Virginia Madsen on Scoundrels, Her Most Disappointing '60s Experience and Her Lust For 'Real Men'

After earning an Oscar nomination as the sultry object of a wine aficionado's affection in Sideways, Virginia Madsen realized that there still weren't many good film roles left for actresses. That's why the 80's sex symbol made the transition from the multiplex to mainstream television, and in her second-ever regular role on a network series, Madsen is tackling one of the biggest challenges of her career: balancing her well-honed dramatic talents while discovering comedy. The satisfying role is courtesy of ABC's summer dramedy Scoundrels, where Madsen stars as a headstrong mother of four who is determined to give her family an honest life after her husband (David James Elliott) is sentenced to prison.

Last week, Madsen phoned Movieline to explain why actresses are fleeing to television, the time her brain literally exploded, and her secret to great onscreen (and offscreen) chemistry.

Congratulations on Scoundrels. I read that you haven't actually seen Outrageous Fortune, the New Zealand comedy from which your series is based.

No and I really, really wanted to. [The producers] didn't want any of us to watch it and I was trying to sneak around and watch it online. But I get it -- they wanted me to create my own Cheryl and from what I understand, Robyn Malcolm, who plays the original Cheryl, is really, really terrific. [The producers] just didn't want me to be intimidated or anything. I get it. But Robyn and I tweet each other. It's not going to be long until I get to see it.

Compared to other female characters on network television, especially moms in family-based series, Cheryl is really strong and not afraid to speak her mind. How much of a hand did you have in developing her that way?

Well, that was all written, but it was my idea to yell a lot. Every mother understands the use of volume -- you have to be tough in order to put your foot down. I think if we were to remake Leave it to Beaver, June Cleaver would be yelling a lot. [Laughs] Cheryl has four really extraordinary children and they are extraordinarily hard to control. I don't know if it's possible to control your children but she has the same dilemma I think all mothers have: they know what their children should do with their lives and their children disagree.

It's refreshing to see Cheryl front and center because in most family-oriented network series, the mothers stay in the background.

Right, what's up with that? The mothers in the background is just not a reality. I was happy to find that as well.

Were you actively looking for a television series when you found Scoundrels?

It wasn't something that I was looking for. They kind of found me and I just ended up really liking the project. But I do feel like there is just so much more opportunity for women on television now. We are understood here and we have a voice here and I think that's why a lot of us are flocking to television. Actresses have something to say and something to do and the bottom line is that we matter in television whereas in feature films we really don't. We have been so sidelined in feature films... I always go where the work is. I have always bounced back and forth between television and film because it's the work that attracts me and this just so happened to be the project that I liked the most.

What about the project spoke to you?

I was so surprised to find how real it was and how strong Cheryl is and also I loved the fact that Scoundrels is a dramedy. I loved that. That was a real draw for me, that I could bounce back and forth between what I do really well and what I don't know much about, meaning comedy. It's incredible to be at this point in my career and have a job where I am learning so much every day. That was also very attractive for me.

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