Rose Arianna McGowan (born September 5, 1973) is an American actress, activist, writer, and model. After her film debut in a brief role in the comedy Encino Man (1992), McGowan achieved wider recognition for her performance in Gregg Araki's dark comedy The Doom Generation (1995), receiving an Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Debut Performance. She had her breakthrough in the horror film Scream (1996) and subsequently headlined the films Going All the Way (1997), Devil in the Flesh (1998) and Jawbreaker (1999).
During the 2000s, McGowan became known to television audiences for her role as Paige Matthews in The WB/CW supernatural drama series Charmed (2001–2006), and starred in Robert Rodriguez's and Quentin Tarantino's double-feature film Grindhouse (2007). She made her directorial debut with the short film Dawn (2014).
A feminist activist, McGowan has released a memoir, Brave, and starred in the four-part documentary series Citizen Rose, both in 2018. She has been on the cover of numerous magazines, including Seventeen, Interview, Maxim, GQ, Entertainment Weekly, and Rolling Stone. In 2017, Time recognized McGowan as one of the Silence Breakers, the magazine's Person of the Year, for speaking out about sexual assault and harassment.
McGowan was born in Certaldo, Tuscany, to American couple Daniel McGowan, an artist, and Terri, a writer. She also has two half-siblings. Her father ran an Italian chapter of the Children of God, in which both he and his wife held membership until 1978. McGowan spent her early childhood at the group's communes, often traveling through Europe with her parents.
Through her father's art contacts in Italy, she became a child model and appeared in Vogue Bambini and various other Italian magazines. Her parents returned to the United States when she was 10 years old, and settled in Eugene, Oregon. McGowan had an untraditional childhood, living as a teenage runaway in Portland, Oregon and associating with a group of drag queens in the city. When her parents divorced, she lived with her father in Seattle, Washington, attended Roosevelt High School and Nova Alternative High School, and worked at McDonald's. She took ballet lessons until she was 13. At 15, she officially emancipated herself from her parents and moved to Los Angeles.
After making her Hollywood film debut with a brief role in the Pauly Shore comedy Encino Man (1992), McGowan was cast in the leading role in Gregg Araki's dark comedy The Doom Generation (1995), which revolved around a threesome of teens who embark on a sex and violence-filled journey. The film brought her a much wider recognition and the attention of film critics; she received a nomination for Best Debut Performance at the 1996 Independent Spirit Awards. McGowan next obtained the role of Tatum Riley in the slasher cult film Scream (1996), as the casting director believed she best embodied the "spunky", "cynical" but "innocent" nature of the ill-fated character. Upon its release, the film became a huge critical and financial success, grossing over $100 million in North America and $173 million worldwide. Amid her growing public profile, she was the cover model for the Henry Mancini tribute album Shots in the Dark, which was released in 1996, and became the face of American clothing company Bebe from 1998 to 1999.
In 1997, she appeared in the short film Seed, directed by San Francisco-born filmmaker Karin Thayer, and played opposite Peter O'Toole in the 1998 film adaptation of the Dean Koontz novel Phantoms. McGowan spent the majority of the late 1990s headlining a variety of independent films, including roles in Nowhere (1997), where she reunited with Araki, as well as Southie (1996), Going All the Way (1997), Lewis and Clark and George (1997), and Devil in the Flesh (1998), where she usually played seductive and mysterious characters. She gained much attention for the revealing fishnet outfit she wore to the 1998 MTV Video Music Awards.
In the dark comedy Jawbreaker (1999), she portrayed a popular yet malevolent high school student who tries to cover up her involvement in a classmate's murder. McGowan based her performance on that of Gene Tierney's sociopathic character in Leave Her to Heaven (1945). To accompany the release of the film, Imperial Teen's music video for the song Yoo Hoo featured McGowan as her character harassing the band members with jawbreakers. Jawbreaker was a critical and commercial failure, but found success through home video release and subsequent television airings; it has developed a cult following. McGowan earned a nomination for Best Villain at the 1999 MTV Movie Awards.
In 2001, McGowan obtained the role of Paige Matthews in the popular WB supernatural drama series Charmed, as a replacement for the lead actress Shannen Doherty, who had left the show. In the show, about the trio of witches using their combined powers to protect innocent lives from evil beings, McGowan played the character from season four until its final eighth season. In a review of the fourth season, Leigh H. Edwards of PopMatters added that the addition of Paige was "contrived and clunky", but welcomed the idea of McGowan joining the show as a witch "since she has major goth cred as Marilyn Manson's former flame." DVD Verdict's Cynthia Boris wrote that McGowan brought "a youthfulness" and "a fresh viewer perspective" to Charmed, further noting that "fans have come to enjoy her presence on the show." Sara Paige and Rachel Hyland of Geek Speak magazine described Paige as "snarky, compassionate and whimsical", and believed that "McGowan was well-suited for the role." At the 2001 Wand Awards, McGowan was nominated for Best New Cast Member and at the 2005 Family Television Awards, she won Favorite Sister, for her performance.
