFG: Yay!
WS: Okay, I got one right. {laugh}

eFG: Yep, you got one right.{laugh}
eFG: What's your favorite food?
WS: Hmmm, my favorite food? Pasta!

eFG: What's your favorite pig out food?
WS: Pig out food? Pig out food would be - Pizza!

eFG: What is your favorite kind of music?
WS: Oh my goodness! It would probably be like Ani Difranco, or somewhere in the vicinity of Ani DeFranco and Tom Waites. That would my favorites. But, my taste in music runs all over the place. There are country singers that I like and blues singers that I love.

eFG: You just kind of answered musical group and singers then, but is there a favorite group?
WS: Bare Naked Ladies - Brilliant, totally brilliant

eFG: I love the name.
WS: Yeah {laugh}

eFG: When you get time to relax, what do you most like to do?
WS: Play the guitar

eFG: If you could snap your fingers and go anywhere in the world you wanted, where would you go and why?
WS: I would go a little farm house, by a waterfall, in upstate New York, where the rest of my family is. That's where I would go, if I could snap my fingers right now.

eFG: Ok, this is just some fun stuff. Complete these sentences for me. When I am frustrated I _________.
WS: Oh, I pace. I get up and move.

eFG: I am absolutely addicted to __________, I can't get enough of it.
WS: COFFEE!!! COFFEE!!

eFG: People who ______ bore me to death.
WS: Take themselves too damn seriously.

eFG: If I had a 100 million dollars I would _____________.
WS: Oh! {laugh} If I had a 100 million dollars? If I had a 100 million dollars I think I would..set up a fund to sponsor or all my favorite unknown artists, writers, actors, playwrights, so they wouldn't have to, to...

eFG: Struggle?
WS: Struggle, quite so hard. Yeah, so they could concentrate on doing what they do. That's what I would do. I think that's what I would do.

eFG: My biggest accomplishment in life has been _______.
WS: My gosh, it might be my 22-year marriage to Marni. Its the biggest thing I have ever done. Doing movies pales by comparison. {laughing}

eFG: Oh, yes I've got 29 years in the bank this year. I know, it's hard.
WS: Do you really?

eFG: Yes and it is work.
WS: I know. {pauses - eyes twinkling} Yeah, If I had killed her the day we met, I'd be getting out about now.

eFG: {laughing - hysterically} Do you really want me to put that up on the web site?
WS: Just kidding, just kidding - honey??? {laughing}

eFG: He's only kidding!
WS: I'm Only kidding sweetie!

eFG: Oh, you better be giving her some big kisses now!
WS: Oh, she's heard that joke. I think she's heard that joke before?

eFG: Ok, on acting...
WS: {still laughing as he interrupts} There is an old English song from the music hall days. My grandfather was an Englishman from London and he had all these great recordings of English music hall stuff. He sang this song, he used to like this song..{Switches to an English accent to start singing} I shan't forget.. Oh wait, {switches to an English accent and speaks} When I came home from work today, the wifey looked at me and said "it's 30 years ago today since you and I first wed." And I say, "It's been 30 years? You could have knocked me flat. Oh lovey, 30 years? Seems 3 times as long as that."

eFG: {laughing}
WS: I actually misquoted that.

eFG: When you went into acting, who was your role model?
WS: George C. Scott

eFG: If you could work with any actress, living or dead, who would it be and why?
WS: Glenn Close. I would love to work with Glenn Close, I think she is one of the best actresses we have ever produced. She makes it look so effortless. She's been doing if for so long and so well for so long.

eFG: Have you ever met her?
WS: No, no I haven't. {Pause} I'd love to.

eFG: If you could work with any actor, living or dead, who would it be and why?
WS: DiNiro. Again because I think he is the best . He may be the best American actor around right now, and there are a lot of good ones. There are others I would like to work with as well, but I think he kind of sticks out in my mind right now. Doesn't matter what he does. He could read the phone book and I will watch him do it.

eFG: Is there a particular type of role you have always wanted to play and you haven't yet and why?
WS: I'd like to play the lead in a romantic comedy and I've not gotten the chance to do that yet. I have on stage, but that was years ago for tiny audiences and no money. It would just be fun. I think it would be great. I have such a good time the little moments I have with Amy Deluca in the show. They are my favorite moments in the show and they are too far and few between.

eFG: They are!
WS: I would love to do a whole show that was about falling in love and it not working. You know, all of that stuff, boy meets girl, boy gets girl, boy loses girl. I think that would be great and be funny. I would want it to be a comedy.
eFG: I think you could do that really well. You'd be great at it!
WS: {laughs}

eFG: What's the most bizarre role you've ever had, what you would consider your most bizarre role?
WS: Let's see. I played a Rock musician in a play once called "Cracked" back in New York and the play was nuts. At one point another actor is chasing me around the stage and he was crazy. I have a towel on and a cast on my, um, on my ah.. my ah..

