Allentown Central Catholic grad Christine Taylor seems to have a knack for appearing in TV shows and movies that years after their release become cult hits.
Think of "Zoolander," which didn't do particularly well with critics or audiences when it came out in 2001. But now it is so beloved that a sequel is in the works from Taylor's husband, writer/director Ben Stiller.
And there's "Dodgeball" (2004), a hit movie that failed to score big with critics during its original run. Just like "Zoolander," the film endured and 20th Century Fox recently announced plans for a "Dodgeball" sequel.
Of all Taylor's projects, none has risen in stature more than Fox TV series "Arrested Development," which drew low ratings when it aired 2003-2006.
Now, seven years after the last episode was broadcast, the cast members — and memorable guest stars such as Wescosville native Taylor — have reunited for a fourth season of the Emmy-winning show that Entertainment Weekly called "one of the most hilarious, subversive, inventive comedies of the aughts."
"When I got the call about the show, it was very exciting," Taylor says. "Just like everyone else, I'd heard rumors that there might be a movie or more episodes. Last summer, they called and said they wanted to bring me back. But that was all they told me. They just said, 'Are you going to be around L.A. during these dates?'"
All 15 episodes of the new season will be available for streaming on Netflix beginning on Sunday, May 26. If the episodes are deemed a success, an "Arrested Development" movie might get made.
The show revolves around the Bluths, a wealthy family that lost their cash thanks to some shady dealings by patriarch George Sr. (Jeffrey Tambor). Barely holding the clan together is Michael (Jason Bateman), who is saddled with a shallow twin sister (Portia de Rossi), an overly confident older brother (Will Arnett) and a mama's boy younger brother (Tony Hale). Jessica Walter, David Cross, Michael Cera and Alia Shawkat round out the cast.
Taylor first made her appearance on the show in 2004, during the second season. She played Sally Sitwell, a woman Michael has had a crush on since they were kids. But once they start dating, Michael, being a Bluth, blows it by telling Sally that his ex (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) might be pregnant with his child.
Since the "Arrested" cast members all have TV and movie careers, they were rarely on set at the same time. Each character gets his or her own episode and will pop up in a few of the others, with Bateman being the only actor to appear in every episode.
In addition to Taylor, the guest stars will include Liza Minnelli, James Lipton, Kristen Wiig, Seth Rogen, Isla Fisher, Conan O'Brien and Stiller.
In the new series, Taylor will appear in two or three episodes but, strangely enough, she only interacts with Bateman for a moment or two. All of her scenes will be with de Rossi and Minnelli. She also has a brief interlude with Stiller.
"It was so much fun," reports Taylor. "I've always been a big fan of the show and its characters. So there was nothing cooler then and now than to get the opportunity to spend time with Liza. She's sharp as a tack and has a great sense of humor. And I've known Portia for years. So the three of us had a blast."
As preparation for her work on the new season of "Arrested," Taylor went back and watched old episodes.
"It's never easy looking at yourself 10 years ago," she says. "Forget watching 'Hey Dude' [her 1989-92 series] where I had to look at myself 20 years ago. Then, I could just say, 'Youth, that was nice.'
"But the best part about watching the episodes was that they reminded me of how over-the-top and crazy the show was, and that's what I loved about it. It was just so outrageous and there were no limits on what you could do. I laughed a lot when I watched it again."
Through the years, Taylor says she's been recognized almost as much for playing Sally Sitwell as for more high-profile gigs like Marcia Brady in "The Brady Bunch Movie" or lifeguard Melody in "Hey Dude."
"The quintessential fan reaction to me is usually, 'Oh, Marcia,'" says Taylor with a laugh. "And, of late, [since the release of the 'Hey Dude' DVDs], I've been recognized as Melody quite a bit. But it always amazes me when I'm in a grocery store line and I get, 'Hey, how's Sally Sitwell?'"
With all 15 episodes of "Arrested" being made available at the same time, the series is ideal for binge-viewing. Taylor says she and Stiller got hooked on the Netflix series "House of Cards" by watching all of the episodes at once. And, at the moment, she's "devouring episode after episode" of the acclaimed HBO series "The Wire."
In 2004 when Taylor was shooting her episodes for the second season of "Arrested," she was pregnant with her second child, Quinn, who's just about to turn 8. Her daughter Ella is 11.
It wasn't long after she shot "Arrested" that she began scaling back her workload to make her kids a priority.
