When actress Eliza Dushku treated her former boss to lunch, it turned out to be the best investment she’d ever made.

Dushku had co-starred on creator Joss Whedon’s hit fantasy “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” 10 years earlier. “Joss and I stayed friends, had a very tight connection when we made the show,” says Dushku, seated in a black vinyl armchair in the lobby bar of a hotel here.

There was a reason for her lunch largesse. Dushku had talked to the Fox network about returning to television. “And I had a plan in the back of my head. It was Joss, even though he didn’t know it yet,” she says. “About a week after I did some chatting with the Fox people, I called Joss and invited him to lunch. … I bought him a hot Buddha pizza from Ivy at the Shore. He picked the spot. And over a four-hour lunch, we had ‘Dollhouse.’ ”

“Dollhouse” (8 p.m. Friday, WFLD-Ch. 32) is Fox’s new sci-fi thriller in which Dushku plays an “Active” in a secret organization. The personalities of the “Actives” are wiped clean and reprogrammed so they can become anyone a client desires—from assassin to corporate tycoon.

Dushku, 28, loves the chance to metamorphose into different alter egos every week. Lately she’s undergone some transformations of her own.

“I don’t drink. … I’ve followed a 12-step program, and I’ve had the best few years of my life recently,” she says, her dark eyes dominating her face.

She doesn’t really define alcohol as her problem. “I just know that now I don’t drink, and I feel better physically and emotionally and spiritually,” she says.

And she doesn’t worry about failure. “I feel I’ve surpassed goals that I had and some I didn’t even know that I had,” she says.

“I’m pretty proud of my work and my resume—both business-wise and on a personal level. … So whatever comes of this—if someone wants to say I failed, I’ll never believe that.”

Source

DATE: Friday, November 14, 2008 TIME: 10:00pm Screening WHERE: Laemmle’s Monica 4-plex Theaters 1332 2nd Street Santa Monica, CA 90401 DETAILS: Star and co-producer Eliza Dushku (Wrong Turn, the upcoming Nobel Son and “Dollhouse”) will introduce the premiere Los Angeles theatrical showing of the Anchor Bay Entertainment thriller The Alphabet Killer at the Laemmle’s Monica 4-plex Theaters in Santa Monica on Friday, November 14th. Eliza, along with writer/producer co-star Tom Malloy and producers Isen Robbins and Aimee Schoof, will introduce the 10pm showing. Pending confirmation, they will also participate in a Q&A with the audience after the screening. Directed by Rob Schmidt (Wrong Turn, “Masters of Horror: Right To Die”) and featuring an all-star cast including Eliza Dushku (Bring It On, Wrong Turn), Cary Elwes (The Princess Bride, Saw), and Oscar®-winner Timothy Hutton (Ordinary People, Sunshine State), The Alphabet Killer is a gripping psychological thriller loosely based on the serial murders that shocked the citizens of Rochester, New York in the early 1970s. Anchor Bay Entertainment, renowned for its classic and contemporary horror programming, will release The Alphabet Killer theatrically in exclusive engagements in Los Angeles, Buffalo, New York and Rochester, NY. THERE WILL BE A PHOTO AND PRESS INTERVIEW OP AVAILABLE WITH ALL ATTENDEES PRIOR TO THE 10PM SCREENING.

Watch with Kristin has posted a new fun interview of Eliza and Joss talking to the cast of Do Not Disturb about Dollhouse which was taped at the FOX Upfronts.

“Buffy” veterans playing in “Dollhouse” at Fox”Buffy the Vampire Slayer” creator Joss Whedon is returning to television with “Dollhouse,” a sci-fi project starring “Buffy” alumna Eliza Dushku.The project has received a seven-episode commitment from Fox. It marks Whedon’s first TV project since his short-lived 2002 Fox drama “Firefly.”Dushku plays Echo, a member of a group of men and women who are imprinted with different personalities for different assignments. In between tasks they are mind-wiped, living like children in Dollhouse, a futuristic dorm/lab. They have no memories of their previous lives, until Echo begins to try to find out who she was.”Joss has been my favorite friend, genius, ally and confidant in the business since I was 17,” said Dushku, now 26, who also will serve as a producer on the project. “It’s incredible how much energy and excitement I have for this; I can’t wait to be this Echo character.”"Dollhouse” came out of a lunch between Whedon and Dushku in September, shortly after the actress had signed a development deal with Fox and sibling studio 20th Century Fox TV. Whedon was giving her advice about writers and types of shows that might be good for her, but he wasn’t interested in venturing into TV himself because he was trying to get a couple of movie projects off the ground at the time.”In the middle of the conversation, I went, ‘Oh, God. I thought of the show, and I had the title,”‘ Whedon said.Dushku came on board immediately. Within a week, the show was set up at Fox. (source)Also, EOnline.com has a great Q&A with Joss and Eliza up on their website.

Dushku is One of Fox’s NursesEliza Dushku (“Tru Calling”) will play Eve, the lead character on the hospital comedy/drama “Nurses” (also known as “Philadelphia General”) for Fox, reports Variety.Dushku replaces Katheryn Winnick, who has departed the 20th Century Fox TV pilot.Dushku first gained fame for her role on “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” (and later on the show’s “Angel” spinoff) and the feature Bring It On. She’ll next be seen in Nobel Son. (source)