eFG: Leg?
WS: Um, euphemism!{big grin}

eFG: OH! {hysterical laughter}
eFG: That just popped into my head. He's got a hatchet and he is going to help me get the plaster off of it. Somebody was trying to make a plaster cast of it, in the play - not in real life, and so for 8 shows a week, I had to run around the stage in a towel and this {thing} in a cast.
eFG: That would definitely qualify in my book!
WS: Wow. I've picked some strange ones in my long and checkered career. I wonder if there were any others that were just totally bizarre..{pause}. I had a small role in a move called "Rush." I played a drug dealer named Monroe an he was pretty bizarre. Although he was like other people I have played, except that particular character was taken a little further. He was covered with tattoos, sort of prison art tattoos, wearing bib overalls open down the sides, and nothing else. That was bizarre. That was strange and fun.

eFG: I bet that was fun in makeup every day with all those tattoos?
WS: Yeah, it was.

eFG: In your 30-year career, if you had to point to a defining career moment, what would it be and why?
WS: I was called in to audition for the very fist episode of "Tales from the Crypt" and they wanted to see me for the cop, who arrests the lead character at the end of the show. He's got 2 lines, he says "Mr. Talbot, you are under arrest. You have the right to remain silent." And that's it, he's gone. I did the audition and I asked Karen Ray, who is the casting director, "what's up with that role? The lead?" And she says " oh, they are gong to get Malkovitch or their going to get somebody with a big name." She rattled off 3 or 4 names they were approaching and I say "ok" and I left.

I am walking across the parking lot at Fox and Karen stuck her head out the window of the office and yells "Bill!" I went back . She says "I tell you what - put some grease in your hair and black out some teeth. Come in on Monday and do that monologue, the lead guy's monologue, Niles Talbot the executioner and I will show it to the director and see what happens. "

I came back in on Monday and I put myself on tape. Karen showed it to the Walter Hill and Walter hill flipped. They made the offer, so, I did the first episode of "Tales from the Crypt." Nominated for the ACE Award (the cable awards), Walter was nominated, the show was nominated, and I was nominated.

One of the producers was Joel Silver and the next project he was doing was "Die Hard II." They called up and said "will you come in an meet with Bruce Willis on "Die hard II." I stepped into that one. Walter Hill, a year or so later, was doing "Trespass" and called me in. I stepped into that one. And so on. It was just like that one moment, Karen Ray sticking her head out the window and saying "you know what I'll give it a try - what the hell you know, I will show it to him. What can he say?" That one, tiny little moment - had it not occurred, I don't know what kind of career I might have had.

On the set of that "Tales from the Crypt," I met Frank Darabont, who later came up to me and handed me a book and said "I am going to do this movie, The Shawshank Redemption," and then subsequently "The Green Mile." So its like the things that sprouted out of that one little moment. I mean there really was...there was a moment.

eFG: You asked a question that started her mind turning..
WS: Yeah. You can regret decisions that you made, like I turned down this role and it became or that and it launched this career. But, that was one little door that got opened and then opened this one, and that one, and that one, and that one, and so on. And it was just a great. Well, it was great moment.

eFG: If you had taken a different path and not gone into acting, what kind of career do you think you would have right now?
WS: If I had not gone into acting....I think I would probably be a teacher. Or a brain surgeon or a rocket scientist. I enjoy teaching. I have a degree (Speech teacher) from Geneseo in New York. My dad wanted me to have something to fall back on. I got a chance to do it a little bit (teach) as I was starting out as an actor. It was almost as much fun to see lights go on in their faces, where the task is to keep all this stuff interesting; to make it somehow relevant to them or important or worth listening too. It's a challenge every single time you step in front of the classroom, catch the audience, hold the audience, and see if you can ignite something in their imagination. It's a great, great career. And there have been people, along the way in my life, one or two in my life that did that that. Had that sort of passion and gift for it and again, changed the course of my life. So, I think that would be a wonderful thing to do, I think I would enjoy it.