McGowan starred alongside Brendan Fraser, Bridget Fonda, and Whoopi Goldberg in the dark fantasy comedy Monkeybone (2001) as a cat girl from a limbo-like carnival landscape where nightmares are entertainment. Budgeted at US$75 million, the film only made US$7.6 million; McGowan felt that film "would've been incredible (at least the underworld part) if the men at 20th Century Fox (the suits) hadn't fired the director, a true artist, Henry Selick [half] the way through filming", and called his dismissal a "profoundly stupid move". During Charmed, McGowan portrayed actress-singer Ann-Margret in the CBS miniseries Elvis (2005), about the life of Elvis Presley. She also appeared briefly as the roommate of the titular character in Brian De Palma's The Black Dahlia (2006), a film noir shot in Los Angeles and Bulgaria and opposite Josh Hartnett, Scarlett Johansson, Aaron Eckhart and Hilary Swank.
In 2007, McGowan headlined Grindhouse, a double feature horror film by directors Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez. In Rodriguez's segment, Planet Terror, she starred as a go-go dancer and the leader of a group of rebels attempting to survive an onslaught of zombie-like creatures as they feud with a rogue military unit, while in Tarantino's segment, Death Proof, she played a brief role as a victim of a misogynistic, psychopathic stuntman who targets young women with his "death proof" stunt car. While Grindhouse made a lackluster US$25.5 million in its theatrical release, it was the subject of much media coverage and critical acclaim from critics; James Berardinelli found McGowan to be the "standout here" and Mick LaSalle considered the film as "the best showcase of [McGowan] career so far".
Her next film release, Fifty Dead Men Walking (2008), revolved around Martin McGartland, a British agent who went undercover into the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA). McGowan played a woman in the upper ranks of the organisation who offers herself to McGartland. After the film concluded shooting, McGowan sparked controversy in the United Kingdom, where she stated that she would have joined the IRA had she lived in Belfast during the era and that her "heart just broke for the cause". The film found a limited audience in theaters while critical response was positive. Also in 2008, McGowan took on a recurring role as a con artist on the acclaimed drama series Nip/Tuck, and co-hosted the TCM's film-series program The Essentials alongside Robert Osbourne, discussing classic Hollywood film.
In 2010, McGowan shot a cameo in the Robert Rodriguez feature Machete, a role ultimately cut, but included on the DVD release, and played a semi-homeless junkie in the fantasy drama Dead Awake. In the 3-D sword and sorcery film Conan the Barbarian (2011), a reimagining of the 1982 film of the same name which starred Arnold Schwarzenegger, McGowan starred as an evil half-human/half-witch. Roger Ebert described her role as a "piece of work", writing: "She has white pancake makeup, blood red lips, cute little facial tattoos and wickedly sharp metal talons on her fingers". Filming occurred between March and July 2010 in Bulgaria, and Conan was released on August 19, 2011. Budgeted at US$90 million, the film received negative reviews, and only grossed US$48.8 worldwide.
Besides her role in the big-budgeted Conan, McGowan starred in mainly independent productions during the early 2010s, such as the psychological thriller Rosewood Lane (2011) from director Victor Salva, the made-for-television film The Pastor's Wife (2011), alongside Michael Shanks, and a film adaptation of The Tell-Tale Heart, released in 2016. McGowan lent her voice to the video games Darkwatch, playing a femme fatale named Tala, and Terminator Salvation, as a troubled soldier named Angie Salter. She guest-starred in an episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit as a grifter who targets New York sex clubs, and also in two episodes of Once Upon A Time between 2012 and 2014, playing the role of the young Cora Mills.
In the third season of Chosen (2014), a television series airing via Crackle, McGowan took on the role of an experienced hunter. She made her directorial debut with a short film called Dawn, which revolved around a teen from a strict family falls under the spell of a gas-station employee. The 17-minute piece premiered at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival, to critical acclaim; IndieWire noted: "This was a real gem of a short film. Dawn's salient literary and cultural references, paired with the film's high production value, gorgeous shots, its slow-burner buildup and gripping conclusion, bring something to the table for everyone, and portends an excellent directorial career for Ms. McGowan".
In September 2015, McGowan released her debut single, titled "RM486". The song has strong feminist themes, with its title being a play on the abortion drug RU486 and McGowan's initials. The Sound (2017), an independent Canadian horror film, starred McGowan as a best-selling author and paranormal investigator alongside Christopher Lloyd and Michael Eklund. The Hollywood Reporter wrote of her role: "Despite her sympathetic situation, [it] isn't a particularly interesting character. A dismissive attitude and superior self-regard don't improve her likability either. McGowan seems comfortable with the role, however [...]".
On January 30, 2018, McGowan released a memoir, Brave, in which she details her childhood and her account of the assault by Harvey Weinstein and its aftermath. On January 31, 2018, Citizen Rose, a four-part documentary series produced by Bunim/Murray Productions following McGowan and her role in the Me Too movement premiered. In August 2018, McGowan was announced to receive the Inspiration Award at the GQ Men Of The Year Awards.
