Prepon’s pen pals
Laura Prepon is back full- time for season three of Orange is the New Black
Laura Prepon of Orange is the New Black made me laugh out loud hard when I asked if she ever hears from people who actually are in prison.
“You know, ever since ( Th at) ‘ 70s Show, I’ve always gotten fan mail from inmates,” Prepon said. “So it’s not really anything new. Same old, same old, Bill, you know?” Now that’s funny. As for fi ctional penitentiaries, the big news for fans of Orange is the New Black is that Prepon’s character, Alex Vause, is back full- time for season three, which debuts Friday, June 12 on Netfl ix. After being a fulltime cast member in season one, Prepon appeared in only four episodes in season two.
Th e Alex character wasn’t sidelined by choice, bur rather because Prepon had a scheduling confl ict.
“What happened was, I did a one- year deal with Netfl ix — I really loved the show, but I didn’t do a six- year deal with them — so I ended up having a job that was conflicting with season two,” Prepon explained.
“Jenji ( Kohan, creator of Orange is the New Black) and I had a conversation before anything even got out about me not being in all of season two. Jenji and I were way ahead of it, she knew about the confl ict, and we were just like, ‘ Let’s do as many as I can.’ So I was able to do four ( episodes in season two).
“Th e girls would be like, ‘ Why aren’t you here?’ It was like a whole thing, and it sucked, because I really wanted to be. As soon as I could, I said, ‘ Jenji, I want to be back on the show.’ And it worked out, so now I’m back ( full- time) for seasons three and four.”
Luckily, the Alex character is a criminal recidivist, so it wasn’t hard to get her back behind bars, right? But there are many factors influencing the return of Alex, as you’ll see.
Orange is the New Black is an award- winning comedy- drama set at Litchfi eld Penitentiary that is based on a memoir of the same name by Piper Kerman. In the TV show, the lead character is named Piper Chapman, and she’s played by Taylor Schilling.
Prepon’s Alex character is based on a real person, too, but as Prepon pointed out, the TV show’s plot lines have moved beyond the book.
“When we fi rst started I wasn’t able to talk to Cleary Wolters, who is the person Alex Vause is based on ( the character was called Nora Jansen in the Orange is the New Black book),” Prepon said. “And now ( Wolters) has put out her own book and she just sent it to me and wrote me this whole nice letter, actually.
“Th e fi rst season pretty much stuck to ( Piper Kerman’s) book, but when you get all these actors together, you see how things sprout. Like, Pennsatucky ( Taryn Manning) and Big Boo ( Lea DeLaria) have a story line this year that’s so great.
“It takes on a life of its own, so now we’re kind of into Orange is the New Black TV world, and not so much the book world.”
Prepon, of course, has been well known to TV audiences since she played Donna Pinciotti on Th at ‘ 70s Show, which aired from 1998 to 2006. Presently Prepon is thrilled to be on a modern series that has so many strong roles for women.
“First of all, as an actress in our business, it’s hard to fi nd an incredible role like Alex Vause, let alone a bunch of incredible, strong female roles,” Prepon said. “And all on one show? Th at’s unheard of.”
Yet Prepon’s Alex Vause certainly is one of the fan favourites, no matter where you live.
“Yeah, I defi nitely do get fan mail from prison,” Laura Prepon said.
And it’s only partially related to Orange is the New Black.