It's the best thing in the world to watch the light go on in some kids eyes or they will say something to you a year later that something you actually said - stuck. That's acting as well, might as well be acting.

eFG: I saved the Roswell questions for last..
WS: Oh, Ok.

eFG: On Roswell, much as been made of the new season of Roswell turning more SCI Fi with the addition of Ron Moore (Star Trek) to the writing staff. What is your take on it and do you see any danger in too much SCI Fi?
WS: No. {laughs}

eFG: No?
WS: No. I think there's no danger in the SCI FI. I think the shift towards science fiction with Roswell is a good thing. I think it will only make it more interesting and more exciting and you can raise issues that you can't raise in the real world. If you can take us off into the world of science fiction, you can talk about anything and we will all go with you because it's science fiction. I don't think there is really any danger of us loosing the relationships we all have come to know and love, like the Max / Liz stuff and so on.

eFG: Hey, we're still pulling for the Valenti / Amy DeLuca pairing.
WS: {Laugh} Yeah, the Valenti / Deluca pairing. In the scripts that I have seen so far, down this more science fiction road, I have not seen a lessening of the relationships. If anything those relationships get a little more intense because they've turned the fire up on the other stuff, there's more jeopardy, there's more at stake - in a way. The game keeps shifting and they have to hold on to each other tighter because the ground is moving underneath them, you know what I mean? This world of theirs is flipping over.

eFG: Now you have me chomping at the bit - I can't wait!
WS: I think they are very good episodes. I like the new shows.

eFG: Your character, Sheriff Valenti, took a long road to discovery in the last season. If you were writing the show right now, where would you take him this season?
WS: My goodness. I love the great arc of Valenti's character last year from not knowing anything and being the hard ass sheriff to all the way around the corner to "I'm on your side, whatever you need, I'm here to protect you." I'm not exactly sure where they go from there. Like I say they've sort of upped the jeopardy and I can't really elaborate without giving away things that I have read already. But, his role as protector I think also has a journey within it. Sort of a whole new set of challenges to face because this is a whole new world. I mean, I don't know if you have ever actually tried to imagine what it would feel like. Like if you met somebody and they said they were from another planet, first you'd laugh in their face and if they insisted, you'd send for the men in the white coats. Then if you found out it was actually true, your world would flip upside down.

eFG: That's where the peril is.
WS: Your world would not ever be the same. It would be the most important piece of information, the most important event in that ever occurred in the world. More astonishing than the Revolutionary War, or D-Day, or walking on the moon, would be that there is someone among us who is not from here. It's almost impossible to get your mind around it. That's why I keep asking myself, "what would you do? What would you do?" You know?

eFG: And that is what you are drawing on when you play Valenti?
WS: Yeah. I mean, I just can't get over it, I can't comprehend how that would shift the universe for somebody. To know that, I mean I don't know how life can be the same after you know that.

eFG: I think that's the draw for the whole show. These people have all learned, discovered something that no one else knows and it's "Where do we go from here? What do we do?"
WS: Right, right.

eFG: "How do we handle it?"
WS: Yeah, exactly, exactly. And, then to throw people against them like the FBI and the Special Unit, or other aliens or whatever. I don't know, it's like the second coming or something. I mean it's just vast. And, you're responsible for it because you've been let in on the secret. You have to take a side, you have to protect them, guide them, help them, but Valenti has no idea where this is going and neither do I. I don't think the kids know. I don't think Max knows where this is all heading or Michael. That's part of the fun is that we all get to discover it as it unfolds and we all get to go "oh my god! Oh noooo! That can't happen." You know?

eFG: On your official web site..
WS: Yes {low, sexy voice,twinkling eyes and laughing}

eFG: www.williamsadler.com, you drop little tidbits about the behind-the-scenes antics and pranks while filming such as throwing grapes at Jason..
WS: Oh, just to keep him awake while I'm talking - right.

eFG: With the first episode completed, I guess I am making an assumption here, is the first episode completed and in the can, is that the phrase?
WS: Yes, in the can. It's in the can alright..{laugh}

eFG: Do you have a funny story about it you can relate to us now?
WS: Ummmm

eFG: {laugh} Wow - look at that face!
WS: Wow! I should have known you'd ask for a funny story! Oh gosh, oh golly!

eFG: Oh boy I put you on the spot! {laugh}
WS: Let's see.. the new season is sort of like coming back from summer school you know and you meet all your old friends and now your in twelfth grade and you've all been away for all this time. And, everybody's hair has changed and that's probably the best thing about the first week was getting used to everybody's hair, mine included. You know, watching Brendan fuss with his hair and the meetings up at the network about Brendan's hair. Um, I'm trying to get one specific, one specific funny thing that occurred.and I can't!

eFG: Well if it pops into your head later, you can tell us.
WS: Well maybe just coming back and dealing with everybody's hair. {laugh} There were meetings and meetings and memos and phone calls about his (Brendan's) hair and "what are we going to do about his hair? What are we going to do about his hair?"
WS: It's no small thing. I think he looks good with that sort of "That Girl's" kind of hair cut myself. That sort of Marlo Thomas thing going. I think it's good.

