French Interview of Katie Jacobs http://www.ozap.com/actu/-dr-house-la-productrice-reconnait-que-la-serie-est-parfois-allee-trop-loin/447537 & translation

"HOUSE MD": THE PRODUCER ACKNOWLEDGES THAT THE SERIES HAS "SOMETIMES GONE TOO FAR"
Currently in Monte-Carlo Television Festival, Katie Jacobs looks back at the end of "House MD" after eight years, the difficult negotiations and the departure of certain actors.

Since yesterday, actors and producers of TV series have arranged to meet in Monte Carlo for the 53rd Television Festival. It is in this context that puremedias.com was able to meet Katie Jacobs, co-creator and producer of " House MD ", whose eighth and final season has ended last year in the USA, and whose last episode aired in France on TF1, on March 19, with a good record of audiences whereas ratings in the United States had dropped considerably. An opportunity to discuss with Katie Jacobs the highs and lows of the series, the difficult negotiations at the end of season 7, or more simply the implications of her role as producer.

Interview by Charles Decant.

-Let's start with a simple question: what is the role of producer or producer? What was your involvement in "Dr. House"?
-This is a very good question! Because when we look at the series, we see a lot of names of people who are producers. The idea of the series " House MD " comes from me. There are several types of producers, and I'm a creative producer. The idea for the series came to me after reading an article in the New York Times Magazine, the idea of a medical series that is also a mystery: what happens for this patient? Gail Berman was director of Fox at the time and I remembered that earlier this year, she had told me "I want a medical show, but I do not want to see white coats running around the corridors". I had worked with David Shore on a series before, I had a contract with him. He was a lawyer before being writer, and he told me "I cannot write a medical series, I'm a lawyer". I told him but yes! As a non-writer producer, I had to find directors, organize castings, find teams ...

-All this is what you had to do at first, to start the series. But you remained producer during eight seasons: what were you doing on the show?
-I was very involved. I interacted a lot between the network and the studio. And then there was also the aesthetics of the show. We had to find directors because there were 24 episodes per season. It is therefore necessary to hire qualified people to recreate on screen the spirit of the series. And then we had to follow the construction of the sets, there was marketing, advertising, post-production ...

-And you managed to continue to live through all this?
-I lived there, on the spot! They would not let me out much! (Laughs) Some departed to have children, returned, and I was still there! But it was a fantastic job. I worked with phenomenal writers, talented teams, magnificent actors ...

"Sometimes we went too far"
-You sold the idea of the series to Fox. At the time, heroes as negative as that did not really exist, at least not on the big networks. Was it difficult?
-Yes. It was new and it was complicated. But one of the strengths of an actor as talented as Hugh Laurie is that as well as being smart, sarcastic and arrogant, he is mostly funny! That makes things easier. And he has a real depth of soul! He is the kind of actor who can be one thing on the outside and another inside when you focus the camera on him. He may be arrogant, even nasty, but if you look in his eyes, he invites you to discover. One sees that there is something else behind his wickedness. If we had cast the wrong actor, I think he would not have been forgiven so many things.

-Exactly, House has done some rather awful things throughout the seasons. The fans were sometimes very critical of the character's actions, some felt that he could not be forgiven. Have you often asked yourself the question of how far it was possible to go?
-We continuously pondered this question! Medically speaking, he could never go too far as long as he did not kill the patient. If he saved, all the crazy stuff they were allowed was justified. That he stops their heart, that he withdraw all their blood, that he causes seizures ... As long he (the patient) survives he can go as far as one wants. But emotionally and socially, it is a very different matter. I think, for several seasons, the fact that he kept a certain distance from people was understandable because actually that came from a weakness. At the beginning of the series, of course, the fact that he has a disability was not arbitrary. He said he did not like to see patients, but in reality, he did not like to be seen by them. Because it is difficult to trust a doctor who is disabled, according to him. He was hiding a lot. Sometimes we went too far. And fans made this known to us.

“The end of the series was hard"
-When there is a central character as strong, how does one still develop interesting storylines for the characters that surround it?
-What's funny is that each character who was brought into contact with House was actually a way to learn more about him. And this is one of the things I most loved when we introduced new characters in season 4. It was a new way to discover his reactions to different characters. One never knew what to expect. It was fortunate that the other actors had the strength and stature to interpret strong characters. What I loved when we were doing table reads - we sat around a table before each episode to read the script - was that actors like Robert Sean Leonard and Omar Epps and Lisa Edelstein had their own voice. We never had weak or similar characters. One would never have confused Cuddy and Cameron, who are two very different personalities.

-Putting an end to it after eight seasons, was it difficult?
-It was hard. Because we had became a little family. We only thought of that. So that made a huge change. One is not accustomed to have jobs that last so long! In fact, never! So it was bittersweet. I was very grateful and proud of what I accomplished. But it was also a real goodbye.

"I could tell the story of House opens a pharmacy!"
-Were there more stories to tell?
-It is difficult to know when to stop. But it depends on who you ask the question. David Shore, for example ... He worked like crazy. He ran the writers room, he was also a producer ... He was tired! (Laughs) For me, that was not the case. The character of House is a character that I always love and I will continue to dream of his adventures, of what he might do today. Without doubt I would have gone a little longer. I remember the double episode that opens season 6, it was not even in the hospital. It was interesting for me, it allowed me to imagine what could be done outside of that place. I could go on because I was really invested, I was fascinated and I really loved this character. I could tell the story of House opening a pharmacy!

-You are satisfied with the end of the series?
-For me it is a little fuzzy. The end of the series is unclear to me because there were conflicting emotions. I saw less of the end of the series than all the other seasons. One day I will really look at depth. I remember Hugh telling me about the documentary "Swan Song" that he made about the show, just before the end. One day, I saw that I had automatically recorded and it made me sad ... ! This is hard!

-Is Wilson finally House’s soul mate?
-I think so, yes. In any case, in the version we saw, with the end that we know. But beyond, I think it there must be a female sister soul for him somewhere. But if Wilson is his soul mate, it does not bother me! However, it is not Cuddy. No, I do not think so.

"The decline in resources has been a challenge"
-Getting back to the end, we heard a lot during the last two seasons about the financial negotiations, for "Dr. House" to have a season 8. As a producer, you had to fight for the series. One imagines that it suddenly became more bitter than sweet, ...
-It’s actually a little bit what I was referring to when I spoke of the end which was a bit fuzzy for me. These things are not arbitrary. I have a somewhat unique perspective, as I was executive producer. At the end of season 7, audiences have fallen. So for season 8, we had less money. But that's how it is! But for me, from the moment I know the heart of my series, in this case House, if one gives me ten nuts to do the series, I will do it for ten nuts. But if one only gives me two, I find a way to do it for two nuts. For me, the important are the characters. The fact that we have had less money was outrageous and unfair for some, but for me it was a challenge. Audiences fell at the end of season 7, so it was up to us to make do! I know this is not a typical point of view, but it's mine.

-It is very practical!
-Yes, it's true. So for me, this was a somewhat weird period. And I'm not the type to be filled with anger. I was still happy to have the chance to imagine this character and his adventures.

-What are your plans now that "House" is over?
-First, I am delighted to be here, without producing anything! It allows me to get out of my office a little and leave the country! I'm working on a film for Sony right now. And maybe a new series, I'm at the very beginning but I'm not sure it will happen. But whatever happens, there will always be a little thread of a theme in my work, which is that I am interested in the redemption of characters, whether they deserve it or not. People whose behaviour does not reflect what they are. I am like that, a little romantic.

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