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• Ms. Seymour's official site
• Article on Ms. Seymour
• Childhelp USA
• Wedding Crashers

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Tavis: I'm pleased to welcome acclaimed actress Jane Seymour to this program. Her terrific career here in Hollywood contains a wide variety of popular roles, everything from classic James Bond films like "Live and Let Die" to her award-winning work on TV's "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman." Her latest movie, though, is the hit summer comedy "Wedding Crashers." The movie had a very successful opening weekend. Here now is a scene from "Wedding Crashers."

John Beckwith: Mrs. Cleary, this is pretty sudden.

Kathleen Cleary: You've been playing cat and mouse with me ever since you came here.

John: Mrs. Cleary, I don't--

Kathleen: Call me Kitty Cat.

John: OK, Cat.

Kathleen: Call me Kitty Cat.

John: OK, Kitty Cat. This feels borderline inappropriate.

Kathleen: Kitty Cat.

Tavis: Jane Seymour, oh! Jane!

Jane Seymour: And then it goes on.

Tavis: Yeah, I know it does.

Seymour: The rest of it you can't show on this show.

Tavis: It goes on, but this is PBS. This is family television so we can't show what happens next. How are you?

Seymour: I'm good.

Tavis: It's nice to have you here.

Seymour: Thank you.

Tavis: Speaking of that scene going on, are the "Dr. Quinn" fans ready for this?

Seymour: They are. I just got an email back just the other day from the people who run the "Dr. Quinn" site, Friends of Jane the "Dr. Quinn" site, and they said they're getting like 1,000 hits a night now and that the "Dr. Quinn" fans have decided that even though they've never been to our movie, that they're now going. And they've been, and they said, you know what? This is really funny. They were laughing, and they just trusted my integrity. They trusted that is I'd made a choice to do this movie that, you know, they trusted my taste. And I was really thrilled, because they emailed me back and said that they loved the movie and they're recommending it. So there you go. It's a whole new audience.

Tavis: Speaking of loving your choices, tell me why Jane Seymour chooses at this point in her career to do a scene like that. We can't show the scene, but it was a topless scene. Why would you do a role like that at this point in your career? A role that had that as a part of it, I should say. That wasn't the role, but it had a part.

Seymour: Well, because it's a brilliantly funny film. It's really fun, a great character, and it just comes so out of left field. And actually when you really analyze it, you don't actually see very much of me. I mean, obviously Owen Wilson does.

Tavis: Speaking of which, how did he handle that during the taping?

Seymour: Oh, he was hysterically funny. Because, you know, I think he was really nervous, and somebody said that he actually kind of liked me, although obviously I'm old enough to be his mother. Almost. But anyway, he had his little fingers like this and had to touch my breast. And he was afraid to, like, open his fingers, so I had to persuade him. It's OK, Owen. I'm cool, OK? OK. OK. But it was very funny at the time, and I'm really glad I did it, because I love to play comedy and I think people have looked at me for years, and they've never thought that I was particularly funny. So now at last things have changed. People have realized that actually I'm pretty goofy really.

Tavis: Have you always been that way or you've become that way and now you want to just put it on film? Have you always been that way?

Seymour: I think I always was that way, but I think I'm funnier now because I really don't care.

Tavis: Is that the key, to just not care?

Seymour: Well, it's not that. I think there's a certain freedom that comes at a certain age, where you just go, you know what? If I'm not having fun and I'm not showing what I can do now, then what are we waiting for?

Tavis: Yeah. That's a good contrast, because I was saying to you before we came on the camera, before we came on air here, that the Spike TV Channel, I think it is, the Spike Channel has a James Bond marathon that's going on right now. So I've seen "Live and Let Die" like 25 times over the last month on Spike TV. And your role in that is as classic as they come.

Seymour: Well, you know, again people always said, you were in a James Bond film. Well, I'm the only person ever to be a woman in a James Bond film that played a virgin. I was very covered up.

Tavis: That is true. I hadn't thought about it like that.