eFG: Can you drop any spoilers?
WS: Oh, my. {sits forward}

eFG: Just little ones?
WS: Remember those little gizmos at the end of the last episode?

eFG: Yes, the communicators.
WS: The little communicators that went off all over the world? They're still going off. {big grin}.

eFG: Oh {laugh}
WS: Can I give you spoilers? What do you want me to spoil for you?

eFG: Tease the fans. Just little teasers..
WS: Ohhhhh..

eFG: If you don't want to, that's ok.
WS: Just tease them? Well ok, here's a hint. "Nam-myoho-renge-kyo" OK?

eFG: Navajo?
WS: Some people will recognize it.

eFG: Ohhhh...?
WS: "Nam-myoho-renge-kyo"

eFG: Buddhist chant?
WS: I ain't saying anything else! {laughing}

eFG: Okay - {laughing}
WS: I ain't saying anything else and you ain't gonna get it out of me! {laughing}









It's Life, Jim (But Not as We Know It)
BY IAN SPELLING
Cult Times #63 December 2000

You might think he's the �old man' of the series, but William Sadler's alien-hunter-turned-helper is one of Roswell's biggest assets. They've even taken his hat away and sexed him up.

Unlike his boss Jonathan Frakes, William Sadler was worried that Roswell might get the axe; that the WB might not renew the show for a second season. "I was a little concerned," admits Sadler, who co-stars on the Sci-Fi series as Sheriff Jim Valenti, who began as the show's main villain. Relentlessly chasing Max, Isabel and Michael, and looking on as his son Kyle lost his girlfriend Liz to Max - he soon emerged as one of its unlikely heroes. "It was nail-biting time. We weren't clobbering anyone with the numbers. I guess there was a real possibility, or so it seemed, that we might not be asked to return. I was very happy and relieved when we were picked up. In terms of the back nine for the second season [which Roswell earned after posting solid ratings during its 13-episode reprieve], I wasn't really surprised that we got that. Once we came back on, the numbers went up. In fact, if the numbers continue the way they've been going, I wouldn't be surprised if Roswell got picked up for a third year. That would be lovely."

The ratings rise can no doubt be attributed to the tinkering done to the show. Where once it moved slowly and focused on the romance with the Sci-Fi elements in the background, it now zips by and centres on the Sci-Fi elements, with the romantic entanglements shifted somewhat to the rear. Those changes came about near the end of the first season, in the last half-dozen or so episodes, and they've been carried through into year two. "I think we've cranked up the pace," says Sadler, whose genre credits range from The Green Mile, Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey, Disturbing Behavior (which was directed by frequent Roswell helmer David Nutter), Tales from the Crypt Presents: Demon Knight, Tales from the Crypt the TV show, Rocket Man, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, The Outer Limits and Poltergeist: The Legacy. "We've sort of tightened the screws. That's my impression of it, but the show's not so much about �Does he love me? Doesn't he love me?' and long, longing gazes. There's a lot more at stake in these episodes. The one I'm shooting right now is terrific. They are thrillers with romantic overtones, rather than romantic stories with a couple of tense twists and turns. I think that makes it a lot more fun to watch. I think it's a little more engaging. We have not thrown away the romance, though. All of those aspects are still there. What we've done is we've ratcheted up what's at stake. I think they're just more interesting shows for people. They're more engaging for people, like myself, who enjoy a good thriller."

And what do all the changes mean for Sadler as an actor? "I think Valenti's more fun to play now," he replies instantly. "One of the things that I worried about when we first started the show was that we'd find Valenti at the end of every episode standing in the street, saying, �Curses! Missed them again! Those darn kids!'" he notes. "That's not as interesting, somehow. I know we started the season that way last year, but I was assured early on that Valenti would evolve. And he has, which I think makes him more fascinating as a character. He is alive. I think it would have gotten old very quickly if he were always chasing them. If they did that and the show continued, he would always have to lose. He'd always have to miss. Instead, he learned and he grew. His understanding of the situation grew over the year, until he could do a whole 180 degree turn and land on the other side at some considerable risk to himself. So I find it much more interesting to play him this way.

"Right now, I think he is to be trusted. His heart is in the right place. I think he's demonstrated that time and again. When the chips are down, he weighs in to the fight on the side of the kids. I think what you're going to see is more and more of that. He'll weigh in on the side of the kids, as I say, at his own expense. It's going to cost him to have taken that route. It would have been safer and easier to remain part of mainstream America. But he can't anymore. He's made himself their protector and it's causing conflicts in his life. It's hard to be the sheriff of Roswell and the keeper of lay and order and so on and to also be burying bodies out in the desert and hiding evidence. Valenti is breaking laws all over the place in order to protect the kids. And I think it's going to get him in trouble."