McGowan appears in the art film Indecision IV, which combines dance and gender issues. "Shot in one continuous take, the film [...] was created in May 2018, during a watershed moment in McGowan's life and is a physical expression of her state of mind at that time," a press statement stated. The piece was commissioned by UK's Heist Gallery, and is set to have special screenings at the Institute of Light in East London on December 15 and 16, with proceeds going to the charity Refuge.
While dating Marilyn Manson, McGowan appeared in a music video for the song "Coma White"; she performed backing vocals on the song "Posthuman". Both of these songs appear on the album Mechanical Animals (1998).
McGowan appeared on a Brian Transeau track called "Superfabulous", from his album Emotional Technology, which was also featured on the final Charmed soundtrack, The Final Chapter. The song has been featured in several films, including Win a Date with Tad Hamilton! and Raising Helen. She wrote and recorded a song titled "Protection", which was featured in her film Strange Hearts (2011). McGowan has also appeared in the Imperial Teen music video for "Yoo Hoo", which was featured on the Jawbreaker soundtrack, and she recorded the theme song from the film Dead Awake (2010).
McGowan has expressed interest in recording an album of her own. During an interview with Living TV, she said, "I was actually thinking of going back and doing more soulful tunes and older tunes ... and I would love to, when I have a little bit more time." In the Charmed episode "Sense and Sense Ability", McGowan performed, in character, a cover of the Peggy Lee classic "Fever". She performed three songs from the Planet Terror portion of Grindhouse, released on the film's soundtrack by the Varèse Sarabande label. The songs are entitled "You Belong to Me" (a Dean Martin/Jo Stafford cover), "Useless Talent #32", and "Two Against the World".
She appeared briefly in the music video for the 2014 single "Break the Rules" by Charli XCX.
McGowan is an activist for LGBT rights and campaigned against California's Proposition 8, which sought to ban same-sex marriage in the state in 2008. She is also known as an activist for Boston Terriers. She has two, named Bug and Fester, and has personally donated to various Boston Terrier rescues. McGowan reportedly encouraged friends to donate to Boston Terrier Rescue Net, and according to BTRN: "Having fallen in love with Bug and Fester, her friends donated generously. It amounted to a considerable contribution, which will go a long way in helping BTRN and the needy volunteers who selflessly give to deserving Bostons."
In late 2009, McGowan was among several celebrities who participated in the protest NOH8.
In March 2018, McGowan came out as non-binary. As of 2018, McGowan resides in Mayfair, London.
In January 2019, McGowan pleaded no contest to a misdemeanour drug charge in Virginia concerning cocaine that was found in a wallet she left behind at Dulles International Airport in 2017. She received a US$2,500 fine and a suspended jail sentence.
In the early 1990s, McGowan, then a relative unknown, was involved for two years with a man she refers to as William, who, she claims, kept buying her exercise equipment and fashion magazines in an effort to persuade her to get thinner. She developed an eating disorder in her unsuccessful efforts to get her weight down to 84 pounds (38 kg) like the women in the magazines. "I never was able to get below 92 pounds (42 kg)," she wrote later. "I felt like a failure."
That relationship and the eating disorder ended in early 1993 when McGowan met Brett Cantor, a part-owner of Hollywood's Dragonfly nightclub. She came to believe he was her soul mate; however he was brutally stabbed to death in his house that July, leaving her "shattered". The killing remains unsolved, and McGowan continues to support efforts to identify a suspect and close the case.
McGowan had a three-and-a-half-year relationship with rock musician Marilyn Manson. After a formal engagement lasting two years, McGowan ended the relationship in 2001 over "lifestyle differences".
Prior to the release of Grindhouse, there was speculation that McGowan was dating director Robert Rodriguez. In May 2007, it was reported that they confirmed their relationship while appearing hand-in-hand at the Cannes Film Festival. On October 12, 2007, it was announced by Zap2it.com that McGowan was engaged to Rodriguez. They reportedly split in October 2009.
In July 2013, after one year of dating, McGowan became engaged to artist Davey Detail. They married on October 12, 2013 in Los Angeles. In February 2016, she filed for divorce from Detail, citing irreconcilable differences. The divorce was finalized in November 2016. McGowan is currently in a relationship with model Rain Dove.
In September 2008, McGowan caused controversy while promoting her film Fifty Dead Men Walking at a Toronto International Film Festival press conference, when she stated, "I imagine, had I grown up in Belfast, I would 100% have been in the IRA. My heart just broke for the cause. Violence is not to be played out daily and provide an answer to problems, but I understand it." This prompted director Kari Skogland and the film's producers to issue a public apology, stating that McGowan's views did not reflect their own.
In an August 2011 interview, McGowan talked about her experience working on the film Rosewood Lane with director Victor Salva, who is a convicted child molester and child pornographer, stating, "I still don't really understand the whole story or history there, and I'd rather not, because it's not really my business. But he's an incredibly sweet and gentle man."
