ACTOR'S STUDIO: JORDAN LADD

The Daughter of Actress Cheryl and Producer David, Niece of Alan Jr. and Granddaughter of Alan Continues the Ladds' Hollywood Heritage

By Annlee Ellingson

A uditioning for a role in the studio remake of "Charlie's Angels" would have been just a little too obvious for 25-year-old Jordan Ladd, daughter of Cheryl, who starred in the original series. "I just thought that it would be too close to home," she says from her cute, old -- and thus un-air conditioned -- Los Angeles apartment in the middle of a heat wave. "It would sort of go against me kind of creating my own path, really. And it would be the expected thing to do, so I didn't want to do that."

Instead, Ladd has attempted to distance herself from her family -- which includes producer dad David ("The Mod Squad"), ex-studio executive uncle Alan Ladd Jr. and actor grandfather Alan Ladd ("Shane") -- and carve her own niche in the industry, starring in several independent and TV movies and torturing Drew Barrymore and Leelee Sobieski as a high school bully in "Never Been Kissed." This month, she stars in "The Specials," "a behind-the-scenes look at a group of superheroes in their business dealings and their personal lives," she describes.

"I play Nightbird, whose real name is Shelly Madden," Ladd continues. "She's a girl who's felt like a freak her entire life and grows up loving the Specials and wanting to be a Special because she feels that that's the place where she'll fit in the best. Her dream comes true, and she gets called in to their group to become their newest member. And unfortunately, she's got horrible timing. Basically, the s -- t hits the fan when she gets there. Chaos ensues and arguing, and a disillusion[ment] happens."

Ladd is careful not to reveal her character's superpower, a plot point that occurs late in the film. "But let's put it this way," she says. "She has a very close relationship with birds."

T he actress is more forthcoming when asked what superpower she'd like to have. "I used to fantasize about being invisible and being able to sort of be in places where I wasn't supposed to, hearing and seeing what I wasn't supposed to," she says. "But then I sort of thought about that, and that's sort of weird. I think ignorance is bliss. So I don't know if I'd want to be there."

After a thoughtful pause, she continues, "Flying would be really cool because I hate to fly on an airplane, so I could have control over flying. That would come in handy for me."

It wasn't the prospect of fulfilling this fantasy, however, that attracted Ladd to the project. "I read the script and literally within the first two pages, I couldn't stop laughing," she says. "The humor really spoke to me because it was funny and original but very human at the same time. I completely flipped out for it and felt totally in touch with the character that they wanted me to audition for because, you know, at times I feel like a freak."

The comedy didn't stop once Ladd got to the set. She describes the experience as both "incredible and intimidating because basically everybody on the set really knew comedy. I was the novice of the whole thing. When they'd be shooting scenes that I wasn't in, I'd love to go sit behind the monitors and watch people work their magic. I learned so much, and I just felt really lucky to be around these people that knew the funny so well."

"The Specials." Starring Rob Lowe, Jamie Kennedy, Thomas Haden Church, Kelly Coffield and Jordan Ladd. Directed by Craig Mazin. Written by James Gunn. Produced by Mark Altman, Dan Bates, Robert Meyer Burnett and Rick Mischel. A Regent release. Comedy. Opens September NY/LA.