Asked if there's one scene, one moment, even one line of dialogue that sums up all Valenti can be, Sadler pauses for a moment. "God, that's a hard one," he says. "Let me think about that. I liked the last episode of last season [Destiny], the scene in which Valenti has shot his son, he's dying and Valenti turns to Max for help. That was a moment that kind of crystallized Valenti's new position. That whole scene - where he asks Max to help him and then what follows after Max saves Kyle, which is Valenti pledging his support: �Anything you need, anywhere, I'm there' - was kind of a defining moment. Everything that happened during the whole season had been building up and it came to pass in that one scene. His life has changed forever now."

As for what Sadler's not yet gotten to do as Valenti, that's an easy one. He's pining for the writers to whip up some more romance. "I'd love to explore the relationship with Amy DeLuca [Diane Farr]," he says. "It's a selfish, personal thing. But I like her so much, the actress. Every time I've gotten to play scenes where Valenti has explored the romantic side of himself it's been great, great fun. And I understand that she's coming back in a couple of weeks, so I'm excited."

Most of the time of the Roswell set, however, Sadler finds himself surrounded by Behr, Fehr, Appleby, Wechsler, Majandra Delfino, Colin Hanks and Emilie de Ravin. They're all actors who are far younger. And that, for lack of a more eloquent term, makes him the old man of the show. "I don't think of myself as the old man of the show," he says, laughing. "First of all, that's not a fun way to look at yourself. We're all professionals in a working arrangement, in a working situation. Every once in a while I'm reminded of the fact that I've been doing this longer than anyone else on the show. But I like to have fun. And, by the way, for the most part I'm very pleased with the amount of talent and professionalism and the quality of what everyone brings to the table on Roswell. Every once in a while I see their youth popping up. It'll be late at night and you'll realize you're working with younger people. We come to it from very, very different backgrounds. For some of them, this is the first job they've ever held. And I come to it from 11 years in New York City, on Broadway, and another 12 years of making pictures. I look at this job from a different point of view. I look at acting in general with different eyes. It's kind of unavoidable."

Unavoidable, too, is the urge to compare Roswell to his many previous genre experiences. "I think that the main difference between what I'm doing on Roswell, and all of the other Sci-Fi and genre work that I've ever done, is that this is a character that keeps changing," he says. "Every week you get the next chapter in this big, long novel. I've never played a character for so long. If I think of The Grim Reaper in Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey, or Brayker in Demon Knight or Luther Sloan from Deep Space Nine, none of them really changed. They were there for that one time or, in the case of Deep Space Nine, those three times. There wasn't any time for evolution. You are there to serve a purpose when it's a one-time thing. You are the threat. You are the hero and you have this task. When you're doing a series like Roswell, the tasks keep changing. Sometimes you're the comic relief. Sometimes you're the chorus. You have to deliver the exposition that allows the audience to enjoy the story that you're otherwise not in. Or you inadvertently bring the villains right into the heart of the show - as I do in the Dupes episodes of Roswell - and the step back and watch the fun. So that's the biggest difference between what I do on Roswell and my experience with the other genre work that I've done."









William Sadler
Sci-Fi Wire
Date: April 8, 2001


William Sadler told SCI FI Wire that he thought Roswell was dead, dead, dead and was shocked when UPN picked up the series. "I was talking to my agents and managers, saying, 'Let's look for the next gig, boys, because this is it,'" he recalled in an interview. "I couldn't imagine how we'd pull this out of the fire."

Sadler co-stars as Sheriff Jim Valenti, who transformed from threat to ally during the first two seasons. "The WB didn't want us," he said. "The numbers weren't fabulous. But UPN bought 22 episodes. That's indicative [of UPN's faith in the series]. They could have bought six or nine."

Year three will kick off on Oct. 9. When last seen, the aliens (Jason Behr, Brendan Fehr and Katherine Heigl) watched as the murderous and pregnant Tess (Emilie DeRavin) rocketed towards her home planet. Meanwhile, Valenti was without a job, having sacrificed everything to protect the aliens he once pursued. What will unfold remains to be seen--cast and crew only returned to the set in late July--but Sadler believes the leap from The WB to UPN will have a major effect on Roswell.