Seymour: But the funny thing is that the people who hired me for "Wedding Crashers," the only other film they'd ever seen me do was James Bond. I mean, 35 years of career completely went past their radar. They never saw me in anything else. I was just thinking, that's really funny, you know. What was I doing, twiddling my thumbs for 35 years?

Tavis: Well, I'm just laughing for a different reason. You go from being a virgin in James Bond to baring your breast in "Wedding Crashers." But that's another issue. I'll leave that alone. That's progress, I think. I'll leave that alone. Speaking of "Wedding Crashers," when you--have you had a wedding that was crashed by paparazzi?

Seymour: Actually, I was, yes. When I got married to James Keach, my husband, who's a great, great film director, we never expected to be crashed at all. And I think about 12, 15 paparazzi were climbing over walls, and there were three or four helicopters that came in. It almost sounded like Vietnam or something. It was really amazing. And we had to scream. He'd say, 'I will marry you. Yes, I will, forever.' It was wild.

Tavis: The key thing is you heard each other, though, so...

Seymour: Well, just. Only just, you know. I didn't think we were that popular, but I guess you can discover how popular you are by how many paparazzi crash your wedding.

Tavis: If that's the--well, never mind. I'll leave that alone. I read that you have finally become, after all these years--you've been in the states how many years now?

Seymour: Since 1976.

Tavis: Since '76, and you just in the last year have officially become a U.S. citizen.

Seymour: I did.

Tavis: Why and why so long?

Seymour: Well, the Queen gave me this major honor of being an Officer of the British Empire. So I thought I should stay British for a little while because the Order of the Knighthood in England is a huge thing. But then it occurred to me in the last election that I really didn't have a voice and that I'd been living here for a long time and America's been really good to me and I'm really proud to live in America. I have American children, an American husband, and I just felt that I wanted to be part of the system. I wanted to be able to vote. I wanted to be able to be on a jury. I felt that I wanted to contribute to the country that's been so good to me. So I just decided it was time to become a citizen.

Tavis: I don't mean to get too political unless you want to go there, but was there a particular incident or particular time or particular political experience? What was it that brought you--I mean, we've always had elections and they've always been critical and controversial and serious issues. Why now? Was there something in the atmosphere politically that made you want to do it now?

Seymour: Well, you know, I always feel that actors should keep their politics away. I'm very issue drawn. I go to Washington and I work with congressman. I have friends who are congressman on both sides. And the interesting this is, I think most Americans don't realize that it's not sort of all red or all blue. I mean, these guys get together and they make things happen in Congress. And they may be Republican and Democrat, and I don't think people understand that or realize that. I feel that if you live in a country and you benefit from the country, that you should be a member of that country. You should be doing what--you should be part of the group. So that's really why I did it.

Tavis: Let me switch gears somewhat dramatically. There's something I've always wanted to ask you. This will rank, I'm sure my staff will tell me after I ask this, this will rank as one of my top 10 dumb questions. I may be beyond 10 already after two years of doing this show, but I'm sure it will rank somewhere on this list. I have always been fascinated, as I suspect many of your fans are, by this beautiful mane that you have.

Seymour: The mane.

Seymour: The mane. So you have been known for this for years. I mean, I'm watching "Live and Let Die" the other day, a little darker than it is now, but it's the same mane then that you have now. What is this about you and this love for your hair? How much of it is a part of your persona? You obviously like this look.

Seymour: You know what? I like other looks, and I wear wigs all the time. I've done a lot of movies where I've had very, very short hair or I've been a redhead. I really like changing it up, but I'm actually basically lazy. I've got six kids, I've got a lot going on in my life, and hair like this I don't have to worry about. I can get in and out of the shower and it's done. And also I think with long hair, you can just tie it up in a knot and there's a lot more I can do with it. I'm just--I don't know. It still grows, you know.

Tavis: That may be the best reason of all--I have it because it grows. When it stops growing,

I won't have it.

