‘Dawson’s Creek’: Busy Philipps’ Partying Changed Audrey’s Storyline
Busy Philipps joined the popular teen drama, Dawson’s Creek, in the later seasons, and she created a lasting impression on the show. Philipps was born on June 25, 1975, and her birth name was Elizabeth Jean Philipps.
She developed her love for acting in fourth grade. She was featured on the TV show ER in 1994 and joined Dawson’s Creek in 1998. Her first significant role was in Freaks and Geeks (1999). However, the breakthrough was back in 2009 where she had the role of Laurie Keller in Cougar Town, which ran for six seasons.
Busy Philipps’s character in ‘Dawson’s Creek’
Philipps’ character on Dawson’s Creek was Audrey Liddell, a rich girl from Los Angeles. Liddell was a recurring role in season 5, and she gradually grew to be one of the main characters in the 6th season of the TV show.
Liddell was outgoing, cute, and friendly. She quickly became friends with Dawson Leery, Pacey Witter, Jack McPhee, Jen Lindley, and, eventually, her roommate Joey Potter. Potter and Liddell might have started out as seemingly complete opposites, but the two ultimately became very close — despite their similar taste in men.
Liddell had some negative character traits, such as self-pitying, reactive, and had a substance problem. It is interesting that her partying did not stop on the screen and was also behind the scenes, and at one time, it affected the show.
Busy Philipps dislocated her knee, affecting the scripting.
It seems that Philipps had similar qualities with Liddell, as they both loved partying. Philipps reveals her love for the partying in The Wendy Williams Show. Philipps said, “It was a different time back then, I had my moments, especially when I was on the Creek, where I liked to booze it up.” It may be why she was excellent in portraying herself as a party girl in Dawson’s Creek.
Philipps also told Wendy Williams, “I got so drunk one night that I broke my knee in a bar.” As a result of the broken knee, Audrey’s storyline had to change so that when she appeared on the TV show for the next two weeks, she was either sitting or lying down.
“They had to rewrite the show,” Philipps added as she spoke about the ordeal on the show. Her partying affected two episodes, according to Screenrant.
The ironic part of the story
After the incident, Liddell’s character was portrayed to have a substance problem. She took pills and alcohol, and this got her kicked out of the band she was in. Joey and Eddie managed to convince her to go to rehab, and the season ends with Audrey finishing rehab. While it was rumored the storyline mirrored real life, it seems the most likely scenario was writers were inspired by Philipps’ knee blunder.