"The two things I've heard [producer] Jason Katims talk about is that, one, the episodes will be more self-contained," Sadler said. "You can tune in anytime and don't have to have watched the previous episodes to understand this one. The other thing is that they'll be character-driven. They'll be about the people and not so much about evil FBI special units, big threats from the outside and having to deal with them. Those episodes were fun to shoot, but I don't think they served us well, and I'm not sure that's what we do best. The shows that worked the best were the ones that tug at your heart a bit. They're human stories everybody can relate to. It doesn't have to be schmaltzy high-school romance. The episode in which we lost Alex--'Cry My Name'--was an example of that."









William Sadler
Date: Oct. 29, 2001
Source: AT&T WorldNet(R) Community
MODERATOR: Welcome to the AT&T WorldNet(R) Community Port chat event. Tonight we're speaking with William Sadler.

MODERATOR: This chat is Copyright (c) 2001 AT&T WorldNet(R); all rights reserved.

MODERATOR: Welcome to the AT&T WorldNet(R) Community Port chat event. William, we're very excited to have you here today. How are you doing?

SPEAKER_William Sadler: I'm doing very well. Thank you. I'm excited to be here too.

silver hand print: So how were you cast for this part?

SPEAKER_William Sadler: I did a film called Disturbing Behavior with David Nutter, the summer before the Roswell pilot was to be cast and David directed the pilot for Roswell. He called me up and asked me if I would like to do the role. I told him I would if he "used me well." I've never done a long-running TV series before. It's always been movies.

Maloney: What is the difference between filming big screen as opposed to small screen projects? Which do you prefer?

SPEAKER_William Sadler: Very good question. The biggest difference between working on film and TV is the amount of time that you will get to spend on each scene. It takes 8 days to shoot 1 hour of Roswell. That's all you have. The writers have to come up with 22 new episodes every season. So you're always in a tremendous hurry to finish the episode on time. With a film we shoot an average of 2 pages a day. You'll shoot a 105-minute movie in 8 weeks or so. The Shawshank Redemption took 11 weeks to film, plus 2 weeks of rehearsal. You can spend a lot more time and care on each moment, each scene, each choice you make when filming a movie. So, you just have to crank shooting TV!

maxsgrl: How do you feel about the move from the WB to UPN?

SPEAKER_William Sadler: I was very pleased by that move. I felt that the WB never left us alone to do what we do well. We got memos constantly from that network about Katie's hair, about this scene, about that camera angle. They were all over us. This wonderful show that we had created in the beginning got pushed and changed until we didn't recognize it. They sort of fixed it until it broke. UPN seems so far to be happy to let us do the thing we do well. So, I like UPN very much.

pappatony: What affect has the move from WB to UPN had on the show?

SPEAKER_William Sadler: The food is better! And we all have better-looking hair this season! They have better hairstylists on the UPN.

mooncovered: What's it like to work with a generally younger cast than yourself?

SPEAKER_William Sadler: They just look younger. We do a lot of plastic surgery out here! Seriously, it's fun working with all these young people. They help me in and out of my trailer and sit and read to me sometimes in the evening. They're very nice kids. I like them a lot. They may be young, but they're getting very good at what they do, becoming seasoned pros. They are a lot of fun to play off. I don't like to think of myself as the oldest member of the cast. I rather describe myself as the alpha male of the tribe. If we were gorillas, I would be the silverback!

LindaLucille: Bill, have you had any hints that the writers might be considering a way to put you back as sheriff, or is the singing going to be the way they are heading?

SPEAKER_William Sadler: Does that scare you? Do you have a problem with me singing every week?? Jim Valenti is going to pursue his singing career just a little while longer. Then I think he will get back into the world of crime and punishment and investigating criminals and so on. I don't think he will ever be the sheriff again, but I don't think he can stay away from that world. I've heard hints that he will get back into the law and order business and the band won't pay the rent for very long. He's a professional lawman first.

silver hand print: Can you explain the change in the direction of Valenti's role in the show? I mean he went from Sheriff to a singer? I could understand if he became a PI or opened a security business or something.

SPEAKER_William Sadler: Mid-life crisis! I think the writers were looking for something completely different and fun for him. I think they wanted to see him do something outrageous, a little showier. I also sing and play in my life. I've been singing and playing for years. I believe that's where they got the idea. Someone must have played them a tape of my songs. I was happy to see it happen. There are a couple of songs coming up on an episode that I wrote. There's a song called T-SHIRT MAN on an upcoming episode that I wrote. I co-authored a Blues Song called ALL POINTS IN BETWEEN as well. I would still like to keep my band alive even if I become a PI or something. Now that I've discovered this side of myself, I'd hate to lose it.

maxsgrl: So far we haven't seen Maria's mom, this season. Is the show going to get you two together? I think that would be a great match! Kyle and Maria would be great as brother and sister, couldn't you just see it?