In May 2014, McGowan held a defiant party in support of the Brunei-owned Beverly Hills Hotel, despite a boycott over Brunei's anti-gay laws, which prescribes death by stoning for same-sex activities. McGowan explained her stance on the issue thus: "Boycotts only work when they hurt the target's bottom line. We are never going to affect the sultan's bottom line. He's worth $20 billion! This is a vanity project for him. It could sit empty for 100 years and he wouldn't even notice. But meanwhile, we're hurting all the wonderful, struggling people who work in the hotel. I'd like him to see that gays are real people. I think that's the only thing that would change his mind, not a boycott."
In November 2014, while discussing misogyny and sexism during Bret Easton Ellis' podcast, McGowan criticized the gay community for not doing more to help the cause of women's rights, saying, "I see now, basically, people who've fought for the right to stand on top of a float wearing an orange speedo and take molly. And, I see no help, and I see no paying it forward, and I have a huge problem with that. There are so many things to help and do, and I see no extending of a hand outside of the gay community to another community. And that's a problem for me." Rose McGowan also stated, "Gays are misogynistic as straight men, if not more so. I have an indictment of the gay community right now. I'm actually really upset with them." The characterization of LGBT rights activism being centered on drug use and wearing revealing clothing in public were criticized as homophobic or transphobic. She later apologized for generalizing gay men as misogynistic, but defended the rest of her comments.
In June 2015, McGowan sparked controversy with a Twitter post making public what was perceived as a sexist casting call for an Adam Sandler film. McGowan later said, "It was just so dumb. I was offended by the stupidity more than anything. I was offended by the fact that went through so many people's hands and nobody red flagged it. This is normal to so many people. It was probably even a girl that had to type it up. It's institutionally OK." This reportedly led to McGowan being fired by her agent. She later clarified that talent agent Sheila Wenzel was not responsible for "firing" her after she took a stand against sexism in Hollywood. "I'm interested in making the industry better so that women following in my footsteps know that they don't have to take abuse just because she wants be creative," the actress told People magazine.
In 2015, McGowan criticized Caitlyn Jenner for stating that "the hardest part about being a woman is figuring out what to wear", after Jenner had been named "Woman of the Year" by Glamour. McGowan stated, "We are more than deciding what to wear. We are more than the stereotypes foisted upon us by people like you. You're a woman now? Well f**cking learn that we have had a VERY different experience than your life of male privilege." In response to accusations of transphobia, McGowan stated, "Let me take this moment to point out that I am not, nor will I ever be, transphobic. The idea is laughable. Disliking something a trans person has said is no different than disliking something a man has said or that a woman has said. Being trans doesn't make one immune from criticism."
When The New York Times revealed in October 2017 that she was part of a settlement involving movie mogul Harvey Weinstein in an alleged sexual harassment case, McGowan declined to comment. "Women fight on," she wrote afterwards. "And to the men out there, stand up. We need you as allies." According to the Times, Weinstein has reached at least eight settlements with women, including McGowan, who reached a $100,000 settlement with Weinstein after an encounter in a hotel room with the executive producer in 1997 during the Sundance Film Festival.
On October 10, 2017, McGowan stated that Harvey Weinstein had behaved inappropriately with her. She accused actor Ben Affleck of lying after Affleck said in a statement that he was "angry" over Weinstein's alleged abuse of women, but did not indicate whether he knew about it. Via Twitter, she also attacked other men in the movie industry, tweeting, "All of you Hollywood 'A-list' golden boys are LIARS....You all knew."
On October 12, McGowan alleged that Harvey Weinstein had raped her, and that Amazon Studios dropped her project after she complained. On the same day, McGowan said that Twitter suspended her account for 12 hours after she repeatedly tweeted about Weinstein's alleged sexual misconduct, including toward her. Twitter explained that McGowan's account had violated its privacy policy because one of her tweets included a private phone number. The New York Times reported, "Many Twitter users expressed outrage over Ms. McGowan's account being locked." After the tweet was removed, her account was unlocked several hours before the 12-hour ban was set to expire. Through his lawyer, David Boies, Weinstein at one point hired the private intelligence agency Black Cube to spy on McGowan and to stop outlets such as The New York Times and The New Yorker from reporting their investigations on Harvey Weinstein. Boies' law firm, Boies, Schiller & Flexner, had provided The Times with legal counsel over the course of the previous decade, including on one libel case. Upon learning that the firm was working to hinder its reporting on Weinstein while simultaneously representing them in other matters, The Times published a stern rebuke of the firm, calling their actions "intolerable conduct, a grave betrayal of trust, and a breach of the basic professional standards that all lawyers are required to observe."
