Alyssa Milano has been working in show business for over 25 years, from a stint in a national tour of Annie to her breakout performance on Who's the Boss to her eight-year run as star and executive producer of Charmed. Recently BostonNOW talked with her about her latest role, starring in the Lifetime Original Movie Wisegal, which debuts this Saturday at 9 p.m.

BostonNOW: Would you have called yourself a mob aficionado coming into Wisegal?
Alyssa Milano: (Laughing) I wasn't really a mob fan but growing up in New York - I was born in Bensonhurst and then we moved to Staten Island - and being Italian-American, it was definitely something I had interest in.

BN: Speaking of that, was it fun to break out the New York accent in the movie?
AM: Yes. It came back very easily, oddly enough. It's funny because I auditioned for Who's The Boss when I was 10 years old and I had gotten rid of my accent because I was doing mostly theater. In my first audition that was fine but when they flew me to LA, right before I walked into the room they said, "OK, we want you do your New York accent."

BN: How did you end up with Wisegal?
AM: My agent sent me the script and I liked it very much, that the story of a mother trying to make ends meet was something that everyone could relate to. And I liked that it was a side of the mob we don't always see, which is from a woman's prospective, and what that allowed us to do is show the family aspect of being involved in the mob, feeling protected, feeling taken care of.

I met with one of the producers and we worked on the script for six months before we started production. We actually had 10 days of rehearsal time before we starting filming, which is unheard of. A lot was because the strike was pending so we knew once we started production we weren't going to be able to do re-writes, so we did them all during the rehearsal period. It's one of the reasons why the movie came out so well, because we all had time to investigate these characters and their relationships with each other.

BN: You play a mom in the movie. Did your experience as a child actor help in working with the boys who played your kids?
AM: I always have a soft spot in my heart for child actors and I enjoy working with them very much. The four kids who play my kids in the movie were awesome.

BN: They have great hair.
AM: Yes, great hair and also they were all Canadian and had to perfect that New York accent and I thought they did a great job.

BN: Any project that deals with organized crime gets an immediate credibility boost when James Caan is in the cast.
AM: Absolutely, and not only that but we have Joe Pistone (the FBI Agent whose was the basis for Donnie Brasco) as one of the producers, so everything you see is pretty dead on.

BN: Was your preparation any different because you were playing a real person?
AM: It wasn't actually...This wasn't a real person that had been in the public eye so we didn't know much about her. I was really able to go into it and create who I thought the core of her was/is. Her son was one of the producers, which was great and very helpful to have him around.

BN: In a lot of ways the movie is about a woman who finds herself in a tough situation and makes a number of bad decisions ... Looking back on your career, are they any decisions you wish you could make again, roles you passed on or maybe parts you did take?
AM: No, not really. I can't really complain. After 27 years I feel pretty blessed. I could go back and say, "oh, that was an awful film" but I think that everything's brought me to where I am. And that goes for life, too; everything we go through makes us who we are.

BN: Not to be unprofessional but you looked incredible in that red dress.
AM: (Laughing) Thank you very much. That wasn't unprofessional at all. Thank you.

BN: You've done comedy, drama, Charmed had a lot of action, you've done TV and movies ... At this point in your career are you getting the kind of roles you want?
AM: I think that's always an actor's mentality; how many actors does it take to screw in a light bulb? Four, one to do it and the other three to say, "I could've done that." I think we always want to do more but that's what keeps us going.

I'd love to get on another series because I feel like all the best roles for women are being produced in television. I sort of take my career day by day. If I had some big plan or expectation for where I'd thought I'd be or where I'd like to be at this point, I think that's when disappointment comes in.

BN: You did a couple of episodes of My Name Is Earl before the strike and I know you're doing a couple more. Is it difficult to go into a group that's had two or three seasons to gel?
AM: (Laughing) Yes, it's like jumping on to a moving train. It's been really great, they've been really warm and receptive, and the writing is so great.

BN: Did you have any second thoughts when they showed you the outfit you'd be wearing for your first scene?
AM: Yes, absolutely (laughing). I was like, "did we have to go with the stripper boots"?

BN: You've got a movie coming out next month, too?
AM: Yes, April 18. It's called Pathology and it's about a group of medical students who come up with the game of "who can commit the perfect murder." I saw the movie recently and I really, really enjoyed it. I think there's a lot more heart in it than your normal thriller.

BN: So are the Red Sox the top selling team for TOUCH (Milano has a line of clothing for female sports fans)?
AM: One of the top sellers, absolutely.

BN: And you're branching out from just baseball, right?
AM: We have licensing now to baseball, the NHL, college, the NBA, and the NFL.

BN: When did fashion become a big interest for you?
AM: I think just being a girly girl I was always into fashion and also being a tomboy I was always looking for ways to meld the two and those things weren't available in the market. It really was an idea based out of necessity.

BN: I know you are a huge baseball fan and even have your own blog about it. How do you think the Sox are going to do this year?
AM: The Sox always do well. Spending time at Fenway like I did last year doing commentary for TBS during the playoffs, it made sense to me why the chemistry is so great. The whole setting is so intimate, Fenway is such an intimate place and Boston is so quaint and charming and I think that just lends itself to having great team chemistry.

Don't miss Alyssa Milano in Wisegal, this Saturday at 9 p.m. on Lifetime.

Published on March 9, 2008

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