SPEAKER_William Sadler: Nothing would make me happier than to see Diane Farr come back to the show! I love the flirting and fighting that went on between Jim Valenti and Amy Deluca. But Diane is starring in a show that films in NY right now, and we can't have her. She's a great actress. She's so fun to work with, but she's booked! I'm afraid if Jim's going to have any romantic entanglements this season, they'll have to be with other people - my apologies to the Jim & Amy folks.

maxsgrl: Are you anything like your character, in real life?

SPEAKER_William Sadler: Ha! I love these questions! I suppose so. Yes. In some ways I am. I think Jim Valenti is more serious-minded than Bill Sadler. Jim is the respectable parent person around Roswell - the serious police officer, father and authority figure. I tend to be a little less serious. I mean I used to do stand-up comedy when I was in high school.

NicciStar: Do you have any Kids? And are they fans of Roswell?

SPEAKER_William Sadler: I have one daughter who is 15. She is a BIG fan of Roswell. Yes. Well, she'd have to be, wouldn't she? Otherwise, we'd cut off the TV privileges!! The other night my wife and I were watching the episode where Jess Ramirez proposes to Isabel. They were together, then they weren't, then they were together. My daughter was so tortured by the back and forth relationship and so happy when they got together. She just went ballistic over it.

MODERATOR: How does she register your role, being "Dad" and all?

SPEAKER_William Sadler: I think my daughter is very cool with my role on the show by now. Ever since the day she was born she's been around movie sets and television studios. We have a pretty normal father-daughter relationship. I think she's proud of what I do, and likes that people know who I am. I don't think it's a big deal for her to see her father on TV anymore. Her whole life he's been up there.

MorganFan: Do you feel the cast has good chemistry?

SPEAKER_William Sadler: Yes. Over the years it's been fun to watch the chemistry develop between different actors on the show - between Nick and Katie, or Nick and myself, or Shiri and Jason. There's a lot of electricity between these people. Most of it is good. There's a lot of chemistry. I love to watch, for example, Katie and Adam (Isabel's new boyfriend). I think they're great together. They giggle as much off camera as they do on camera! So, yes there's chemistry.

GinaMaria1981: Hey bill, my friend and I have been in Covina this summer and watched you shoot, and we would love to come again. So could you please tell us if you are shooting at the end of the year?

SPEAKER_William Sadler: I don't know what my shooting schedule is next week, much less at the end of the year! You'll just have to keep an eye out for us. One or 2 days of every episode is filmed in Covina. We never do an episode that doesn't go to Covina for something. I'll be looking for you!

NicciStar: Hi William, I'm in Australia. We love you and Roswell down here. Will you be coming down soon, because we hear rumors that you are coming down for a Roswell Convention? I hope you are!

SPEAKER_William Sadler: I heard those rumors too. I'm just not sure whether I'll be able to make it. I love to hear that our show is watched all over the world. It's exciting to think that a performance of mine plays just as well on the other side of the planet! I did theatre for many, many years...including a year and 1/2 on Broadway, in Biloxi Blues with Matthew Broderick. We sold out every performance, 1200 seats a night....and more people saw last Tuesday night's Roswell than that entire year and 1/2 on Broadway. There's an awesome power in these little boxes in our houses.

AndieRose: I heard you will be directing a Roswell episode. Is this true?

SPEAKER_William Sadler: Yes. I will be directing episode #18. So, mark it on your calendars. Set your VCRs to record. I'm very excited about the idea of directing. I have a feeling I'll be good at it since I've been in the business this long. I've seen it from the other side of the camera for many years. It's fabulous to sit behind the camera and help "steer the boat." So, I'm totally jazzed!!

crfulton: How would you describe your experiences with the Internet? I understand you've gone from being an absolute newbie to "cyber-guy". :-)

SPEAKER_William Sadler: That's me! I'm totally cyber-guy now. Really, I'm not sure I would call myself cyber-guy. I have a lot of fun with digital cameras and zooming around the Internet on my I Mac. Just don't ask me how to explain how it works! I'm in no way an expert on these matters. Anyone under the age of 18 knows far more about this than I do.

Maloney: What are your personal beliefs on the existence of aliens?

SPEAKER_William Sadler: I'm sure that life exists on other planets in this universe. That's a certainty. I don't believe they've come here yet. It's been one of the fun things about playing Valenti. The idea that when he finds out they are aliens, they are indeed aliens. It changes his whole life. You can't find that out and remain "normal" anymore. Picture yourself realizing that the person who lives next door came from 200 light years away. Your life would change from that moment forward. You'd have to try to get on with your life, but nothing's the same.