On February 7, 2018, Jill Messick, McGowan's manager at the time of the alleged rape in 1997, committed suicide. Messick's family blamed Weinstein, the media, the public, and McGowan for her death.
|
Year |
Title |
Role |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
|
1992 |
Encino Man |
Nora |
|
|
1995 |
The Doom Generation |
Amy Blue |
|
|
1996 |
Bio-Dome |
Denise |
|
|
Kiss & Tell |
Jasmine Hoyle |
|
|
|
Scream |
Tatum Riley |
|
|
|
1997 |
Going All the Way |
Gale Ann Thayer |
|
|
Seed |
Miriam |
Short film |
|
|
Nowhere |
Valley Chick #3 |
|
|
|
Lewis and Clark and George |
George |
|
|
|
1998 |
Southie |
Kathy Quinn |
|
|
Phantoms |
Lisa Pailey |
|
|
|
Devil in the Flesh |
Debbie Strand |
|
|
|
1999 |
Jawbreaker |
Courtney Shayne |
|
|
Sleeping Beauties |
Sno Blo |
Short film |
|
|
2000 |
Ready to Rumble |
Sasha |
|
|
The Last Stop |
Nancy |
|
|
|
2001 |
Strange Hearts |
Moira Kennedy |
|
|
Monkeybone |
Miss Kitty |
|
|
|
2002 |
Stealing Bess |
Debbie Dinsdale |
|
|
Roads to Riches |
Moira Kennedy |
|
|
|
2006 |
The Black Dahlia |
Sheryl Saddon |
|
|
2007 |
Grindhouse – Planet Terror |
Cherry Darling |
|
|
Grindhouse – Death Proof |
Pam |
|
|
|
2008 |
Fifty Dead Men Walking |
Grace Sterrin |
|
|
2010 |
Machete |
Boots McCoy |
Deleted scenes |
|
Dead Awake |
Charlie Scheel |
|
|
|
2011 |
Conan the Barbarian |
Marique |
|
|
Rosewood Lane |
Sonny Blake |
|
|
|
2014 |
Dawn |
— |
Directorial debut |
|
2015 |
The Weight of Blood and Bones |
Madeline |
Short film |
|
2016 |
The Tell-Tale Heart |
Ariel |
|
|
The Caged Pillows |
Monday (voice) |
Short film |
|
|
Heresy |
|
||
|
2017 |
The Sound |
Kelly Johansen |
|
|
2018 |
Indecision IV |
Dancing woman |
Short film |
|
Year |
Title |
Role |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
|
1990 |
True Colors |
Suzanne |
Episode: "Life with Fathers" |
|
2001 |
What About Joan? |
Maeve McCrimmen |
Episode: "Maeve" |
|
The Killing Yard |
Linda Borus |
Movie |
|
|
2001–2006 |
Charmed |
Paige Matthews |
Main role, 112 episodes |
|
2005 |
Elvis |
Ann-Margret |
Miniseries |
|
2009 |
Nip/Tuck |
Dr. Theodora "Teddy" Rowe |
5 episodes |
|
2011 |
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit |
Cassandra Davina |
Episode: "Bombshell" |
|
The Pastor's Wife |
Mary Winkler |
Movie |
|
|
2012 |
RuPaul's Drag Race |
Herself |
Guest judge, episode: "The Fabulous Bitch Ball" |
|
2012–2014 |
Once Upon a Time |
Young Cora Mills |
2 episodes |
|
2014 |
Chosen |
Josie Acosta |
Main role, 6 episodes |
|
2016 |
Ultimate Spider-Man |
Medusa (voice) |
Episode: "Agent Web" |
|
2018 |
Citizen Rose |
Herself |
Docuseries |
|
Year |
Title |
Role |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
|
2005 |
Darkwatch |
Tala |
|
|
2009 |
Terminator Salvation |
Angie Salter |
|
|
2015 |
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare |
Lilith |
Exo Zombies |
|
Year |
Title |
Role |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
|
2013 |
Doctor Lollipop |
Dr. Coco, Red Riding Hood |
|
|
Year |
Title |
Role |
Artist |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1999 |
"Yoo Hoo" |
Courtney Shayne |
Imperial Teen |
Cameo appearance |
|
"Coma White" |
Jacqueline Kennedy |
Marilyn Manson |
|
|
|
2012 |
"Glamazon" |
Herself |
RuPaul |
Cameo appearance |
|
2014 |
"Break the Rules" |
Chaperone |
Charli XCX |
|
|
2015 |
"RM486" |
Herself |
Rose McGowan |
Debut single |
|
2017 |
"Fire in Cairo" |
Luna |
|
List of acting awards and nominations
|
Year |
Film / Title |
Award |
Category |
Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1995 |
The Doom Generation |
11th Independent Spirit Awards |
Independent Spirit Award for Best Debut Performance |
Nominated |
|
1999 |
Jawbreaker |
MTV Movie Award |
MTV Movie Award for Best Villain |
|
|
2005 |
Charmed |
Family Television Awards |
Favorite Sister |
Won |
|
Wand Award |
Wand Award for Best New Cast Member |
Nominated |
||
|
2006 |
N/A |
Blender |
Sexiest Women Of TV And Film |
Won |
|
2008 |
Grindhouse – Planet Terror |
Saturn Award |
Best Supporting Actress |
Nominated |
|
Scream Awards |
Scream Queen |
|||
|
Golden Schmoes Awards |
Best Actor - Female |
|||
|
2009 |
Fright Meter Award |
Best Supporting Actress |
Won |
|
|
Rose McGowan |
San Francisco International Film Festival |
Midnight Outstanding Achievement Award |
||
|
2014 |
Dawn |
Sundance Film Festival |
Short Film Grand Jury Prize |
Nominated |
|
2018 |
N/A |
Alliance of Women Film Journalists Awards |
Outstanding Achievement by a Woman in the Film Industry |
Won |
