Cynthia Cidre is the new voice of "Dallas." As executive producer and chief writer, she has found a way to meld the original elements (and many of its original actors) from the classic 1980s show and given the show a fresh 21st century makeover.
She has also found a way keep the show going without Larry Hagman (J.R. Ewing), who died unexpectedly in November 2012 in the middle of season two. Ewing, even in his death, had things planned all along to ensure that his family would keep Southfork Ranch - even at the expense of his nemesis Cliff, who is now in prison, framed for his murder.
"This whole season is motivated by what happened in season two," she said. Clearly, Hagman's plan doesn't quite work out the way he wished. It's obvious Cliff won't be behind bars forever. "He's a powerful guy," she said. "He maybe can hurt the Ewings from prison."
Season three starts Feb. 24 at 9 p.m. for 15 episodes, eight in the spring, seven more in the summer. "It's like a 15-hour movie," Cidre said.
She said Hagman's death was unexpected, despite his on-going health issues. "Scrambling is really an understatement," he said. "It was incredibly difficult. We were committed to Larry. He died the day after Thanksgiving. We were supposed to shoot Monday. We took Monday off. We were back shooting Tuesday. We were on our sixth episode. He was in three fourths of it. The seventh episode had to be completely rewritten. We were lucky to have Christmas. We had to re-write the rest of the season. It became, 'Who killed J.R.?' "
They wrote a very effective, emotional funeral episode episode eight. "I just saw it on TV again and I was all weepy again," she said. "We paid homage to Larry in a way he would have appreciated."
Cidre really enjoys the fact the show is really shot full time in Dallas now, instead of sound stages in Burbank, Calif. like the original show (save for a few scenes each season.)
"We use the city and people of Dallas," she said. "They've been incredible generous. They make their locations available to us. It's a great partnership."
With J.R. gone, his son John Ross is doing a good job trying to be the bad boy. He is married to Pamela but hooking up with Emma on the side. (Cidre said to watch for a great scene between Emma and her grandmother, played with delectable evil by Judith Light.) And John Ross and Pamela may have a lovely formal wedding at Southfork. Elena and Christopher are on the outs and she plans revenge after Cliff told her how her father was cheated out of Southfork by J.R. AnnaLynne McCord (from Atlanta and most recently on "90210") will play Heather, a new love interest for Christopher. "We've run through the combinations with the four [main] characters," she said.
And don't worry. Sue Ellen's current stretch of sobriety will end sometime this season "She has a really roller coaster ride with her son this season," Cidre adds. "There's a knockout scene between her and John Ross episode six."
And Cidre is psyched about a new character, a financier played by Juan Pablo di Pace. They found him by tape from Argentina at the last second after testing 50 actors to no avail.
She takes pride in her work. "I think we do a really good job delivering the kind of entertainment the fans expect and like," she said. "It's not a stupid soap. It's a smart soap."
TV preview
"Dallas," 9 p.m. Mondays, starting Feb. 24, 2014, TNT
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