We Come in Peace – Part One

February 1, 2002 Mandy

Thanks to John who sent this into Crashdown news.

**note the interview was most likely given before the episode reduction happened.

ROSWELL creator and executive producer Jason Katims discusses the future of his series on UPN

Friday, February 1, 2002

The midterm “check-up” can’t be easy for any producer to live through, especially if the series in question is fighting for a return season. For a time, ROSWELL seemed to be as homeless as the aliens on its show, but ever since it was given a new life on UPN the program continues to steadily build an audience. And while the show has made the move to a new network, creator and executive producer Jason Katims insists that audiences don’t start counting them down for the count.

“Things have been going really well,” says Katims. “UPN has been great with us. They really have been happy with the direction of the show creatively, and are very enthusiastic and remain that way.”

Viewers shouldn’t be daunted by the fact that the show is on a new network and they definitely shouldn’t feel as if they’ve walked right into the middle of something they can’t understand.

“That was one of the intentions when we started on UPN, to make it welcoming to a viewer that wasn’t familiar with the show,” says Katims. “Not make you feel like, ‘I don’t know what the hell’s going on.”

While UPN has been excited about the creative direction of the show, the numbers have been a little slow to develop. This is something that Katims can’t help but be a little frustrated with.

“You know, we’re all a little disappointed with the numbers,” says Katims. “The numbers are not what we had hoped for. And I think that’s partially due to a very, very competitive timeslot. We knew it was going to be competitive, but it turns out that it’s even tougher than we thought. So, that’s the one challenge. And we’re continuing to hope that we build on that, and things have been going very well.”

Even if the numbers aren’t where Katims and the network would like them to be, the show continues to move ahead in new directions.

“We’re doing a total of 20 episodes this season,” says Katims. “In terms of next year, we don’t know yet. We’re in the same position we always happen to be in around this time in the year, which is a wait and see
position.”

But Katims isn’t as nervous about being in this “wait and see position” as one might think. Remember, this is familiar territory for him. He is very aware of the importance of past experiences and the enthusiastic fan base that the show has, and he considers them both assets.

“I have some experience with that now, and I know that the only thing that I can do about that is make these stories and these episodes the best we can possibly make them,” says Katims. “We have a wonderful cast on the show. We have a small but passionate audience. We have a great crew and team of producers behind the show. So we have a lot going for us. When push comes to shove that means a lot, it really does. I hope we have a chance to come back because I think we have a great idea of where we could take the show next year.”

Be sure to check back soon for part two of CINESCAPE’s Jason Katims profile, as he discusses the changes ROSWELL has undergone this year.