“Uhhhhhh.”
That was Melanie Scrofano’s reaction to reading the first script of the new supernatural series Wynnona Earp, which premieres April 1 at 10 p.m. on Syfy in the U.S. and April 4 at 9 p.m. on CHCH in Canada.
“It was just a visceral reaction to how cool it is,” she laughs, “It was just such a no-brainer. But I don’t know how you’re going to spell, ‘Uhhhhhh.'”
The Ottawa native had a similarly non-verbal reaction to finding out she landed the part of the badass demon-fighting gunslinger — who is based on an IDW comic character created by Beau Smith — over 300 other actresses who auditioned for the role. “I found out before I found out,” she says. “Somebody sort of very graciously, sweetly texted me and said, ‘I’m so glad you’re going to be bringing Wynonna to life,’ but I hadn’t got the call yet. I started pacing and freaking out and going, “Uhhh, uhhh,” and I called my agent and then when I found out, I screamed and I cried.”
Scrofano’s excitement is understandable. Though she has amassed a long list of television credits, including substantial roles on The Listener, Being Erica, and Damien, Wynonna Earp is the first series she’s headlined.
Asked if that was daunting, she responds, “I think it should have been really overwhelming, but this has never happened before: Every single producer from IDW and from [production company] Seven24 called me or emailed me to tell me how excited they were to have me and that I was the perfect Wynonna. There wasn’t a second that went by where I felt like there was a single person that was doubting what I could do. It gave me so much. I was like, ‘I can do this and they trust me, so I’m just gonna go play.’ And that’s the spirit that I took in, and I never lost it. It was just a complete feeling of being trusted, and I’m so grateful for that.”
But carrying a series can be a whirlwind experience. Scrofano calls from Los Angeles, where she and her Wynonna castmates have just appeared at WonderCon ahead of the show’s debut. Using a borrowed phone (her Canadian carrier doesn’t service L.A.) as she’s shuttled between promotional gigs, she gushes about meeting many “lovely, lovely” fans before apologizing for being exhausted and distracted. “I’ve been to the Fan Expo in Toronto with another show, but it was about the two other guys, and I just sort of got to walk around anonymously,” she explains. “But this one is very different. It’s really, really tiring and there’s a lot of adrenaline.”
If she needs a little pick-me-up, she can mainline some of the positive buzz surrounding the series. A little bit Buffy the Vampire Slayer, a little bit Justified, and a whole lot of fun, Wynonna Earp follows a descendant of legendary lawman Wyatt Earp who must put down resurrected Old West baddies with a wicked Peacemaker pistol and kickass attitude.
Scrofano sees the appeal. “The main thing is that I would’ve wanted to be her,” she says. “If I were a kid watching this show, if I were a teenage girl, I would want to be her.”
Bonus: There are motorcycles. “I had always been scared of motorcycles,” she confesses. “Well, not scared, but I had no interest in getting on one, and then I got this job and every person I knew was so jealous that I got to ride motorcycles for work. I got on one and it was like the most freedom I ever felt. It was so cool.”
Another great appeal of the show is the obvious chemistry between the cast members — including Dominque Provost-Chalkley (Avengers: Age of Ulton), Tim Rozon (Schitt’s Creek), and Shamier Anderson (Defiance)— which Scrofano says developed in part because the series was shot in Calgary. “There is something amazing that happens when you shoot somewhere that nobody knows,” she says. “None of the cast knew Calgary. We all just had to figure it out together and none of us had friends or family there, so it was a really great way to force us all to spend time together, and because of that, we all became really close.
“Dominique, who plays my sister, moved in. We changed our condos, so we could live across the hall from each other, and we would have tea every night because she’s British — and I hate tea, so that’s how much I love Dom.”
Now that the show is about to premiere, Scrofano is anxious to see if viewers think Wynonna is as cool as she does. “I’m excited for people to see a new version of a female action hero, a superhero figure that isn’t what the typical figure has been before,” she says. “I’m excited to see what people think and how they respond.”
And what will she be up to as North America tunes in?
“Sleeping,” she laughs. “Trying to catch up on my sanity.”
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‘Wynonna Earp‘ airs Fridays at 10 p.m. on Syfy in the U.S. and Mondays at 9 p.m. on CHCH in Canada
Note: Canadian viewers can live stream ‘Wynonna Earp’ on the CHCH website at 10 p.m. on Fridays and again at 9 p.m. on Mondays
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