Charmed is an American television series created by Constance M. Burge and produced by Aaron Spelling and his production company Spelling Television, with Brad Kern serving as showrunner. The series was originally broadcast by The WB for eight seasons from October 7, 1998, until May 21, 2006. The series narrative follows a trio of sisters, known as The Charmed Ones, the most powerful good witches of all time, who use their combined "Power of Three" to protect innocent lives from evil beings such as demons and warlocks. Each sister possesses unique magical powers that grow and evolve, while they attempt to maintain normal lives in modern-day San Francisco. Keeping their supernatural identities separate and secret from their ordinary lives often becomes a challenge for them, with the exposure of magic having far-reaching consequences on their various relationships and resulting in a number of police and FBI investigations throughout the series. The series initially focuses on the three Halliwell sisters, Prue (Shannen Doherty), Piper (Holly Marie Combs) and Phoebe (Alyssa Milano). However, following Prue's death in the third-season finale, their long-lost half sister Paige Matthews (Rose McGowan) assumes her place within the "Power of Three" from season four onwards.
Charmed achieved a cult following and popularity on The WB with its first episode "Something Wicca This Way Comes" garnering 7.7 million viewers, breaking the record for the highest-rated debut episode for The WB. During its fifth season, the series became the highest-rated Sunday night program in The WB's history. The show's ratings, although smaller than rival shows on the "big four" networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox), were substantial for The WB as it was not one of the main TV networks in the US. At 178 episodes, Charmed is the second-longest drama broadcast by The WB and the second-longest running hour-long television series featuring all female leads. The series has also received numerous awards and nominations. In 2010, The Huffington Post and AOL TV ranked Charmed within their joint list of "The Top 20 Magic/Supernatural Shows of All Time," while, in 2013, TV Guide listed the series as one of "The 60 Greatest Sci-Fi Shows of All Time." Charmed has also become a source of pop culture references in film and television and has influenced other succeeding television series in the same subgenre.
The
show's success has led to its development in other media, including a
video game, board games, novels, and a comic book series which serves
as a continuation of its narrative. Throughout 2012, six years after
it ceased broadcasting, Charmed
was the second-most watched television series on subscription
video-on-demand services, including Amazon Video and Netflix.
The
series starts when Phoebe Halliwell (Alyssa Milano) returns from New
York and moves back into the family's Halliwell Manor in San
Francisco to live with her sisters Prue (Shannen Doherty) and Piper
(Holly Marie Combs). When Phoebe discovers the family's Book of
Shadows, she learns that she and her sisters are the most powerful
witches ever known, destined to protect both innocents and the world
at large from demons, warlocks, and other evil creatures. Phoebe,
reasonably suspecting the book to be a novelty, reads its initial
inscription—unaware that it also happens to be an incantation
activating the sisters' supernatural powers once all three are
reunited in their ancestral home.
By the end of the first episode, each sister learns that she has a unique magical power and that they can each cast spells and brew potions. Prue, the eldest, has the power of telekinesis (the ability to move objects with her mind), and in season two she develops the power of astral projection (the ability to move her body using the Astral plane). Piper, the middle sister, has the power to effectively "freeze" people and objects. As she grows more proficient, she learns how to freeze only certain people or objects or body parts, as she wishes. In season three, her powers evolve further, as she is able to cause evil beings or objects to explode using her hands. Phoebe, the youngest of the three, initially possesses the power of premonition allowing her to receive visions of the future and later of the past. She later develops the powers of levitation in season three, and empathy in season six, the latter allowing her to sense and tap into others' emotions and, sometimes, powers. In accordance with the series' mythology, a witch's powers are tied to their emotions.
During the first two seasons, the sisters face various evil beings from week to week. However, in the third season, they discover that their ultimate enemy is The Underworld's demonic ruler, The Source of All Evil. Eventually, Prue is killed in the season three finale by The Source's personal assassin, Shax (Michael Bailey Smith). While grieving Prue's death, Piper and Phoebe discover that they have a younger half-sister, Paige Matthews (Rose McGowan), who had been the secret love child of their witch mother, Patty (Finola Hughes), and her whitelighter (guardian angel) Sam Wilder (Scott Jaeck). Paige's magical abilities represent her dual heritage as both a witch and whitelighter; like Prue, she possesses a form of telekinesis, but she has to verbally call for objects to orb (or, teleport) them to their intended destination. As she attempts to control the two sides of her ancestry, Paige also learns how to orb herself and others, and to heal others with the touch of her hand; she eventually receives her own whitelighter charges to train and protect as they learn witchcraft.