Seymour: No, I keep thinking I should do something, you know, drastically different, but I did once. I did this film and I had this very, very short, very dark hair and I went out that evening with the wig still on, and you couldn't tell, it was such a good wig. And people said, wow, oh, my God, I love your haircut. You look so great. This is so great. And then I said, oh, thanks, thanks. I like it, too. And I said, by the way, it's a wig. And they said, oh, thank God for that. It looks good, but I really like your long hair.

Tavis: OK. Enough of that. I just had to ask that because I've always wanted to ask that question. Let my go back to the movie, if I can, because you actually--back to "Wedding Crashers," that is, which did very well opening weekend. It came in right behind "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory."

Seymour: Which for an R-rated movie is astounding.

Tavis: I was about to say that. How did you pull this off as an R-rated film?

Seymour: Well, I think that there's an audience out there that would never normally go to an R-rated film. And from what I'm hearing, the tracking, even before it opened, they said that a lot of people who follow my career who would never normally go to an R-rated film are trusting my taste. And they're a little curious. What is Jane dong? What's she doing in this? Maybe it's a different genre. So I'm not saying I personally am the reason for it, but I think, you know...there's something in

America, what makes R in America is topless, nudity, right? That makes it R.

Tavis: And we're more smug about this than the Europeans are, aren't we?

Seymour: I just came back from England yesterday. I defy you to go anywhere I Europe right now--I mean, they might as well decide that the whole of Europe is R-rated and Americans shouldn't go there. Because if you go to any beach in Europe right now, women are just lying there, you know, and they're topless. I mean, it's just perfectly normal, it's acceptable, it's not considered to be anything really bizarre or strange. And personally, I think there's some violence and some insidious things that happen in films that should be R-rated that aren't R-rated. I think, you know, the female form, not when there's not major sexual context, there's nothing that crazy about it.

Tavis: The other thing that's fascinating beyond the R-rating and still the wonderful, brilliant opening weekend numbers, big numbers, beyond that, you actually auditioned for this role. I was surprised, I think, more than anything. I mean, I think I might have been more surprised by your, Jane Seymour, auditioning for a role than I was about Jane Seymour being topless. You actually auditioned for this.

Seymour: I did.

Tavis: When was the last time you auditioned for something? How many decades ago?

Seymour: Decades ago. In fact, I didn't know you had to sign your name in. I'm sitting there, I'm waiting, I'm waiting, and I said, gosh, you know, they've made me wait almost an hour, and they said, you signed in, didn't you? And I went, no. They said you've got to sign in first. I had no idea. Anyway, I auditioned and it's actually a very healthy thing. A lot of major actresses are auditioning now, and I think they just need to see you n a different light. I was just glad that somebody gave me the opportunity to come in and show it, because people would say, oh, no, she's Dr. Quinn., She can't play this part. And when I did and I surprised them, they had me come in a second time because they couldn't believe the first time, even though they had it on film, and then they gave me the role.

Tavis: Do you think that's in part because there aren't the kinds of roles that--are you not getting the kind of scripts that you used to get so now you have to audition?

Seymour: I've been offered some series that I didn't think ere terribly interesting. I mean, one of them--I won't mention the name of it, but I would be playing a character that was really advocating something that I'm very much against. I can't say more about it, otherwise, you know, I'd be knocking the show. The parts are thin at this age group. Absolutely. Plus, they don't usually hire me to play a middle-aged 54-year-old woman, which is what I am.

Tavis: Well, you don't look that, and you don't have to play those parts.

Seymour: The next role--I just did another comedy and I'm actually playing it with sort of graying hair and the rest of it, and it's again very funny, but I'm absolutely playing middle age just to show people I can.

Tavis: Yeah, well, she can, and if you continue, believe me, go see "Wedding Crashers," starring Owen Wilson and one Jane Seymour. Nice to have you on.

Seymour: Thank you.

Tavis: All the best to you. That's our show for tonight. Thanks for watching. Talk to you on PRI this weekend. Keep the faith.

Solitaire: You must go.

James Bond: But you do believe? I mean, really believe in the cards?

Solitaire: Well, they have never lied to me.

Bond: Then they won't now. Pick one.