Elijah Woodrecalls his remake of an Australian comedy series and explains why it was so meaningful, 10 years after it ended. Wood is largely recognizable forhaving portrayed Frodo BagginsinThe Lord of the Ringstrilogy, a role he eventually reprised inThe Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. Throughout his career, Wood appeared alongside well-known actors inEternal Sunshine of the Spotless MindandSin City, among other projects, and voiced a young penguin in the commercially successfulHappy Feetmovies, directed by George Miller.
Over the years, Wood has been involved in numerous television shows and movies, including a Disney adaptation ofOliver Twist. The actor has voiced characters inRobot Chicken,Family Guy, and other animated comedy series, and portrayed Beck inTron: Uprising. More recently, Wood joined the stackedcast of Showtime’s hit dramaYellowjackets, playing the mysterious sleuth Walter Tattersall in season 2 and beyond. Along with his performances in these TV projects,Wood also had a main role in the well-received remake of Australian sitcomWilfred.
Wood Reflects On The Wilfred Remake
Wood Starred In The Series For 4 Seasons
Wilfred, which premiered on FX in 2011, centers on Ryan Newman (portrayed by Wood), a downcast man who perceives his neighbor’s dog as being a person dressed in costume. The comedy was produced by David Zuckerman andfeatures Jason Gann, star and co-creator of the original Australian show, as Wilfred.Along with Wood and Gann, the cast of the remake includes Fiona Gubelmann, Dorian Brown Pham, and Chris Klein. Airing for four seasons, and ending on FXX,Wilfredgarnered favorable reactions and a loyal fanbase.
In a recent video forVanity Fair, Wood reflected on theWIlfredremake,revealing that “I fell in love with this material instantly.”As Wood explained, he had the Australian show to look at and ended up really enjoying adapting it. He also noted that the premise was “so weird and so wonderful,” and was able to explore a variety of topics surrounding his character. Read some of Wood’s comments below:
I have so much love for ‘Wilfred.’ I fell in love with this material instantly. It was based on Jason Gann, actually, as the creator of the character, he initially made a short film. He then subsequently turned it into a series. I think they did two seasons in Australia. So I had that material to sort of look at in reference in regards to this adaptation of what this, where this came from, and fell in love with it. I mean, just the idea of that it’s like ‘Calvin and Hobbes.’ It’s like ‘Harvey’ with Jimmy Stewart. This idea that there’s a guy that sees a guy dressed as a dog, but nobody else sees him is just so weird and so wonderful and rife for a lot of comedy, but also sort of mining depths of, you know, mental health and what’s really going on with Ryan.
Wood then explained thatWilfredwas a series “that really pushed the boundaries of what is normal.” He went on to say that, because he was residing in Venice, where a lot of the production took place, the filming experience was all the more enjoyable, adding that “it was hard to let it go after four years.” Read more of Wood’s comments below:
I love that this gave me the opportunity to work on a comedy, to work on a TV show that really pushed the boundaries of what is normal. It was so effing weird most of the time. Every episode ended with the two of them getting stoned in his basement. And God knows if it was a real dog or not. Like what the h-ll is actually happening?
Our Take On Wood’s Wilfred Remake
Despite The Unique Concept, It Gained Popularity
The unique concept behindWilfredmanaged to draw sizable audiences, instead of deterring them, when it premiered back in 2011. While viewership may have shrunk, the remake was still praised, scoring a 92% Popcornmeter on Rotten Tomatoes for its final season. Fans of the show seemed to enjoy its subject matter, as well as its humor and performances, which makes learning aboutWood’s positive experience all the more satisfying.
