Behind The Scenes Of 'Reversible Errors'

"Gillian is a fascinating character," says Felicity Huffman. "She's very complex. She's an addict, she was disbarred, imprisoned, her life fell apart -- but she was strong enough to come back to the same city where it all happened and own up to what she's done. It's a wonderful opportunity to play her."

Monica Potter, who admits to feeling more at ease doing comedy, wanted to challenge herself with this ambitious, complicated character. "Muriel is really driven and will stop at nothing to achieve her career goals," says Potter. "She knows she's not going to be able to further her career with Larry, a police detective, so she ends up marrying Talmadge -- who is a very prominent lawyer in the city. She does love Talmadge, but she's really in love with Larry… I have to be careful because I don't want to play her so driven that you don't have any feeling for her. I wanted there to be a nice balance." Potter also found herself challenged by the use of lawyer jargon throughout the mini-series. "When I read the script I thought, 'Oh, my God! Unsubstantiated assertions made under some quid pro quo… What does that mean?!' So, I became diligent in studying all of it. I asked my lawyer friends questions about how things work and really started to feel like my character." Continues Potter, "It's nice to play the duality of the two Muriels, the doe-eyed Muriel at the beginning of her career and the married, more established, wealthier Muriel seven years later. Her look has changed; everything about her has changed. You see this exterior that's a bit hardened, but not so much that you can't remember the old Muriel."

Shemar Moore's character had, perhaps, the biggest transformation over the course of the seven years. "I get to play a dark, edgy guy in jail -- and an upstanding, manicured citizen who has found religion," says Moore. "It's a great challenge as an actor, and it's fun to do -- because you transform yourself. A lot of people know me from the land of daytime where I played that watered down nice guy [Malcolm Winters on "The Young and the Restless"]. I had a great ride on that show -- don't get me wrong. But, at this stage in my career, it's nice to rough it up a little bit and show people a different side that they didn't necessarily expect." Moore likens the time he spent on set in shackles, wearing painted-on tattoos and a cornrow wig to Halloween. He enjoyed "getting to play pretend," but laughs, "the only person who's not going to appreciate it is my mother. She's going to freak out. (He mimics her voice.) 'Not my baby, he wouldn't last a day in jail! Those tattoos weren't real, were they?!'" Moore imagines a different reaction from her during Night Two of the mini-series. "My mama will be proud watching me walk around with my Bible, wearing a suit and tie and buzz cut -- and a pretty boy goatee." (He laughs.)

Working with Scott Turow

"I'm a fan of good legal thrillers, and Scott Turow writes them," says Selleck. "I got to meet Scott and his family on set and it was nice to see that we have his support. Writers don't show up on set unless they like what you're doing with their material."

von Zerneck agrees and praises Turow for his involvement and collaborative nature. "He's egoless. He read every draft of the script and was able to embrace it when [scriptwriter Alan Sharp] put words in his characters' mouths -- and omitted or modified things that were in the book. The book is jam-packed and we had to streamline it -- and never once did he say 'Oh, God, I miss that -- put it back.'" Changes include making the mini-series linear, as opposed to jumping back and forth between the year of the original trial and the year of the appeals process -- and shortening the time in-between to seven years from 10. von Zerneck also feels fortunate that Turow, a lawyer, acted as a technical consultant of sorts, making certain that the script depicted the dialogue and actions of lawyers and judges as accurately as the book does.

Mike Robe has become good friends with Turow after having produced and directed the Emmy nominated mini-series "Scott Turow's The Burden of Proof" and was delighted to have another opportunity to work with him. "I think he's one of the greatest novelists working in America, or anywhere in the world, for that matter," proclaims Robe. "Scott's the first one to say you have to find a movie in the novel, and he will roll up his sleeves and work with you to do that. He's extremely collaborative and nothing is sacred. Because he's so collaborative, you want to kill yourself to maintain his singular vision. It's been a wonderful, fruitful experience."

