Lenore Zann is known for voicing Rogue in the X-Men animated series, where many fans were shocked by the events surrounding Rogue and Gambit in X-Men ’97. In her new book, Lenore Zann: Rogue’s Story, Zann details her childhood, from growing up in Australia to her passion for acting on stage, television and film. Zann also talks about dating celebrities at a young age and meeting Steven Spielberg on the set of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.
Remy LeBeau and Rogue are two of the X-Men’s most popular superheroes who have had an on-and-off relationship many times over the years, but in the first season of X-Men ’97, their relationship was put to the test with the arrival of Magneto as leader of the mutant superhero team.
“I think Remy, Gambit is her soulmate. Rogue’s soulmate,” Zan told Nerd Reactor. “In episode five of season one, when she danced with Magneto, I told Remy that she decided to work with Magneto to make the world a better place for mutants. She can touch Magneto, so I don’t blame a woman for wanting that. But once he touches her, she realizes, she kisses him verbally and says, ‘Thanks for the dance, baby.’ But Remy was right. There’s something deeper than skin.”
At age 19, Zann played Marilyn Monroe in a rock opera called “Hey Marilyn!” and continued to play her again over the years. Playing a sex goddess and bursting with sexual energy, Zann talks about the people she was romantically involved with.
“Keanu, Louis Gossett Jr., Andy Gibb, the Bee Gees’ brother,” Xan said of her past relationships. “Yeah, I’ve lived it. I’ve lived it. In your 20s, you have so much energy, so much sexual energy. So I’ve never been scared. I played Marilyn Monroe when I was 19, the amazing sex goddess.”
Her role as Marilyn helped Zann catch the eye of Steven Spielberg, who was looking for an actor to play Willie Scott in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. Though the role ultimately went to Kate Capshaw, Spielberg helped Zann secure other roles.
“And so I think we showed the pictures and the film to a casting person, who must have contacted Steven Spielberg, who was looking for someone to play a sexy cabaret singer in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom,” Zahn said. “So we were sitting at the Polo Lounge, having afternoon cocktail hour, having afternoon cocktails, and they called my name over the speaker or something, and asked me to pick up the phone in the booth.
“‘Xan, there’s a call for you,’ I answered the phone, and it was the roommate of a friend of my agent. ‘Steven Spielberg’s office called and he wants to meet you.’ I thought he was joking, but he wasn’t. He was serious, and wanted to meet me that afternoon. So I rushed out to the parking lot, walked up the stairs, and ran into Mel Gibson coming down. Sly Stallone was coming out of his office after a meeting. I was just amazed. I wasn’t starstruck, I just thought, ‘Wow, this is how it happens.'”
“Then I spent about an hour with Steven Spielberg, talking about my life and what I’d done. I was only 20 at the time, and I showed him pictures of me as Marilyn, and he said he’d seen the movie and wanted to meet me. I didn’t get the part, but I noticed there was a scene where Kate Capshaw was wearing a red sequined dress, the same kind of dress I was wearing in the picture, and I thought it was interesting, but I didn’t get the part. She ended up marrying him, but he told other casting directors about me. Then I was sent to New York to do a screen test for a TV series called ‘Love, Sydney,’ and I got the part. But they had to rewrite the script at the last minute, so the part was cancelled. I talk about that in the book.”
Published by Nimbus Publishing, Lenore Zann: A Rogue’s Tale is currently available for pre-order on Amazon.