The Source, responsible for the majority of attacks on the sisters, becomes the main villain during season four until he is finally vanquished. After his demise, an annual season-long storyline and several antagonists are introduced in subsequent seasons (occasionally following the "Big Bad" television format). These include Phoebe's demonic ex-husband, Cole Turner (Julian McMahon), until mid-season five; the scheming, misguided Elder, Gideon (Gildart Jackson), throughout season six; The Avatars until mid-season seven; the demon Zankou (Oded Fehr) until the season seven finale; and, in season eight, powerful sister witches Billie (Kaley Cuoco) and Christy Jenkins (Marnette Patterson), who fall under the influence of the demonic Triad (who earlier feature as early-season three antagonists). In addition to the supernatural themes explored in Charmed, the characters contend with serious issues in their day-to-day lives such as relationships, careers, marriage, childbirth, illness and the deaths of loved ones. The sisters also fight to prevent the exposure of the existence of magic to the human community at large, contending with several police and FBI investigations. Often through the assistance of their long-term ally, Darryl Morris (Dorian Gregory) of the San Francisco Police Department, they are able to avoid police suspicion, including the investigation of the most-recurring human antagonist, Inspector Sheridan (Jenya Lano), in the sixth and seventh seasons.
The sisters also face romantic storylines. Prue's love interests include her high school sweetheart, Inspector Andy Trudeau (Ted King), who dies in the season one finale in an attempt to save the sisters, and a brief co-worker, Jack Sheridan (Lochlyn Munro), in season two. Piper's central love interest throughout the series is the sisters' whitelighter Leo Wyatt (Brian Krause); their early relationship is problematic due to the forbidden nature of witch-whitelighter relationships, and so in season two a love triangle forms with Piper, Leo and her neighbor, Dan Gordon (Greg Vaughan). Eventually, the two manage to marry and consecrate their union in season three, producing a son named Wyatt in season five. The couple separate due to supernatural circumstances at the end of the fifth season; however, they reconnect in the subsequent season, resulting in a second son named Chris. The final episode of Charmed shows them to have a daughter, many grandchildren, and to grow old together in the future. Phoebe's romantic history involves a tortured relationship with half-demon Cole Turner in the show's third, fourth and fifth seasons; they have a turbulent marriage in the fourth, and in the fifth, following their divorce, she is compelled to vanquish him. Phoebe has a number of multi-episode human boyfriends in subsequent seasons, including her boss, Jason Dean (Eric Dane), before meeting a cupid named Coop (Victor Webster) in the eighth season, whom she marries. Paige, like Phoebe, has several multi-episode boyfriends, including fellow-witch and magic "addict" Richard Montana (Balthazar Getty) in season six, and an unstable FBI agent-turned-whitelighter Kyle Brody (Kerr Smith) in season seven. In the eighth season, she becomes committed to a human parole officer, Henry Mitchell (Ivan Sergei), whom she marries. The final episode's flashforward montage reveals Piper, Phoebe, and Paige to have three children each with their respective husbands.
Shannen Doherty as Prue Halliwell (seasons 1–3), the eldest sister who initially receives the power to move objects with her mind using telekinesis with a direct line of sight. As the series progresses, Prue learns how to channel her telekinetic powers through her hands. She also gains the power of astral projection, which allows her to be in two places at once. Prue also develops martial arts skills and becomes an effective hand-to-hand fighter. During her three seasons on Charmed, she is regarded as the strongest and most powerful witch of the Halliwell sisters. Her initial occupation is being an appraiser for an auction house, but she later becomes a professional photographer for a magazine company. In the season three finale, Prue is killed by Shax (Michael Bailey Smith), a powerful demonic assassin sent by The Source of All Evil.
Holly Marie Combs as Piper Halliwell, the second eldest sister who initially receives the power to freeze her surrounding environment. As the series progresses, she also gains the power to cause evil beings or objects to spontaneously explode. Piper is introduced into Charmed as the middle child of the Halliwell sisters, but later becomes the eldest sister after Prue (Shannen Doherty) dies. Piper's central love interest throughout the series is Leo Wyatt (Brian Krause), the sisters' whitelighter – a guardian angel for good witches. In season three, she marries Leo, and as the series progresses, they have two children; Wyatt (born in season five) and Chris (born in season six). Piper's initial occupation is a chef and manager for the restaurant Quake, but from season two onwards, she becomes the owner and manager of the nightclub P3.
Alyssa Milano as Phoebe Halliwell, the third sister who initially receives the power of premonition, which enables her to see into the future and the past. To make up for initially only having a passive power, Phoebe takes martial arts classes in order to better assist her sisters when they fight evil beings. As the series progresses, she also gains the active powers of levitation and empathy. Phoebe is introduced into Charmed as the youngest and most rebellious of the Halliwell sisters. However, her progression as a witch helps her become more responsible and grow as a person. Phoebe later becomes the middle sister after Prue dies and the series introduces her younger half-sister Paige (Rose McGowan). Phoebe's occupation is an advice columnist for the newspaper company The Bay Mirror, after she was a college student for the first few seasons.
