by David Richardson
Article & pic appeared in Shivers, May 2000
We speak to Harry Groener, who scored a surprise hit as the villainous Mayor of Sunnydale in Buffy.
It was, perhaps, one of the most delightful surprises in the latest season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. In This Year's Girl, the first episode of an epic two-parter in which Buffy is once again pitched against her arch-enemy Faith. The Mayor of Sunnydale is back.
Not, admittedly, from the dead. The last time we saw him, in the Season Three finale Graduation, Mayor Wilkins achieved ascension only to be blown to smithereens along with Sunnydale High School. In This Year's Girl we first see the master of evil in a dream sequence, picnicking with his young protégé, before he is seen on a pre-recorded videotape, bestowing a unique artefact on Faith that will allow her to swap bodies with Buffy.
Counting his blessings in being allowed to recreate the role, Groener admits that he had always wanted The Mayor to return.
Recreation?
"Anything is possible in sci-fi," he asserts. "If he's supposed to be an evil demon and one of the most powerful, even if his body is gone the evil might be powerful enough to recreate himself. You can justify anything, unless you are a vampire who gets dusted and gone for good. I think it would be great if at the end of the season The Mayor shows up again. That would be a great kick off for the season after! That would just be heaven."
While the character had been referred to on screen during Season Two, the Mayor did not make his debut until Season Three's Faith, Hope and Trick. Even then, in a sly bit of plotting from Joss Whedon, the audience were led to believe that the year's chief villain would be new vampire in town Mr Trick. It took a few episodes for The Mayor to rise to prominence - and for Whedon to realise what a first class talent he had hired in Groener.
"I was hired for eight episodes," says the actor. "That was the understanding and it turned out to be 11. My agent told me that this is an audition for Buffy and there was the potential that this role could go for eight episodes, so I said great. I was very aware of the show. I didn't get to see every single episode but I'd seen many of them and I love what I saw."
A veteran character actor on stage and television, Groener's credits include Law and Order, St Elsewhere, Mad About You, Sleepwalkers and two generations of Star Trek. He admits to being taken somewhat aback by the massive critical response to The Mayor, from fan writings on the internet right through to the big thumbs up from mainstream publications like Entertainment Weekly.
"I've done a lot of television and this doesn't usually happen. It's a pleasant surprise. Many people have stopped me and said, 'You're The Mayor!' It's fabulous."
The Charm of Evil
In many ways the character walked a fine line between charm and evil. One minute he could be complaining about bad etiquette, the next he could be planning the slaughter of thousands.
"I don't think it was a fine line," he says. "It was fairly simple: Joss' only direction was not to go too evil - don't worry about twirling a moustache; don't overdo the threat. He is a threat enough as it is, you don't have to push it. Once in a while you become a little bit too evil and he goes, "No, don't worry about that. Just play it.'"
Did Groener take any influences from anyone he knew in real life in order to create this most distinctive of characters?
"No, there's nobody I know that's like this!" he grins. "Look at the people who seem to be nice, everyday people who then go out and shoot people. They suddenly take a gun and go bam, bam, bam and we say, 'How did this happen?' The man was married, had two kids and seemed happy. He's a very normal guy but he's created this incredible evil by killing and maiming and destroying.
"This kind of evil, this kind of negativity, is probably present in many of us, but we're just advanced enough not to let it come out into the forefront of our personalities. It's wonderful - it really is a lovely role. I feel very fortunate that I got to do this."
While playing this invincible force for evil, Groener became involved in some astounding special effects sequences. The first found the Mayor allowing himself to be struck by a sword, which split his head down the middle. Before his attacker's eyes, the two halves simply resealed themselves back into an undamaged whole. "There are many stages to that one shoot," Groener recalls. "It's fascinating when you're actually doing it. You shoot the scene where the vampire that is supposed to destroy you is let loose and he runs toward you with the sword and he's about to chop your head open.
"He only goes to a certain point and then they bring in this mechanical head that they have made. It's on a pedestal - it's only the head and the top of the shoulders. They put a wig on it and matched it to my hair and put a jacket and tie and stuff like that... But the head does actually split. It's all mechanical.
"Then they have to shoot the part - coming out of the cage, running towards it and actually splitting the head. There's a man who has a lever that splits the head open and he has to time it with the actor, so the sword goes down the head and he opens it at the right time. They shot this from behind, obviously, because the face of the head they had made is not mine.
"Then they go in front of a green screen and I stand there and it's a very technical part. The camera is stationary, they place me precisely and say, 'Move your head to the right. Don't tilt your face up. Then go left. Then look in that direction... Tilt back. Ok that's it, thanks.' Then they go into the studio with all the computers and edit it together and do the CGI work."
Ascension
The actor endured a similar process for the Mayor's ascension, as his body was literally ripped apart as it transformed into a serpent. Although these sequences were time consuming to shoot, Groener insists that he found it far from tedious.
"I didn't get bored at all," he states. "I can't imagine what it must be like doing on of the Star Wars where you're doing much of the work in front of a green screen. That eventually must get rather tedious because you're playing to a pinpoint - you're not really playing to a person. But for me it was very easy and very interesting."
An engaging conversationalist, Groener is more than happy to recall his days on Buffy. It was, he says, one of the highlights of his career.
"The cast is lovely and it was such a pleasure all on the set always hanging out with each other and having a good time," he offers. "Joss is so supportive and really enjoys what he is doing. He's one of these very young, brilliant writers who has a great story. I really had such a fabulous time working on this show."
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