Sheen’s Green dream
Golden Globe- and Emmy-winning actor Martin Sheen talks to Adam Benzine about his role in the remake of Canadian classic Anne of Green Gables, and looks back on his career. Having played a president, a police chief and a federal judge, acclaimed actor Martin Sheen has taken on a different kind of authority figure in TV special Anne of Green Gables (pictured above), which premiered yesterday. Sheen plays Matthew Cuthbert, who – along with his sister Marilla – adopts the titular orphan Anne Shirley in the classic 1908 novel, from author Lucy Maud Montgomery. In Canada, the book was most notably adapted into an iconic two-part miniseries in 1985, starring Megan Follows. The production garnered huge ratings for pubcaster the CBC and swept the board at the 1986 Gemini Awards. “I didn’t know quite how iconic it was until I got to Canada and started working,” Sheen recalls with a laugh, talking to DQ by phone. “It’s a remarkable chronicle of a character and a reflection of rural people in rural Canada.” The new version of the story was made by Breakthrough Entertainment and Corus Entertainment for youth-skewing Canadian network YTV. It features “a different kind of energy” from the 1985 production, the actor says. “I hate to make comparisons and I don’t think it’s really fair, but the story resonates in the same way.” The original miniseries, he notes, “was an iconic production, and was lauded everywhere for its humanity and humour and all. But I think what we … Continue reading Sheen’s Green dream
