Alicia Leigh Willis Alicia Leigh Willis spent two years as Courtney Matthews on General Hospital, and she has two Daytime Emmy nominations to show for it. Now she's ready to headline, as she is the title character in MyNetworkTV's newest nighttime drama, American Heiress, which airs Tuesday nights from 8-10. Alicia plays Elizabeth Wakefield, the intended heir of a family fortune who is stranded in a Guatemalan jungle after the private jet she is flying in crash lands.
So, how different was this shoot compared with her former day job as a daytime soap-opera star? "It's not like anything I've ever done," Alicia said. "We shot it more like a movie. We had the same amount of dialogue per day as a soap, but we had longer days. The last day of filming, we worked from 9 a.m. until 5 a.m. the next morning. Carter (MacIntyre, 'JD Bruce') and I were laughing because our last scene of the shoot at the end of that long day was a love scene. When it ended, I was just so excited to see my friends and family."
Long days of shooting in Mexico City (which substituted for the Guatemalan jungle) and San Diego certainly took their toll, but the end result was worth it. One of the main things that drew Alicia to the part was the idea of a location shoot. Alicia explains: "I heard we'd be shooting in Mexico City. I've worked mostly on sound stages in my career. I really wanted to work on location. It was a lotof fun. We were working in a beautiful area. I would just look out at all the beautiful scenery and think, 'Yep, this is what it's all about; this is why I do this.'"
Also, the character of Elizabeth is different from anything she's ever played. "She's a princess who's been spoiled her whole life, but she has a good heart and cares about her family. She's the responsible one of the bunch, and her siblings - except her brother Matt - resent her for that. She gets beat up a lot and picked on, but she makes a huge transition throughout the series."
Four-camera system
A big transition for Alicia was working with a one- versus four-camera system. "On General Hospital, we shot with four cameras. We'd get a scene done in one or two takes. Here, you do the scene from one angle, and maybe 10 hours later, you shoot the same scene from the other side. And you had to remember where you were - physically and emotionally." And then they might ask you back later to reshoot something. "On GH, when you're done, you're done."
What's up next for Alicia? The sky's the limit, but she wants to try comedy. "Sitcom-type comedy is very difficult. I'd love to try that. I did some guest spots on comedies, but it's not the same thing as having a regular role. I also really love the idea of getting into movies."
But the first thing on Alicia's mind is getting her fans to watch her in her new show. "American Heiress has everything you could possibly want in a show: action, adventure, a love story, drama. We pack it all into this show - we didn't leave anything out."
