Ausiello on Ugly Betty’s Gio, (And a Little Henry, Too!)
July 24, 2008 by Tom
EW’s Ausiello gives Ugly Betty a mention in his lastest edition of The Auiello Files:
Any news on the Ugly Betty triangle front? Team Gio supporters need some good news. — June
Ausiello: You might want to consider joining a new team. I hear Freddy Rodriguez won’t be returning this season in any significant capacity. And defecting to Team Henry isn’t an option either. As previously reported, Harper’s Island-bound Christopher Gorham has parted ways with Betty as well.
I know some of you were waiting on more official word before believing the rumors (I don’t blame you). Ausiello is by no means “official”, but he’s pretty darned close.
I’m really looking forward to seeing future work of Freddy Rodriguez and Chris Gorham – I became a real fan of both during Ugly Betty season 2.
I think NOT keeping this news secret is really smart. (Information like this COULD be tightly controlled; the producers just chose not to in this case). They took a page out of the playbook of political professionals: if you are going to do something that could potentially tick off a lot of people, do it as soon as possible, so people have time to get used to the idea and calm down.
As much as I think they are going to give short shrift to two story lines the in which show was heavily invested last season, at the same time, I’m looking forward to this whole “Betty takes on the world” theme this year.
Image:Newscom
Bleh! Seems like Ausiello didn´t found new information after all. He seems to be echoing the THR information (which everyone seems to be doing in the internet these days).
Hey Tom. I´m with you. I also like an independent Betty. I just still think Freddy Rodriguez would do a lot for the ratings of the show playing the outspoken sandwich maker. When it was introduced last season I thought “wow, that was missing”.
Rodriguez, he is in New York (Promoting “Nothing like the holidays”). He could be doing some pre-production work there for his “Bodega Dreams” project. He doesn´t seem to have more jobs coming up. He is available. I still hope they might make an arrangement for several episodes by midseason or next season. We all know they keep writing episodes as the season progresses and they make a lot of changes in the plot.
I like that Gio character. And gladly I hope those few episodes he will be next season are no where near the first 4-5 episodes. They are probably going to be packed with too many side storilines (Daniel, LiLo, Jesse, Betty and her new life, Hilda/Tony, Willy in Mode… etc).
Thanks for the news, Tom.
“do it as soon as possible, so people have time to get used to the idea and calm down.”
I made this very point at MGSG a couple days ago. We must be equally bright. : )
My question is though, why do something you know will “tick off a lot of people?” Even if he yields a net profit in viewers, and that’s a big IF, why settle for either fanbase, when with proper balance, he could have both?
My guess is, this is Ms. Hayek’s preference and always has been. AF has said Hayek told her that Betty would be the “biggest hit since Mary Tyler Moore.” And Horta’s recent comments pretty much describe that show. “…a girl making it in the city and her work life.”
From bgfan: “My question is though, why do something you know will ‘tick off a lot of people?’ Even if he yields a net profit in viewers, and that’s a big IF, why settle for either fanbase, when with proper balance, he could have both?
My guess is, this is Ms. Hayek’s preference and always has been. AF has said Hayek told her that Betty would be the ‘biggest hit since Mary Tyler Moore.’ And Horta’s recent comments pretty much describe that show. ‘…a girl making it in the city and her work life.’ ”
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In theory, it’s easier to consider striking a balance amongst the various fanbases, but in reality, it’s not always possible to make everyone happy – especially on a show like this, where there are clearly several fandoms. With every decision that’s made, the producers are always risking the possibility that they’ll alienate some viewers over others.
Despite their general comments, I personally don’t think that Salma and Silvio plan to keep Betty single forever. For now, however, I think that they want to breathe new life into Betty’s story by starting a fresh chapter in her life. In essence, we’ll still have the Betty we know and love, but for once, certain things in her life will differ this time around.
“do it as soon as possible, so people have time to get used to the idea and calm down.”
Well, I would have agreed with that if they weren’t still using the “who will she choose?” cliffhanger in the promos.
Personally, I would totally understand if they had to write out a character, even one that I like (who am I fooling. One that I adore). But it seems like Horta knew where he wanted the show to go right after the strike and he still chose to focus on Betty’s relationship with Betty in the post-strike episodes.
If Horta knows what he’s doing at all, he will bring Gio back (if he leaves in the first place). I think all he wants is to give Betty a breather so she can refocus her life and deal with all the other crazy stuff that’s going on around her (Daniel being fired and having a child, Pappi getting a new job, meeting Kimmie, Hilda and her affair, etc.)
Oops. I meant he chose to focus on Betty’s relationship with Gio
I’m not really amused by this, at all. I’d have thought that one thing we could count on this season was finally getting some resolution with Betty and Gio’s relationship, especially after all the build-up and the rush with it in the latter half of season 2. I figured the writers wouldn’t have spent so much time on that particular aspect if they weren’t planning on at least addressing it fairly in the new season. But I guess I’m wrong. And I have to say, in my opinion, it makes the writing come off as sloppy and pointless – it’s like all the build-up was for nothing, in the end.
And I’m a Detty shipper at my core! It’s not like I’m madly in love with Gio and Betty – I just really liked the idea of being able to see a relationship between the two of them, it would’ve been different and fun. But alas, no.
In what way was it not possible to please both? Most ’ship’ supporters felt she needed a break before she got involved again. That break would have given the independent Betty supporters their ‘Betty alone’ time.
But that doesn’t appear to be happening either, with yet another guy on the way. I suspect less focus on romantic life + Val’s guest spot + Hayek’s comments = endless revolving door of casual dates ala Mary Tyler Moore.
