What actors did you enjoy from the 1991 version?

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Originally Maggie wasn't even supposed to be a part of the series - she was simply supposed to make a token appearance in the pilot. But TPTB liked Ely Pouget so much when they saw her few scenes that they decided to write Maggie into the series.

[Barnabas'sBride]

I adore Joanna Going. I thought she was amazing as both Victoria and Josette. She really sold me on the Barnabas/Victoria(Josette) romance, as well, even when I was always wishing I could see her interact with Frid's Barnabas instead. In fact, Frid's Barnabas + Going's Victoria (as Josette's reincarnation) would have been my OTP (one true pairing) for sure. 

I think Barbara Steele made a great Natalie - a better Natalie than Grayson Hall, IMO. I liked Michael T. Weiss as Peter more than Roger Davis. 


But there's no doubt in my mind, the revival stays in my collection mainly because of Joanna Going.....

[LeFanu]

joanna going was the focal point of the series for me too. she was so good as victoria and as josette. i'm kinda meh about ben cross as barnabas. jean simmons didn't have enough to do, but i like what i say.

loved barbara steele as julia and natalie. don't get me wrong. huge grayson fan here, but barbara brought her own thing to both roles, and she was good.

jim fyfe was fun as willie/ben stokes. and how good was julianna mccarthy as abigail? she rivals clarice blackburn in the original, at least to me.

loved michael t. weiss in every bit of the show, but then again, i think he's maybe the hottest man i've ever seen, so...

i'm still not sure what i think of angelique (lysette anthony). she was kinda over the top. i never got the sense that she was having as much fun being bad as lara parker, and that's why i enjoyed lara's version. but lysette brought real heat to the role. still, she was cheesy in a way.

carolyn seemed like she was high all the time in the 1991 series. maybe that's in keeping with her manhattan call girl wardrobe.

whoever mentioned stefan gierasch as a great character actor - i so agree! his woodard should have had the chance to become a stokes type character. that would have been awesome if there had been a second season.

[Gerard]

I wonder if Stefan Gierasch would not have played Professor Timothy Elliot Stokes if the series had continued.  It seems logical to me.

Gerard

[Taeylor Collins]

I actually liked LYSETTE'S Sexed UP version of Angie.  I thought she was really good.  She really DID creep me out!

Taeylor

[Lydia]

Originally Maggie wasn't even supposed to be a part of the series - she was simply supposed to make a token appearance in the pilot. But TPTB liked Ely Pouget so much when they saw her few scenes that they decided to write Maggie into the series.

Thank you for that information, MB.  I had hesitated to post that I liked Ely Pouget, because I wasn't sure whether it was the actress that I liked or the interesting character that she played, but I guess they're sort of mixed together.

[Brandon Collins]

My favorite portrayal in the entire 91 series is Stefan Gierasch as Joshua. I thought he played that part so well, and it took me a while to realize that he had also played Woodard.

I also enjoyed Barbara Steele as Julia, but she has nothing at all on Grayson, IMO. It took me a long time to get used to her Julia, but not as much for her Natalie.

Ben Cross doesn't even come close to holding a candle to Frid, at all. I hated the way they made him growl and snarl into the camera. What a cheese!

And, finally, while I didn't like what's-his-face who played Roger, I did enjoy him as Reverend Trask. He truly was scary with those eyebrows!

[GooberCollins]

What's-his-face = Roy Thinnes. He barely did much of anything as Roger, so I can't really give an opinion on him in that role.

[Uncle Roger]

Been a while since I've seen these episodes but I thought that Joanna Going was an excellent Vicki.  Julianna McCarthy managed to make Abigail even nastier than Clarice did, no small achievement. Michael T. Weiss was good as Joe but better as Peter. Veronica Lauren was a great Sarah. My particular favorite was Barbara Blackburn who brought a nice comic touch to the early Carolyn scenes. And her Cybill Shepard-ish version of Millicent was one of the show's highlights for me.

I liked Lysette Anthony but I would have enjoyed her more without the Pepe Le Pew French accent. Barbara Steele's is more subtle.

