Interview with Patricia Wettig

Every time I see actress Patricia Wettig, I'm reminded of that great show, thirtysomething. I loved that one. Patricia is currently appearing on the hit drama, Brothers & Sisters and Prison Break. TV Guide recently sat down to interview her (complete interview here); here are a few excerpts:

TVGuide.com: What's it like working with your husband [B&S executive producer Ken Olin] and children on the show?
Wettig: Well, I'll tell you, my daughter [Roxy Olin] is on a few shows playing Jason Lewis' lover, and my son [Cliff Olin] wrote the Christmas/Hanukkah episode, so Ken and I and Cliff and Roxy were all at the read-through [for that show] and it all felt so normal. I've been around family and friends in so many professional settings. Afterward, I say to myself, "Do you know how unusual it is that Roxy is doing a part that Cliff wrote, and that Ken and I are there, too?" I guess so much of thirtysomething was about family and friends. We knew [thirtysomething creator/executive producer] Marshall Herskovitz and [his wife, writer] Susan Shilliday.... Everybody was all entwined. It all seemed perfectly normal.

TVGuide.com: Backing up a bit, we should note that Jason Lewis' character (Kevin's boyfriend, Tyler) is gay....
Wettig: Ah, but he has a girlfriend — there's the complication. It's good. It's playing out very well.

TVGuide.com: What can you say about your return to Prison Break?
Wettig: I'm doing a couple of voice-overs off camera for a couple [of shows]. Then I'm doing an episode [where I'll be on screen], and I believe it's a scene with Wentworth [Miller, who plays Michael]. I have not seen the script.

TVGuide.com: You get to see your former Prison Break sibling, John Billingsley (The Nine), at ABC functions, yes?
Wettig: Yes. It's so funny. We saw each other at the ABC upfronts [last May] and were like, "Wait a minute...!"

TVGuide.com: Do you know much about how the legalities worked out between Fox and ABC?
Wettig: I do. Fox wanted me to be a regular, so I had to make a choice [last summer], obviously. But I told them I could do one [episode]. Then Fox called ABC and asked, "If she did voice-overs for a couple, and then only appears in one show, would that be all right?" They both agreed.

TVGuide.com: Sounds very amicable; you don't always hear it working out like that.
Wettig: I know.

TVGuide.com: Maybe the decision-makers at ABC are Prison Break fans?
Wettig: [Laughs] I don't know! But my son is a big fan. At the time I made the decision to go with Brothers & Sisters, he said to me, "Are you nuts? You can't leave Prison Break!"

Photo from TV Guide.