Burn Notice’s Dynamic Duo, Jeffrey Donovan & Bruce Campbell, Talk About Season 2

by Quendrith Johnson
Fancast.com

Put one headlining actor, Jeffrey Donovan, and one cult figure/character actor, Bruce Campbell (”Evil Dead”), on a gang-bang journalist conference call and what do you get? Man giggles. They were supposed to give the breakdown on the July 10th airing of Season 2 of USA Network’s “Burn Notice,” in which Donovan continues his role as fired spy Michael Westen, and Campbell comes back as groovy ex-Cold Warrior side-kick, Sam Axe. [If you haven't yet discovered this terrific show, catch up on the first season here.] But it all got very campy with Campbell declaring: “I have put plans in place to sabotage the show!” And Donovan seconding “I’m wearing a lot more Speedos.” Campbell added: “They do not get our humor!”

Truth be told, the sardonic tone is not really a departure from the wry guy stranded in South Beach, who dispatches hoods, thugs and scofflaws as a freelance vigilante since getting 86-ed (a/k/a receiving a ‘burn notice’) courtesy of the CIA. They should have had Sharon Gless, who plays Donovan’s control-freak Mom, on the call to keep order; followed by smokin’ Gabrielle Anwar, Donovan’s ex-IRA op gal pal, to add a little estrogen to the mix. Or maybe this season’s other smoker, Tricia Helfer (Battlestar Galatica), the ‘mysterious voice’ manifested who will turn out to be a ballbreaker or a heartbreaker, depending on how Michael Westen plays it. Here’s how the di-manic duo fielded questions on their own:

How do you know how to jerry-rig the bombs, guns and other explosive props on the show?
Jeffrey Donovan: (Writer Matt Nix) came up with the idea of a guy who was MacGyver-esque, but you actually believed he could do those things. So everything that we do in the show, you actually can make at home. Matt keeps a couple of ingredients out of the bombs just so no one, you know, blows up little Timmy.

Bruce, how about hanging with those ‘mature’ women on the show?
Bruce Campbell: I’m not getting anything here in Miami. My wife is a very good ally in that respect. I don’t need to go method here. So everything is all under control here in Miami. I’m just standing back in awe of Mr. Donovan.

Jeffrey Donovan: He’s not getting older women fans. He’s getting me. That’s the new fan, yeah exactly.

What about the Mom role played by Sharon Gless, is she getting more wound this season?
Jeffrey Donovan: Yeah. Actually she’s in a lot this second season. The writers have brought her more into a personal connection with Michael Westen. So I think you’re going to see more of a true mother-son relationship, less antagonistic as you saw in the first season and more of she’s becoming a bit of an ally. But I think more as the season goes on, you’ll see him actually care more about her and the life that they used to have. I think it’s going to get deeper, actually.

How about Gabrielle Anwar as Fiona, any domestic action this season?
Jeffrey Donovan:Put in parentheses he chuckles loudly. That’s a crazy relationship that’s going to have its ups and downs. And it’s going to go left, right and all around, and it’ll be exciting. Some of the episodes I actually don’t read until I get on the day just so I can see what crazy thing she’s going to do to me that day.

Any cool movie cameos coming up, Bruce?
Bruce Campbell: No, but I have an actual movie called My Name is Bruce coming out this fall. Yes, I’m even in it, too, in more than a cameo. I have to prove to the world that I can memorize more than seven lines of dialogue at a time. It was very difficult directing myself because I got in raging arguments with myself all day long. As you know, I’m very difficult. So that’s really the biggest trouble. Next time I’m going to do the sequel without Bruce.

Can you touch on working with Tricia Helfer?
Jeffrey Donovan: Well obviously I don’t want to give anything away so that you’ll tune in for the premiere July 10 - Thursday night, 10:00 pm. That was good, wasn’t it? But you are actually going to meet Miss Helfer in the flesh. She’s behind a lot of things that held Michael back and you realize she’s actually controlling his life. And so…

Bruce Campbell: She’s very, very evil.

Jeffrey Donovan: Yeah, she’s very evil and sexy at the same time.

Bruce Campbell: That’s ev-exy (a hybrid word).