Ben Cross has his moments but I found that he came up short as Barnabas. Especially after one of my friends pointed out that when he was in "bite mode", he looked remarkably like Ed O'Neill on Married with Children!

[Cousin_Barnabas]

Favorites

Joanna Going as Victoria Winters and Josette du Pres
She brought so much to the character of Victoria Winters.  In my opinion, she was the best casting choice of the series.  She made the show.  She was a character we could love and empathize with.  She made us really care about her. 
Julianna McCarthy as Mrs. Johnson and Abigail Collins
Simply wonderful in both roles, but she really managed to shine as Abigail. 
Stefan Gierasch as Michael Woodard and Joshua Collins
He was a fantastic nemesis for Barnabas in the present and really brought so much to the role of Joshua in the past.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt as David and Daniel Collins
He was fantastic as young David.  We didn't get to see him as much as Daniel, but I really thought he did a wonderful job as David.
Veronica Lauren as Sarah Collins
She was terrific as Sarah Collins.  We could really empathize with her.

Other notes:

Jean Simmons brought a great deal of class to the role of Elizabeth.  She was very on par with Joan Bennett.  The only problem, as other have said, is that we didn't get to see her very much. 

Barbara Steele was a DIFFERENT Julia.  I think she is a terrific actress, but she was very "rigid" when playing Julia.  I liked her more as Natalie.

I enjoyed Michael T. Weiss as Joe and Peter.  I thought he turned in quality performances, but he was definitely better as Peter.  Had he been old enough, I would have preferred him as Peter in the original series too.  That would have helped that 1968 storyline a great deal.  I still prefer Crothers as Joe, though.   

Ben Cross was okay as Barnabas.  I don't have any major qualms with him, but he was so "harsh" that you couldn't really empathize with him like you could with Frid.  Although he was in the show a lot, I never really thought of him as the main character.  Going stole the show for me. 

I did not care for Lysette Anthony as Angelique.  I had a number of bones of contention with her characterization, least of which was what she did with the accent.  I didn't really like Barbara Blackburn as Carolyn.  She played her as being much more "adult" than Nancy Barrett.  I know the character was written that way, so it probably wasn't Blackburn's fault at all.  I did think she turned in good performances.  I just didn't like her Carolyn.   And I didn't like Ely Pouget's Maggie.  I liked her having psychic abilities, but I didn't care for how she was written.  Again, probably not a reflection on Pouget's talents. 

[Gothick]

Cousin--blame DC at least in part for Barbara Steele's performance as Julia.  She actually talked about doing DS in this video interview that was included as an extra (I think on Nightmare Castle) on one of her Italian horror film DVD releases a year or two ago.  She said that Dan kept forcing her to play certain scenes very "straight" and that she was not allowed to make the character as "eccentric" as she would have wished.  It is a brief part of the interview, but it is clear that DS does not at all represent a happy memory for Barbara Steele.

I actually enjoyed her both as Julia and as the Countess... grand stuff!  Although the Countess dresses and talks like the madam of a bordello.  Interesting take on the character! 

G.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

The writers of the '91 Series have also commented that they weren't all that happy with having to write Julia so dark. But their hands were tied by a certain EP who insisted upon it...

[Gothick]

I have commented elsewhere that Depp Shadows may well stand the best chance of ANY of the spinoffs and remakes... INCLUDING the early Seventies feature films--of being similar in tone to the original series... BECAUSE DC has had NO INPUT on it.  I don't think he ever got why the series took off the way it did in the first place.

But, no doubt some would say that makes me somehow not a "real fan."  lol.

G.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Well, if so, then you've got a lot of like-minded company here, so I suppose that means many of us are not "real fans" by those "real fans" on Facebook's definition. 

[Cousin_Barnabas]

Not FB again!  Gah!  It makes me want to to find these people and give them a good talking to!   

Cousin--blame DC at least in part for Barbara Steele's performance as Julia...

Thanks for sharing that tidbit.  I wish they would have let her do her own thing.  Like I said, I think she is a terrific actress. 

I have commented elsewhere that Depp Shadows may well stand the best chance of ANY of the spinoffs and remakes...

Yes, I do hope that Burton's take allows for a truer Julia as well as every other character!  We shall see...