The message is feminist independence. I’m beginning to think she isn’t going to end up with anyone, dare I say it, not even Daniel. *Ducks from pending attack*
And this isn’t just “some viewers”, this is a large chunk of total viewers. I’m sure I’m wrong, but there’s at least a chance, he’s alienating the wrong group.
From bgfan: “In what way was it not possible to please both? Most ’ship’ supporters felt she needed a break before she got involved again. That break would have given the independent Betty supporters their ‘Betty alone’ time.
But that doesn’t appear to be happening either, with yet another guy on the way. I suspect less focus on romantic life + Val’s guest spot + Hayek’s comments = endless revolving door of casual dates ala Mary Tyler Moore…
And this isn’t just ’some viewers’, this is a large chunk of total viewers. I’m sure I’m wrong, but there’s at least a chance, he’s alienating the wrong group.”
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I’m confused here. If what you’re saying about ’ship’ supporters holds true, then what we’re getting this coming season (by all accounts of the news reports) should present a balance that is generally satisfactory – with Betty taking a break…not from dating altogether, but from having another serious relationship. Pretty much, Betty has never taken a break from having a serious boyfriend. First, it was Walter, then it was Henry. However, this season, it appears that she won’t be involved in another “heavy” relationship (considering Val said Jesse is only around for a few episodes – a temporary gig). In that sense, Betty will be taking a break this coming season by focusing more on herself and not making any serious, long-term attachments to anyone. And that pretty much leaves the door open for anything and everything to happen in the future.
Also, Salma Hayek has been making those comments about “Ugly Betty” since its inception – pretty much because that’s the basic premise of the show. (Silvio has actually done the same in certain interviews in 2007.) But I personally don’t think that those comments – along with what little spoiler info we have for Season 3 so far – is enough to conclude that Betty will be an exact replica of Mary Tyler Moore in the long run. If anything, I usually take the producers’ general comments with a grain of salt because I know they’re only going to say so much about a show’s future w/o giving too much away. (As annoying as it may seem, even I have to admit that they’re good at hiding the ball when necessary. It’s always a guessing game that way – as seen from a few surprising events.)
As for the show’s viewership, I think it’s fair to say that not all of UB’s fanbase are constant online bloggers, commenters, etc. like us. So, the fan response that we see online really only represents the opinions of a subset of UB fans, but not all. For instance, I have a couple of friends who religiously watch the show with me but they never visit the online sites for the show. (They try to rely on me to find out what’s up in UB-land, lol.) When I told them about this news last weekend, they were shocked but not as heartbroken to the point that they would give up on the show.
With that in mind, I think UB fans, in general, will eventually be able to move on from this event, given some time. Of course, it may not happen right away, but being that the TV audience tends to be a mercurial bunch, these things tend to smooth over in one way or another.
We don’t need another show about a single working girl in the city. It’s been done. However, a not great looking chubby girl with a great love life – I don’t recall ever really seeing that on TV. It was interesting and you wanted to see that the not go gorgeous girl could get a great guy.
Getting rid of Henry and Gio and Alexis seems stupid and a waste of last years plot build up. And mean to the loyal viewers who keep the show on the air.
Jace, Thank you for your opinion. What you have described is pretty much what most have expected and actually want, myself included. To take a break from a serious relationship to figure out who she is and what she wants. Most, I think, are ok with that, except it’s not really going to be a balance and it doesn’t sound like it’s going to be temporary.
The new guy will be a side story in the background, her work life will be the focus. Focusing, isn’t balancing, at least not evenly.
Also, Horta didn’t talk about it as a temporary change appropriate to the story line. He’s talking about a broad permanent change to the show; to be work-centered.
“the fan response that we see online really only represents the opinions of a subset of UB fans,”
I was going to make that point as well, that there might be a few thousand viewers online, and of those maybe a few hundred that post. Of course, you can’t lay claim to the offline viewers anymore than I can.
We could make some generalizations about their preferences, but we won’t really know how well this single working girl direction goes over until it hits the general public. It may be the ratings breakthrough they’re looking for.
“We don’t need another show about a single working girl in the city…Getting rid of Henry and Gio and Alexis seems stupid and a waste of last years plot build up. And mean to the loyal viewers who keep the show on the air.”
Well said, Laura, I agree. Seems with the staff change, and wholesale amputations of storylines, a lot has been lost and in an unnecessarily painful way. Amanda’s flattened character and the needless loss of Gio’s character and the relationship and effect he had on Betty’s character are particularly tough to take.
Well, for us UK Ugly Betty fans who have been in the twilight zone ever since the writer’s strike, we never got a chance to be either pro or anti Gio, so I guess it doesn’t hit quite so hard here. However, bearing in mind that Ugly Betty is part of the YSBLF franchise, and that Silvio is committed to bringing more of the telenovelas to the English-speaking world, then I would imagine that he’s not going to stray too far from the original premise of the show. The fact that there is now no Gio or Henry, and only a passing “celeb” actor as a new love interest, may simply mean that Betty and Daniel as a pairing may now be in the offing. Mind you – I don’t see many similarities between UB and YSBLF or any of its siblings, which I think is unfortunate. The Belgian version, Sara, has recently finished, and was fantastic with great charisma between the two leads, good production values and a real corker of an ending. And the two leads in Yo Soy Bea were incredible to watch together, and both versions stayed true to a lot of the original story. I just hope UB doesn’t lose the spirit of the original and stray too far away from the heart of the story – which is simply the story of an innocent soul and how her virtue, integrity and constancy converts her shallow, womanising and selfish boss into someone who is at last worthy of her.