Jeffrey Donovan: Yes, yes.

What about the dreaded ’sophomore slump,’ Season Two jinx?
Bruce Campbell: Ain’t going to be no slumpin’. Ain’t going to be no sophomore slump my friend. People are still finding the show and I’ve had the weirdest batch of emails from people from very odd demographics who are following the show. The DVD is coming out. USA knows that it’s a hit now so that they’re going to promote it more. We’re all behind it. So I don’t know. I think there’s - we’re doing 16 episodes instead of 10 or 11. So, you know, every - there’s every reason to believe in my opinion - in my ignorant opinion that we’re going to do even better this year.

Ever been fired, ‘burn-noticed’ in real life?
Bruce Campbell: Yes. The second movie that I was going to make as an actor, I was supposed to star in it. It was a movie written by the Coen Brothers of all people, called Crimewave and the assumption was that I was going to play the lead. But the word eventually came down through the studio that you can produce this movie, Bruce, but you ain’t going to be in it. Well so, you know, those are pretty - that was an early taste of studios and Hollywood. And it was - it left a little bit of a bitter taste, I must admit. So you have to…

Any evil strategy for vengeance a la Burn Notice?
Bruce Campbell: You have to keep going. You have to battle on and know that sometimes personalities are involved and it’s not just you being a loser actor, you know. So you have to get a little bit of a thicker skin and have confidence in yourself.

Jeffrey Donovan: Watch for My Name is Bruce this fall.

Will the writer (Matt Nix) put anything in your fridge this season besides yogurt?
Jeffrey Donovan: You know, it was just something that was put in my fridge and - by Matt. It’s Matt’s crazy, insane mind. And for some reason, every time I open the fridge in the script it said all there is, is yogurt. And then when Sam joins me it’s beer. So all I’m living on is yogurt and beer. And that’s how I stay so thin. I prescribe the yogurt and beer diet. It’s like the South Beach Diet, but for Michael Westen.

Bruce Campbell: There are some things that have been added to the fridge. I’m going to say that because Sam hangs out there a lot. So pickles have been added and there may be hard boiled eggs coming up sometime later this year.

Is it fun to be playing these characters on the show?
Jeffrey Donovan: Bruce?

Bruce Campbell: Well I have to say I’ve always been a fan of (squad) characters and I think Burn Notice is a big bag of damaged goods, but we’re doing - we’re helping the little person now that you have all these people who have had these strange and intense backgrounds and now we’re back into civilization and trying to assimilate. And hopefully that’s kind of the fun of the show, but I appreciate the - we get a little bit of latitude. The writers have been really good with us and I think they’ve studied what our strengths and weaknesses are. And so it’s been a really - for the grind of television, it’s been a very enjoyable experience.

Jeffrey Donovan: And I just love that I get to play a spy. I’m like James Bond in America and, you know, I could never be this cool in real life so that’s got to be my favorite part.

Did Jeffrey hire you, Bruce?
Bruce Campbell: I was his sloppy seconds.

Jeffrey Donovan: Yeah, I was first hired but - and then Bruce, Sharon and Gabrielle came immediately after. And I had no say in the matter, but I did get to meet Gabrielle in a room and work with her, and thought she was amazing. And then they, without my permission, hired Bruce. So I don’t take responsibility for that.

Do you think the premise of the show might burn itself out?
Jeffrey Donovan: You know, I don’t know. Ask the cast of Gilligan’s Island or ask the cast of Lost. I mean, how lost can they be? I mean, you know, serious - I mean, it’s a television show where the (concede) is I’ve been burned and it’s kind of fun to watch me being burned, you know. I mean, the only sequel to this would be not burned anymore.

And finally, how’s hanging out in Miami?
Bruce Campbell: We’ve both had a lot of fun in South Beach, in clubs and restaurants, and bars. And I’ve gone out on boats. Jeffrey, you know, is a boat lover and a scuba diver. So I think we’ve actually just embraced it as tourists, as well so on weekends I’m like ‘hey where can we go’? You know, I’ve been to the Everglades and I wouldn’t have done that if I was still up in Oregon, you know?