National Treasure: Edge of History debuts on Disney+ on December 14th and while the new series features the return of Justin Bartha as Riley Poole and Harvey Keitel as Peter Sadusky, the series also sees some new faces as well — including Catherine Zeta-Jones as Billie. Described as “a badass billionaire, black-market antiquities expert” who “lives by her own code”, Billie is a character that sounds like she has a bit of an edge and may remind some viewers a little of another character Zeta-Jones recently was seen in, that of Morticia Addams in Netflix’s Wednesday. Now, the actor discusses the differences between the two characters, telling ComicBook.com that while they both have a dark side, they are on completely different spectrums.
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“I must say, with Billie I had 10 hours of really having fun with this character in that I get to play my own accent, which is always good,” Zeta-Jones said. “Whatever that may be because it’s been so homogenized from Europe, British, American, and so anyway, that is, I got to play that which is kind of a lease of life for an actress where you don’t have to go, ‘Oh, am I doing American? Am I doing Irish?’ So, I had 10 hours of screen time where I could really, really get into this kind of dark side of this character. And I think Morticia and Billie are dark, but on completely different spectrums. I mean, I play an antiques dealer. I play a black-market trading antiquities fanatic and her pursuit of what she wants to get has no limits and so does what she will do to get what she wants. But then the backstory being why is this so important to this woman? Why is she like this? And so, I had a lot of fun with these amazing actors who were young and fresh and eager and just so enthusiastic. It was just a really good year working with great people on great projects, I have to say.”
What Is Disney+’s National Treasure Show About?
You can check out a previously released description for National Treasure: Edge of History here: “A DREAMer in search of answers about her family, Jess is a mystery lover with a natural talent for solving puzzles who will uncover her own buried history, as well as the truth about her parents and her connection to a long-lost treasure. Jess and friends will have to outwit stylish businesswoman and adventurer Billie (Catherine Zeta-Jones), a badass billionaire, black-market antiquities expert, and treasure hunter who lives by her own code.”
Jerry Bruckheimer is returning to executive produce the National Treasure: Edge of History TV series after producing the two Cage films for Disney. He’s joined by original director Jon Turteltaub and writers Marianne and Cormac Wibberley. The two Wibberlys wrote the pilot episode of the show with Rick Muirragui. Mira Nair is set to direct the debut.
Will Nic Cage Eventually Appear in National Treasure: Edge of History?
While speaking with Entertainment Weekly, Wibberley compared Cage’s Benjamin Franklin Gates and Lisette Olivera’s Jess potential relationship to the one between Tony Stark and Peter Parker in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Currently, the creators are hoping that Cage will appear in a potential Season 2.
“That’s basically how we saw the relationship if Ben Gates ever showed up,” Wibberley explained. “She’s basically Peter Parker to him and would be like, ‘Oh, my God, it’s Ben Gates! What do I do?’ That’s how our universe is. We would love to bring any of the other veterans if we get another season. We have roles for all of them.”
National Treasure: Edge of History debuts on Disney+ on December 14th.
