(Russian magazine "Panorama TV" #39(270), September 28 - October 4, 1998)

Australian top-model and actress Peta Wilson became famous almost the next day after the first episode of tv-series “La Femme Nikita” on American TV. And that is not surprising. The tv-series, based on the famous film of Luc Besson, is as good as the original. Experts know one more version of “Nikita” — American “Point of No Return” which was filmed by John Badham with Bridget Fonda in the main part.

And here we have a new version of a story of a girl who has to become a killer and live under the cruel law “kill or you'll be killed”. But Nikita or Josephine, which is her code name in the anti-terrorist organization, still has compassion that is unallowable feeling for those who has to become a part of a smoothly running government structure. She has to learn not to trust anyone, to forget about love and friendship. She is a killer…

“I don't want to kill…”

Before shooting of “Nikita” Peta, of course, saw Besson's and Badham's films. She was so excited with the performance of her colleagues — Anne Parillaud and Bridget Fonda. “But when I got ready for the part, I imagined that nobody played it before me… I made my character live and breathe”, — Peta says. And that was not easy to do. Peta is a bright, communicative person. Her friends say that she seldom stays serious. And that is obvious that she can't hurt anyone: “I'm not a bloodthirsty Fury and I don't want to kill anybody. Especially the way Nikita did it”. But still while filming the tv-series Peta had to shoot and she got a personal instructor to teach her to do it. Still she didn't get over the fear of guns…

“In childhood I was… a tree”

Peta Wilson was born November 18^th, 1970 in Australia. Her father was a military that's why the family had to move from place to place a lot. Their childhood Peta and her brother Rod spent in Papua New Guinea among aborigines. Children did their best to live their way of life: they walked naked and got crocodiles and kangaroo as pets. They had to entertain themselves by making different shows. Maybe that's the reason why Peta wanted to become an actress. She remembers her first appearance on stage quite well. It happened in a school play where she had a very important role of… a tree.

Your partner can become a school for you

Peta's partner in “Nikita” was Roy Dupuis. He played Michael — Josephine's mentor and guardian. When Peta remembers their work together, she says: “Roy is a very serious actor. And at the same time he has agreat sense of humor, he is very eccentric and witty. We are obviously quite opposite. That's why this work gave a great life experience”.

The actress is sure that you shouldn't stop and search for excuses for your inactivity. You need to have a dream. Peta has it: she dreams of playing Eliza Doolittle in Bernard Shaw's “Pygmalion” and Stella in Tennessee Williams' play “A Streetcar Named Desire”.