Rose McGowan as Paige Matthews (seasons 4–8), the youngest half-sister who initially receives the power to move objects with her mind by orbing ("teleporting") objects from one location to another through a vocal command. She was the secret love child of the Halliwell sisters' mother Patty (Finola Hughes) and Sam Wilder (Scott Jaeck), making Paige both a witch and whitelighter. She was given up at birth and raised by her adoptive parents. Paige is introduced upon Prue's death at the beginning of season four, where she goes on to help reconstitute The Charmed Ones by taking Prue's place in the Power of Three. As the series progresses, Paige also receives the whitelighter powers of orbing herself and others, as well as sensing, glamouring, and healing.
Ted King as Andy Trudeau (season 1), introduced into season one as the Halliwell sisters' childhood friend and Prue's (Shannen Doherty) high school sweetheart and first love. He works as an inspector for the San Francisco Police Department and is coincidentally assigned to almost every police case that involves the sisters. Andy eventually discovers that they are witches and serves as the sisters' initial connection to the police force. In the season one finale, Andy is killed by the demon Rodriguez (Carlos Gomez), who also happens to be one of the Internal Affairs officers investigating Andy's unsolved cases.
Dorian Gregory as Darryl Morris (seasons 1–7), a lieutenant in the San Francisco Police Department. Darryl is introduced into season one as Andy Trudeau's (Ted King) best friend and partner. At first, Darryl is suspicious of the Halliwell sisters' recurring connection to mysterious murders and crimes. However, in season two, the sisters reveal to him that they are good witches trying to bring justice and protection to the world. Throughout the series, Darryl helps the sisters cover up unsolved cases related to demonic activity, as well as granting them favors and giving them general support. Its shown that his family also become close to the sisters, considering them part of their family. At the end of season seven, Darryl and his family move to the East Coast.
Greg Vaughan as Dan Gordon (season 2), introduced into season two as the Halliwell sisters' new next-door neighbor. Dan and Piper become romantically involved after Piper and Leo (Brian Krause) break up due to the strenuous nature his whitelighter duties place on their relationship. Piper later breaks up with Dan and reconciles with Leo. At the end of the season, Dan moves to Portland to take a job offer.
Karis Paige Bryant as Jenny Gordon (season 2), introduced into season two as Dan Gordon's (Greg Vaughan) niece who temporarily moves in with him for school because her parents are in Saudi Arabia on business. Whilst living with her uncle, Jenny forms a bond with the Halliwell sisters and often turns to them for advice on female issues that she is not comfortable talking to her uncle about. Midway through season two, Jenny moves back in with her parents after they return to the United States.
Brian Krause as Leo Wyatt (seasons 2–8; recurring season 1), the Halliwell sisters' whitelighter—a guardian angel for good witches—who has the powers to orb, heal, sense, levitate, glamour and hover. Leo is introduced into season one as the sisters' handyman hired to fix up their house, but they later discover that he is their whitelighter. Leo's whitelighter duties often causes problems for his marriage to Piper (Holly Marie Combs) and their family. Their relationship is the first of many conflicts between the sisters and The Elders.
Julian McMahon as Cole Turner (also known as the demonic assassin, Belthazor) (seasons 3–5; guest season 7), a demon who has the powers to teleport and throw projective energy balls which could stun or kill. Cole is introduced into season three as an Assistant District Attorney sent by The Triad to kill The Charmed Ones, but instead he falls in love with Phoebe. Although Cole completely rids himself of his demonic nature and marries Phoebe in season four, he later returns to evil after he unwillingly becomes the new Source of All Evil. As The Source, Cole is eventually vanquished by The Charmed Ones, only to come back from death in his attempts to win Phoebe back. Driven insane, Cole is, through his own doing, once again killed by the sisters in season five. He later returns for a guest appearance in the season seven episode "The Seven Year Witch," where it is revealed his spirit is trapped between realms.
Drew Fuller as Chris Halliwell (season 6; guest seasons 5 & 7–8), the second son of Leo and Piper. Chris is introduced into the season five finale as a whitelighter from the future who helps assist the Halliwell sisters against magical beings known as The Titans. In season six, Chris reveals that he is Leo and Piper's son and has traveled back in time to prevent his older brother Wyatt from growing up to be the evil dictator he becomes in the future. In the season six finale, adult Chris is killed by an Elder named Gideon (Gildart Jackson) and baby Chris is born.
Kaley Cuoco as Billie Jenkins (season 8), introduced into season eight as a young college student and a new charge for Paige (Rose McGowan). Billie has the power to move objects with her mind using telekinesis. She spends most of the season trying to find her eldest sister Christy (Marnette Patterson), who was kidnapped 15 years earlier by The Triad. Billie is eventually reunited with her sister, but does not know that Christy has been turned evil under the influence of demons. After Christy briefly sways her to betray the Charmed Ones, Billie eventually sides with them in the series finale and is forced to kill her sister in self-defense.