While this powwow is upbeat, a little tension will surface in the coming month. The WB, concerned about Amy Jo Johnson's breakout potential, asks Abrams and Reeves to consider recasting the role of Julie. It's a common practice during pilot season, but the producers emphatically refuse. "We were so concerned with creating a compelling lead character that some things fell through the cracks," Abrams admits later. "Julie isn't interesting in the pilot. Any actress would've suffered the same reaction Amy Jo got. But she's as amazing as Keri."
Ultimately, The WB execs defer to the producers. "You have to get in business with people you trust, and they really believed in Amy Jo," WB programming VP Susanne Daniels says later. "And after seeing the second episode, I think they were right." (One suggestion the producers did embrace: a fifth regular to add conflict. So the producers create Elena--played by Tangi Miller, 24--a streetwise classmate who'll challenge the relatively sheltered white-bread Felicity.)
Meanwhile, the pilot tape is working its way down Madison Avenue; ad execs are smitten, comparing Felicity to last season's breakout Ally McBeal as well as to the critical darling (but commercial failure) My So-Called Life. Hollywood agents are already sending Abrams and Reeves congratulations. Knowing a jinx when they hear one, the folks at Felicity start calling the show Flopcity.
--THE OFFICIAL SCREENING Mid-May. Manhattan. Twenty well-groomed Warner Bros. suits have gathered in a skyscraper suite to review all of The WB's fall candidates and decide which will make the schedule. "Buffy beat Home Improvement last night among 18- to 34-[year-olds]!" notes Kellner, scanning overnight ratings. "We're really starting to break through!"
After Felicity is screened, the mood is electric. "Keri just slips off the screen," says Warner Bros. COO Barry Meyer. "She's going to be a big star." Kellner is more enamored than ever. "I love this show," he says. "If you take all the beautiful women on our network, it looks like a fashion magazine." It also looks like Felicity will make the schedule. Question is...where?
--THE SCHEDULE MEETING Three days later. This time 10 execs huddle in the same room, staring numbly at another schedule board filled with potential scenarios. Poor Felicity's been shuttled all over the slate. First it's paired with sitcoms to launch a new night of programming on Friday. Then it's slotted on Mondays at 9 and Wednesdays at 9; in both cases, everyone figures there's too much of a demo overlap with Fox's strong opposing shows (Ally and Party of Five, both hits with young females). Finally, the Felicity placard rests on the Tuesday-at-9 slot, just as Krantz had hoped last month; Dawson, meanwhile, has moved to Wednesday at 8, opposite Fox's still-solid Beverly Hills 90210. "We're asking Dawson to do a lot after 13 episodes," Daniels worries. WB entertainment president Garth Ancier responds: "Do you think Felicity Wednesday at 8 is more competitive than Dawson Wednesday at 8?" Kellner's feeling is that Dawson's already strong enough to challenge an aging show. Furthermore, he says, "we know we can make a drama work Tuesdays at 9. And Felicity is the best new show on any network." Ancier agrees, adding that there's no competition in terms of Felicity's target demo: "It's unopposed on Tuesdays."
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