‘Covert Affairs’ Piper Perabo Spills Some Top Secrets

http://www.fancast.com/blogs/2010/tv-news/covert-affairs-piper-perabo-spills-some-top-secrets/

Affairs‘ is now on the scene, and we spy a hit. Piper Perabo (’Coyote Ugly’) stars as Annie Walker, a CIA trainee who is quickly promoted up the ranks at first for just one assignment, but then kept around as part of a much larger, secret-from-her plan. Yes, Annie has mad spooking skills – make no mistake about that – but she also has a connection to an enigmatic mystery man named Ben (played by ‘Band of Brothers’ Eion Bailey). Fancast invited Perabo to divulge some intel on her sizzling new spy drama (airing Tuesdays at 10/9c).

What has been most surprising to you about the ‘Covert Affairs’ experience?
One of the things that was most surprising is that [executive producer] Doug Liman (’The Bourne Supremacy’) has been so hands-on with all our action sequences. He’ll fly up in his plane with storyboards, camera ideas, stunt ideas, and preview the action sequences with each director. I thought he would just be the “big fancy producer”; I didn’t think he was going to be on the ground with us!

What’s the craziest thing you have had to do as Annie?
It’s getting crazier and crazier. Each director is trying to top themselves. We’ve been doing a lot of parkour, because of the French-Canadian element (’Covert Affairs’ films in Toronto). There are a lot of guys in Toronto who do it, so we’ve been working that into a lot of our foot chases.
Will Annie’s fleeting fling, Ben, forever be hiding in the shadows?
No, he’s going to come very much to the forefront fairly quickly. I just did a scene with him three days ago.

Will the show ultimately play some sparks between Annie and Auggie (the blind CIA agent played by ‘Ugly Betty’s Christopher Gorham)?
Oh yeah. Ohhhhh yeah.

Anyone who has seen both shows now has seen the difference between ‘Covert Affairs’ and ‘Alias.’ But what sets the two apart in your mind?
The thing that’s different about this is you see the real life of someone who’s a spy – the kind of car you drive, what your family thinks you do, the fact that you can’t bring your own coffee cup into work…. It’s a very humanist look at the CIA. They’re not superheroes!