When I was younger I saw a movie called 'Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid' with Paul Newman and Robert Redford. Those two actors and that movie was my inspiration to want to be an actor.
I like playing the contrasting roles. It what inspires me to act. If I look back on my career I am happy that I have gotten to play a wide variety of different roles, from Mike Dexter, to Van Ray in Fast Lane, to Dr. Cullen to Coop.
Everyone has a different path. I knew no one in the acting industry growing up. I never did a play until college. I was not outspoken when I was younger and I hated being the center of attention. But I had a dream of being an actor. I went to NYU and studied theatre. I learned a craft. And began my career straight out of college.
What I like about the third movie is you get to see a side of Carlisle you haven't seen before. You actually get to see what his vampire capabilities are because there's some great battle sequences. It's my favorite book. Carlisle is holding on to that humanity. He doesn't want to be a vampire.
There were days when I was literally running for hours in the forest and then I'd jump on a plane and then I'd be on the 'Nurse Jackie' set. I was going from Vancouver to New York every three days. For me, it was really invigorating.
We've been shooting the last two weeks with a lot of vampires. I don't want to give away too much, but if you've read the books, it's the standoff with lots of vampires in play. There's like 70 people going through the works at once. It's a little maddening, but fun. We shot pretty much the ending of the two movies the other day.
Last week I was in London at an awards show, then I flew home and was in an RV park with my wife and kids in our motorhome, this week I'm in NY doing a charity event, and tomorrow I'll be coaching my daughters soccer practice. I guess the range of roles I play on film stem from the range of roles I play in real life.
My advice has always been to study the craft of acting if you want to be an actor. There are many great schools that teach acting. NYU being one of them.