MODERATOR: Well how long before we see Jesse experience this?

SPEAKER_William Sadler: I don't know the answer to that. I would assume he'll find out eventually, but I don't know when. It should be fun when it happens!

delta1975: What is your favorite episode so far, and which actor do you have the most fun with?

SPEAKER_William Sadler: My favorite episode so far was "We are Family," I think. There was the Christmas episode last year too. While I have fun playing with all the other actors, Nick Wechsler is a special favorite. He's an incredibly talented actor and one of the silliest men I've ever met in my life. He's one of the funniest people I've ever met. If the world ever gets to see that side of Nick Wechsler, we'll all be working for him someday!

polyesterbride: What project(s) in your career are you most proud of?

SPEAKER_William Sadler: The one that stands out the most for me would be The Shawshank Redemption. It was a wonderful experience, all the way around. It's such a great movie. It'll be interesting to see how people respond to it 10-15 years down the road. Some movies seem to be forgotten quickly, and other you can watch over an over again and they're always great. It's beginning to look like Shawshank is one of those - and Roswell, of course!

MODERATOR: Well, we're almost out of time for this chat event, William. Do you have any final comments you'd like to share with us?

SPEAKER_William Sadler: I would just like to thank the people who supported us throughout the first two years, and into this year. I love the fans for this show. The show should've died when the WB dropped us, but we didn't because of our strong and VOCAL fan base! I hope we make lots more Roswell's for you. I'm having fun doing it.









Roswell, Season 3
by: Syfy Portal

William Sadler, who plays former sheriff Jim Valenti says he was already starting to look for another job when UPN picked up roswell for a third and miraculous season.

The actor also noticed the confidence boost from the new network just by its picking up the Tabasco wielding teen sci-fi favorite. he says," the WB didn't want us. the numbers weren't fabulous. But UPN bought 22 episodes...they could have bought six or nine."

there will be other big changes for the show that struggled to be recognized on the wb for two years. for starters the episodes will be more, "self- contained..." as Sadler said himself.

which means that we won't have to watch the episodes a and b to know what is happening in c. not that is less fun to watch. but for all of you die hards (such as myself) that are going to do that anyway, this is fine for us to... thats all from me, James and Syfy portal.










Sadler Directs Roswell
Date: March 1, 2002
Source: scifi.com

William Sadler, who plays former sheriff Jim Valenti on UPN's teen-alien series Roswell, told SCI FI Wire that he recently stepped behind the camera to direct an upcoming episode that will feature the return of a familiar character. "I have been asking to direct an episode of Roswell since season one," Sadler said in an interview. "I think they are going to be very happy with what they got. We came in on time and on budget with a good show. I think they're going to wish we had started this in year one. I'd be a seasoned old director by now."

Sadler also offered the spoiler that the episode, "Four Aliens and a Baby," will deal with the return of the fourth alien, Tess, portrayed by Emilie DeRavin. "I don't want to spoil it for people but I think it's all right to say that a character whose name starts with T comes back," he said. At the end of last season, Tess left Earth in a family way after seducing fellow alien Max Evans (Jason Behr). Now she is back, and she's not alone.

"Four Aliens and a Baby" will be the 17th episode of Roswell's current season. It may also turn out to be one of the last, given that a fourth year for the seemingly always-on-the-bubble series remains in doubt. "I know there are rumors flying around about a fourth season," Sadler said. "I heard a rumor a while back about a film--a Roswell movie--but I'm not holding my breath. Everybody seems to be going on with their lives. ... I mean, you always do this in television, because you can never count on [the future]."

For first time director Sadler, the experience was both educational and harrowing at times. "This episode that I do, we have dogs, we have babies, we have green screen, we have stunts and special effects and huge scenes with all of the actors in them," he said. "There were moments there when I was way over my head and had to turn to the people around me and say, 'You're going to have to help me with this one.'" Though Sadler welcomed the challenge, he admitted that he would have preferred a less complicated script for his directing debut. "They chose this episode for me. I would have chosen one where two people sit in an apartment and talk for 40 minutes."

Regardless of the show's fate, Sadler said that he would like to continue directing if given the opportunity. "It's fabulous. Once you've faced each and every one of these challenges, there can never be another first time for it. You've done it already. So it's not going to be unfamiliar territory anymore." After a two-month hiatus, Roswell returns with new episodes at 9 p.m. ET/PT April 30. "Four Aliens and a Baby" is scheduled to air May 14.






Interviews Main
Articles Main
Encyclopedia Main
 		Back to Main

Contact