By Maranda Faris and Max Smith
Wizard World Comic Con held its final day of Nashville events with panels from Charmed cast members, Star Trek: The Next Generation stars and Eliza Dushku.
Brian Krause, Holly Marie Combs and Shannen Doherty of Charmed kick off their panel at noon.
The panel discussed the relationship between Combs and Krause’s characters, Piper and Leo, throughout the course of the series, as well as a new show hosted by Doherty and Combs, Off the Map with Shannen and Holly.
A main topic of discussion throughout the day was Vine, which dominated a portion of the 45 minute Q&A. Inspired by teenage social media celebrities Nash Grier, Hayes Grier and Carter Reynolds, whose meet-and-greet preceded the panel, the trio decided to start their own Vine channel.
The session ended with their what Doherty called the first Vine, but in the end yelled, “It’s 10 seconds! We can’t use it!”
The panel was followed by a discussion with Eliza Dushku on her work with Joss Whedon on the shows Dollhouse and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
Dushku noted that her part in Dollhouse was due to a lunch with Whedon.
“I took him to lunch and told him to write me a show,” she said during the talk.
The actress, known for her strong female leads, said that her portrayal was a direct influence of her mother Judith, a professor who Dushku called “a badass” in her discussion.
“I just assumed I would follow in her footsteps,” Dushku said of her relationship with her mother before entering the film industry. “But in the last five or six years I’ve been working with my mother in her nonprofit in northern Uganda.”
Dushku said she has two films releasing soon, Eloise and Jane Wants a Boyfriend, and is pursuing a degree in sociology.
The weekend’s panels ended with a discussion by Gates McFadden and Jonathan Frakes of Star Trek: The Next Generation.
The pair walked up to their seats singing and told stories from their time on the show, such as McFadden being the first woman to direct an episode of the series, Frakes’s tenacity as a director and each actor’s favorite Star Trek series.
Frakes’ favorite is Deep Space Nine, but McFadden couldn’t choose.
McFadden told audience members that she first left the show after numerous run-ins with one particular writer, only to return after a call from Patrick Stewart asking her to come back.
She spoke openly about a stalking incident that made her fear the franchise’s most devoted fans for several years. She said her feelings toward Trekkies changed when she began reading fan-mail.
“I didn’t think that people cared in that way,” McFadden said. “I feel so lucky to have this job.”
To see out full Wizard World Comic Con coverage, click here.
As with Saturday’s session with LeVar Burton and Brent Spiner, fans’ questions launched convivial conversations between old friends.
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To contact Lifestyles editor John Connor Coulston, email lifestyles@mtsusidelines.com
