Alias, the spy-fi show that also included an old Italian prophet for some reason, put star Jennifer Garner in a number of wigs. But the bright red one she wore in the premiere still made the biggest impact.
At the ATX Festival, the writers of Alias reunited, gave the usual vague answer about a reboot—“It would be amazing to do it; we’ve even talked with J.J. [Abrams],” said co-executive producer Josh Appelbaum. “The right idea would have to come. We wouldn’t want to do it unless it was absolutely perfect.”—and told stories of the show’s past.
The best one, told by producer Sarah Caplan, was about the red wig sported by Sydney Bristow (Garner) in her rogue undercover mission in the premiere. After seeing three wigs that were the wrong shade of red, Caplan and J.J. Abrams saw a girl with hair that was blonde on top but the perfect shade of red at the tips. That’s when it got weird.
Here’s what happened next, according to Caplain (via EW):
I go to the girl, “Would you mind, can I take a little snippet of the bottom of your hair? We’re looking for this certain color. The director thinks yours is the perfect color.” She looks at me and she goes, “No.” I said, “Really? Why not?” “Well, I’ve grown this hair and that hair has been with me for 14 years.” “I only want a few hairs. Well, we’ll pay you for the little bit of hair.” By now she’s sitting down with her friends. She’s very smart. Finally, she agrees that we can buy a little bit of the hair. I don’t have any money on me, J.J. doesn’t have any money on me, so I wrestle $39 off various members of the crew.
Let that be a lesson to everyone out there: if someone claims to be from a television show and wants your hair—hold out for cash.