Huffman, a fan of Turow's writing, says she loved Reversible Errors and even read it twice. She was delighted to meet him on set and to learn more about Gillian. Until having spoken to him, Huffman hadn't realized that the character of Gillian was a tiny side note in his novel Personal Injuries -- at the point in her life when her addictions were out of control and she was getting disbarred. "He said it was very interesting to bring her back as a major character with a voice and point of view as opposed to a judge that was just a wreck," explained Huffman. "When you speak to the writer, whether it's a playwright or a novelist, they always have wonderful information and insights about your character. It was great to talk to him."

The Intrigue of Reversible Errors

Referencing his own work as a writer, Macy was impressed with how Turow peppered the courtroom drama with surprises. "There are some red herrings that he doesn't bother to tie up in a nice little bow," says Macy. "When the case is solved, it's solved in a way you didn't expect -- and, in fact, the truth is not served. Justice is served. The truth never comes out -- it's frustrating and delicious." Macy also liked the personal perspectives involved in this story. "In horrifying relief it shows you how good people who are really looking for the truth can go horribly awry. By adding the two love stories it brings home the fact that the judges and lawyers in our judicial system are all just people. They've got their own lives and loves and disappointments and God help you if you happen to find yourself fighting for your life in the criminal system when your lawyer is having a bad day." 

"It's a very clever plot," says Selleck. "The interesting thing about this story is that the four main characters all have different points of view and they all believe they're right. Nobody's going to be able to predict what the truth is, I think, until the very end… The movie deals with some very serious life and death issues, but it's not an issue movie. By the second half of this mini-series I realized that I'd lost all track of whatever issues there were -- though they're there. But, what I really started caring about were the relationships. That's good writing to me, and what keeps people involved is how this story -- and even these issues -- is affecting those specific people.

Robe agrees that, though there are serious themes, the story is fundamentally entertainment. "It talks about how the law is limited in its ability to give us what we would like it to promise. Scott [Turow] has said to me before that it's only through our connections with one another that we can get through the process of the law and get any restoration from that process… As a result, this drama features two loves stories. There's a passion these people have for the case that drives their passion for one another."

Per Potter, "It's a courtroom drama, but it's a mystery and love story as well. You have no idea what's happening from one moment to the next, and you're taken on this ride with all of the characters in the mini-series. Every single character is so rich and layered; you get to explore them and can have empathy and sympathy for all of them."

Monica Potter Reveals Her Crush on Magnum

Potter admits that, to her father's frustration, both she and her mother had crushes on Selleck back when he starred in "Magnum, P.I." While in Halifax for production, an amused Potter came across a ring from a novelty shop that was adorned with a sexy shot of Selleck as Thomas Magnum. She wore it in-between scenes with Selleck -- which gave the two of them a good laugh. She grins, "He's really cute -- I just think he's the greatest. He's funny, too. I don't know if people really know that. Our romantic moments were fun -- and I do love the mustache, but it hurt! By the end of shooting on those days my face was pulsating!," she laughs.

Selleck enjoyed his time with Potter as well. "Monica's great. We're good friends now so I can tease her," shares Selleck. "She's fun to kid around with, which is important on a set. Larry and Muriel's relationship is mostly heat, so it's our job to display that in subtle ways -- again, because people always cover up what they're really feeling…When you have a relationship where characters are intimately involved, it's very difficult to trust somebody you just met and shook hands with and then jump into bed for a love scene. Monica is the kind of actress who commits to that, which makes it really easy."

Real-life husband and wife, Macy and Huffman, each savor opportunities to work together. "I have a make-out scene and sort of a bed scene with my wife. What can be wrong with that?," laughs Macy. "It's great working with Felicity. One -- she's a magnificent actor. She is so emotionally available for anything that any scene can offer. Me, I'm a Lutheran boy; I have to work on it a long, long time. Two -- We get to bring our kids wherever we go." Huffman smiles, "We started out working together in a theater company before we were a couple -- so we've been working together for about 15 years. It's always been something we do really well -- it's always a pleasure to work with Bill. It's like playing tennis with someone whose game is better -- your game level goes up. It's great to go to the set together, be in the trailer together and hang out. He helps me on scenes and I help him; it's just a complete pleasure." Director Mike Robe adds, "It was a joy to rope them both into this project. They have an incredible shorthand in the acting process. It's a joy to behold, and I think it really pays off in the mini-series."