From its hastily constructed beginnings as a no-brainer way in which to build buzz for the fledgling upstart CW network, generating headlines has never been a problem for 90210. Thus, it’s only fitting — as we countdown towards the much-anticipated fourth season premiere — that star Michael Steger (Navid Shirazi) continues in the show’s illustrious tradition by making a few of his very own. Namely, that this upcoming fourth season may mark the beginning of the end.
“I keep saying five years,” said Steger when asked during a recent one-on-one interview with the TV Addict as to just how long he sees the series lasting for. “But you know, that always changes, the CW likes to hold onto its shows.”
Suffice it to say, that’s not the only thing the CW likes to do when it comes to 90210. Enter the show’s third change at the top in four seasons, with Patti Carr and Lara Olsen succeeding Rebecca Sinclair as new showrunners. Which naturally raises the slightly awkward albeit painfully obvious question: Just how will the showrunner switcheroo affect 90210 following what many have referred to as its strongest season to date?
“Well, between the first and second seasons it was pretty chaotic for us because we were so attached to [former showrunners] Gabe Sachs and Jeff Judah. They were the ones who cast us and we felt really emotionally connected to them, so season 2 was a really hard shift with a lot of changes and it took us a while to get used to the new leadership,” admitted Steger. “But now with Patti Carr and Lara Olsen it seems like more of a seamless transition, they seem to be fans of the show and they really want to keep things going the way they were.”
Of course, despite what Steger characterized as a “the least stressful of all the transitions,” it’s a transition all the same. What’s more, with the gang making the often perilous leap from high school to college this season (See: DAWSON’S CREEK circa 2001) it may in fact result in the show’s trickiest transition to date.
“I think they’re handling it wonderfully because there is so much more room for stories outside of the world of High School where you can go in so many different directions. Some of the kids are going to college, some not, opting out because they want to run their own business, so it’s interesting because there’s a lot more freedom,” said Steger, citing his character Navid as a prime example. “He’s left to take care of his sister who doesn’t get on the plane to Switzerland and he has to beg Silver to see if she can live with them. Navid moves in with Silver and so there’s this very interesting relationship where Navid and Silver are forced to be adults, very similar to parental units, yet they’re nowhere near the maturity level to take care of a 17 year old kid.”
Further complicating matters is the unexpected arrival of Navid’s Uncle, who, not surprisingly is none too pleased with his nephew for destroying his father’s porn business and the lavish lifestyle it afforded them, as well as Adrianna, who, in typical Adrianna fashion will do a horrible job of attempting to mend fences following last season’s slew of betrayals. Revealed Steger, “There’s a really awkward scene between Navid and Ade in the first couple of episodes that sets the tone for how Adrianna is going to be treated. I think she’s really really trying hard to redeem herself, but it’s not going to be very easy. A lot of people want to have nothing to do with her and she’s going to be having a hard time winning back any sign of friendship.”
In other words, complete with the requisite amount of family drama and over-the-top confrontations, it’s just another year in America’s most infamous zip code. A year that Steger — who understands full well how fortunate he is to have the rare gift that is a steady gig on a hit television series — is happy to show up for as long as the CW cares to have him.
“You know what, as an actor there’s always the need to play different roles but I’m so grateful to have this job. I know how hard it is to get a job in Hollywood especially and I love working with the cast,” said Steger when asked if he’s still excited to wake up and go to work after four plus seasons of playing the same character. “I realize it’s going to be a great platform to get other jobs, you know, when the show’s over because let’s face it, it’s going to end soon, or one of these days and I’d love to do other films and hopefully the show will allow me to do that.” 
90210 returns with new episodes to the CW this Tuesday September 13th 2011 at 8PM. Catch up with past episodes you may have missed at clicktowatch.tv