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Scheduled Slides

Ironically, O'Connell's career appears to be at a cross-roads. Following good reviews for Jerry Maguire and Scream 2, the actor appears primed for the big screen and admits that his hiatus from Sliders will be filled with feature work. "There's a great deal to be said for going on location on a big-budget movie for three months and working with many different people. But Sliders has given me the opportunity to act, produce and direct, things I might not have the opportunity to do away from television. Besides, it's impossible to get bored with this series. We're constantly all over the place. So, if you're asking me if I'll ever consider leaving the show, right now I"d have to say, "I'm here until there is no more Sliders."

Nor does he foresee leaving the science fiction universe. "I've based my choices to this point on the opportunity to play different characters, and SF, fantasy and horror have certainly afforded me those ooportunities. I'm also not one of those actors who's using the genre as a stepping stone to other things. This genre is definitely legitimate and is becoming more so all the time. I have a very strong base in the genre, and I would be crazy to completely go away from it."

Likewise, two Sliders alumni may slide again. According to O'Connell, Rhys-Davies has tentatively agreed to return for a few eps. And Lloyd hasn't ruled out the possibility of re-appearing this season either. "That's the neat thing about Sliders. Nothing is definite or for sure. Just because something happened in one universe does not mean it's that way elsewhere. Anything is possible in this show, and for me that's really neat," O'Connell explains.

"Jerry! We need Jerry on the set!"

O'Connell sighs at the call of the director to return to action. Next week, he'll be in the director's seat. but this night he's just an actor-and the producer. "I'm doing 2000 things," chuckles Jerry O'Connell as he gets up to leave. "But that's why I'm getting the big bucks."

Sibling Ribaldry

Charlie O'Connell is the new kid on the Sliders block. That's why he's still in the dark about things. "I'm the newest guy, so I don't know what it was like before. Yeah, I'm the rookie, but I'm starting to get it."

"It" is the intracacies of portraying Quinn Mallory's long-lost and -beginning with the sixth ep of the new Sliders-now-found brother Colin Mallory, who has slid into a regular role on the series. O'Connell, during a break in shooting, jokes about the fact that he was choosen to play the brother of the character played by his real-life brother.

"Yeah, it's a real gas, isn't it?" he laughs. "the fact that they were looking for a brother, and I just happen to fit the look."

O'Connell readily admits that nepotism was rampant in the casting decision. Still, he felt a burden joining an established show. "In the beginning, it was a little scary. There was the pressure of being Jerry's brother and fitting in with everyone. Obviously, I knew a great deal about the show, and I was made to feel quite comfortable by the rest of the cast and crew."

Colin Mallory, according to Sliders mythology, has been living on a parallel Earth. his rudimentary knowledge of nature and science in waht O'Connell describes as an "Amish land" has branded him as both "a genius and a witch."

When he inadvertently slides into the show's present, Colin has some catching up to do. "I'm not used to technology, and I start out as an innocent," O'Connell notes. "There's a lot he has to get used to-like the concept of sliding for openers. In one ep, I discover what a toilet is, and I'm truely amazed. We've alrready shot an ep in which I get out of a tough situation when I discover how to use a pocket knife. I'm the child of the group, but my character is definitely growing. Besides, considering my size, it would be tough for me to play an innocent all the time."

O'Connell, born and raised in NY, began his acting career early-appearing in commercials by age nine. Charlie and Jerry went to different high schools, but got back together during their college years at NYU where Charlie, when he wasn't cutting up as a member of the fencing team, majored in drama.

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