by SP

"Guess Who’s Coming Back?" PART 3

Life and Career After TLW

Since the Marina role on The L Word was ended, Lombard appeared on the television show Dr. Vegas (CBS, 2004). It stared Rob Lowe and Lombard played Jessica Rhodes (Black Widow). The show was cancelled after only 5 episodes.

She is currently starring on The 4400 (USA Network, 2004-2006). The show deals with the stories of 4400 abductees who have no memories of their experiences after they were returned to Earth. Different characters deal with traumatic changes driven by the mystery of what happened to them and why. All of them have been affected in some way, and some begin to possess certain abilities, both good and bad.

This sci-fi show instantly became a TV hit and Karina Lombard was invited for its second season to play Alana Mareva, wife of one of the main characters, Tom Baldwin (played by Joel Gretsch) and also one of the 4400 missing persons who acquired special powers. Her character creates comforting alternative realities for her husband and, as Lombard said in her interview with The New York Daily News, he became addicted to that comfort, because “it's better than drugs.”

She also hopes that this show will continue bringing more fans, the same way as her character Marina gained so many faithful followers during the first season of The L Word.

In her interview with NY Daily News she said, “I have to say fans of The L Word are unbelievably dedicated … I'm very very flattered, they even have web sites for me. And that's why you know, if I was asked to go back, I would want to bring Marina back in a beautiful way.”

Marina’s Surprise Return

The beginning of the second season of The L Word opened with Marina’s unexpected attempted suicide and sudden return to Italy. The story was told without an appearance by Lombard. Soon rumors began circulating about the reasons behind Marina’s exit from the storyline one of which that Lombard was simply not asked back as her storyline was finished.

However, that rumor was proven to be false as Lombard’s lawyer stated on the Save Marina website, “She was invited but unfortunately the business terms and amount of episodes offered were not workable. It’s too bad. She would really like to be back on the show. Your continued efforts are always helpful. If Showtime sees how much the fans want her, they may come back with a fairer proposal.”

Lombard expressed an interest in returning to the second season because, as she mentioned in her Curve interview, she knew right away that The L Word would be a groundbreaking project “because of the stories, the actors, everything about it…” and she was excited to be a part of it. When she was interviewed by Planet Out earlier in 2004, she replied that Marina might return but it would depend “if Showtime invites me back.”

Another rumor more disturbing to Lombard’s reputation implied that the actress was having some problems on the set and that she was difficult to work with.

According to the February 2005 issue of Entertainment Weekly, Ilene Chaiken was asked about Marina’s fate and about the rumors that the actress was leaving because of on-set friction. Chaiken replied, “I’m going to give you my for-record-answer: We were done with that story.”

Chaiken was more elaborate about that issue in the recent January 2006 interview with The Advocate, when she replied to the question about Lombard’s working attitude, “You know, it’s not appropriate thing to talk about. Karina is a lovely girl, a good actor. She was fabulous on the show, she’s stunningly beautiful, and for many, many reasons we chose not to go forward together…it didn’t have to do with her performance. I think that she did a wonderful job with her character. Initially, as conceived, that character was in service of Jenny’s story, and I had always thought that we would be finished with the character when we finished that story – that, coupled with the fact that our interests did not converge. Karina wanted entirely different things from her character and her story than we did. And unfortunately, in the world of TV series producing, it’s not the actor who gets to say what’s going to happen to her character.”

This last statement brings us all to a certain reality. In TLW world, Chaiken has the last and final word. Many cast members expressed similar sentiments in numerous interviews regarding the fact that they can make some minor suggestions but they cannot change their storylines.

In Lombard’s case, one rumor indicated that the Bette and Tina split at the end of the first season, was a way for writers to pair characters Tina and Marina as a romantic couple. She would have then come between The L Word’s favorite couple and made Bette insanely jealous.

Whether this rumor is true or not, the bottom line is that this show belongs to Ilene Chaiken.

This is how Lombard herself explains the decision behind ending Marina and Jenny story after the first season was over. In her July 2005 interview with Playboy Magazine she reflected about her role on the show, “I became popular, and I guess that's not good...And then suddenly with the rest of the cast it became all about politics, ego, and who's the better flatterer, all stuff I can't stand…Anyway, I did the show because it was dangerous and my character was dangerous, and what happened on the show happened with a lot of tension and buildup. But now there’s no more tension in the show. It’s become just about girls doing it.”

Was there ever a possibility of Marina ever coming back? Lombard answered that question in her June 2006 interview with The New York Daily News when she was promoting her new show, The 4400. When asked about return to The L Word, she replied, “Everything happens in Hollywood.”

In the January 2006 Advocate interview, Chaiken also stated, “I could say for the record that Marina is not ever coming back. But there will be a new character introduced in the last episode of our third season who’s all that and more…I’m glad that Marina’s memory still holds that mojo for a lot of people, and I think we’ll top it yet.”

This was the final statement of the show’s ultimate decision-maker. But does it mean that everything she says is final? Apparently not.

A report on AfterEllen.com announced Marina’s return to the lesbian drama. Speculation and rumor indicate that Lombard will reprise the role for the first, if not first couple of episodes and many fans are excitedly awaiting to see what kind of trouble she will stir up for Jenny and the gang. Showtime has yet to confirm Lombard’s return. Season four currently is in production in Vancouver.

Fun Facts: from Karina World fan website and interview with the PlanetOut

• Karina was previously married to Anthony Crane (model/actor and playwright) for 7+ years
• Karina did all her own stunts in Kull the Conqueror
• Karina has won Four – First American in the Arts Awards
• Some of Karina favorite movies: Amelie, All About Eve, Some Like It Hot, Amadeus, Blade Runner
• Some of Karina’s favorite CD’s: Mozart, Café Del Mar, Erik Satie, Sinead O’Connor, Amelie Soundtrack
• Karina’s favorite books: Mists of Avalon, The Game of Life & How to Play it, Many Lives, Many Masters
• Least favorite feature of her body: Feet
• Karina’s idea of the perfect day off: “Being at the beach. A Tahiti beach. Well, any beach, but Tahiti's not bad. See, I was born in Tahiti and the island is really skinny … it's almost like a bean. I was born literally between the water.”
• Part of a woman she find most attractive:  “Her self-confidence. See, it's not about a part of the body, it's about the whole, really -- what it ... radiates. Which goes back to self-confidence. But … there's something about insecurity that's very charming sometimes, you know?”
• The most romantic thing she has ever done for someone: “I wrote a song for someone.”

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