Lawrence.com

Colleen Haskell, the waifish brunette beauty from the original season of "Survivor," made it 39 days (that's sixth place) on the island before being voted off by the Richard Hatch alliance. During that time, viewers were privy to watching her hook up with fellow cast mate Greg Buis for the show's lone romantic subplot, and got to see her legs permanently scarred by infected bug bites. Yet her cheery demeanor and candid approach left her unscathed in the court of public opinion.

Now, less than a month after the follow-up, "Survivor: The Australian Outback," wrapped on CBS, Haskell has scored the best post-TV gig of any cast member to date. She is appearing opposite funnyman Rob Schneider in the new comedy "The Animal." But this is no mere walk-on; this is a starring role as the female lead. Not bad for someone who was a complete unknown mere months ago.

"From the start of 'Survivor' to when the movie opens, it's been exactly a year," Haskell says from her cell phone while being shuttled to a New York taping of "Late Night With Conan O'Brien." "So it's really funny what happens in one year."

In just 52 weeks, Haskell has gone from a Miami Ad School graduate and bookstore clerk to being frequently christened "America's Sweetheart" � only don't call her that.

"That's definitely the phrase I'm most sick of hearing," she says. "But 'sweetheart' isn't a bad thing. It's just a funny word. It's a compliment, but at the same time it's something you say to someone while you pat them on the head."

Haskell's chance at being dubbed "America's Vixen" took a step backward recently when she turned down a $100,000 offer by Playboy to pose nude in a cover spread. Citing the fact that she would be "uncomfortable" without the support of her trademark purple bikini, it begs the question of what she would do if a film director asked her to shed clothes for a scene?

"Oh God, I've never even thought of that," she replies. "I've never been asked that. I can't say yes or no. If it was in this movie, I would have said no, definitely. I don't know what the future holds. I've learned not to hold myself to anything."

London calling

A native of Bethesda, MD, Haskell has fostered a love of the entertainment world since she was a youngster. She earned a bachelor's degree in theater while attending the University of Georgia. Her tenure led to an opportunity to spend a six-month internship with the 1998 London Film Festival.

"That prepared me how NOT to act," she says of her job in the pressroom. "I dealt with obnoxious celebrities who were coming over for the festival, and that taught me how not to be a person in a movie. I won't name-drop anybody."

After traveling around France and Ghana, Haskell returned to the States to begin her schooling in Miami. While shopping at a hip Miami mall known as CocoWalk, Haskell and a buddy happened across a casting call for "Survivor." After some friendly coaxing, the lure of a free trip to Malaysia sealed the deal.

Cast away

Not surprisingly, it was the "Survivor" gig that landed her an audition for "The Animal."

"I was brought in because I was on the show, but I was cast by the audition process," she says. "I had to read with a casting director, then with Rob. And I had to do a screen test. There was a bunch of other girls in the selection process. It just kept getting narrowed down; then I got it."

Interestingly, Schneider had never seen an episode of "Survivor." His experience with Haskell was based entirely on running through a scene with her. In other words, she might have actually scored the role on her own merits.

"I'd like to think I did," she says. "I've been told I did. So yes, I did.

"I found out I'd gotten the role about two or three weeks after 'Survivor' had finished. Within a month after 'Survivor' ended, we were filming ... I knew that after that happened, the hardest part about the whole thing would probably not even be the movie, but it would be dealing with the press' idea of how that came about. But I was ready, and I have my answers."

Haskell viewed the picture last month and claims to be "really happy" with the result. The 24-year-old found the actual acting and filming to be quite manageable. ("I don't have a soliloquy or anything, but it is a comedy," she says. "Nobody has anything like that.") So will this movie dispel that pesky "America's Sweetheart" image in any way?

"Not hugely," she admits. "I think it challenges that idea a little bit. But at the same time, I do play 'the girl,' so I do a lot of smiling and nodding and just act agreeable."

Tribal withdrawal

"The Animal" has not only given Haskell a more lucrative career path beyond "reality television star," but it's provided her with something radically new: a chance to appear on talk shows and discuss something other than "Survivor."

"It's refreshing," she says. "I talk about 'Survivor' a lot in the press, but I don't talk about it with my friends and family. It's certainly nice (in the media) to be able to talk about something else. But I don't mind people bringing up 'Survivor,' because that's where I came from."

Unlike the majority of America's households, Haskell avoided becoming hooked on the most recent season of "Survivor." In fact, she only saw two episodes.

"I watched the one where Michael (Skupin) got his hands burnt by fire, and I watched the one after that," she says. "The reason I didn't watch it was because it was hard for me to. I found myself getting very involved in the show, and thinking about the show I was on and wanting to change things about it.

"Some people had troubles when they came back from 'Survivor 1' immediately. For me, watching 'Survivor 2' really brought up some ill feelings and almost nightmares. We called them the 'coulda, shoulda, wouldas' � wishing I could have changed things or done things differently. So I had to purposely not watch it."

It's probably wise to count her out for a guest appearance on the upcoming "Survivor: Africa." But don't expect her to be shoe-in for a potential "Animal" sequel, either.

"After the movie opens, I need to figure out if that's the direction I want to go in or if it's going to be back to what I was doing before," Haskell says. "I can't sit still, and that's part of the problem."