Gays of Our Lives: Part Two of our Interview with Thore Schölermann and Jo Weil
This week in Gays of Our
Lives …
First up, I’ve got the second part of my interview with Forbidden Love stars Jo Weil and Thore
Schölermann. In GOOL THEATER, Noah learns the truth about Luke and Reid on As the World Turns and Aaron makes his
case to Jackson on Emmerdale. In GOOL
SCOOPS AND SPOILERS, Roman can’t stay away from Marc on All That Matters and Carsten gets bad news about Lenny on Good Times, Bad Times (German). In GOOL NEWSBEAT, some bad news about Les Bleus, some good news about Glee and find out what Scott Evans is up
to after One Life to Live.
All this – and more!
TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTERVIEW WITH THORE
SCHÖLERMAN AND JO WEIL
This week we continue with Part 2 of our interview with Forbidden Love’s Thore Schölermann and
Jo Weil (Part One is here). We’ve got plenty to cover so let’s get right to it!
AE: After having such a huge storyline, you were sort
of background material for a very long time. The fans hated it, but how did you
feel about being on the backburner and not working?
JW: We hated it.
It’s a soap opera and there are 24 characters, and it’s clear that you can’t be
on the front all the time, but we love what we do and we love to film a lot,
and during the time we didn’t have that much to do, it was kind of boring from
time to time. At least we had the chance to do a lot of press stuff during this
time, and we went to events and did charity work, so we had something to do.
TS: The directors
hated us because we had nothing to do and we we’re playing around in the
background and they were like ‘no, no, no… you have to stop that, because the
focus is not on you’
JW: Yeah, even
when you’re in the back, you have to play your part. When you’re in the back,
you think ‘okay, it’s not that important, but even when you’re in the
background you still have a role to play.
TS: And there are
things that are important like touching each other or playing with each other,
like small little things that you have when you are in a partnership. It’s very
important.
AE: Those type of
intimacies that you guys have with each other do you come up with that stuff or
is it in the script?
JW: Sometimes
it’s in the script where it says ‘Christian and Olli kiss each other’ or
‘Christian and Olli touch each other’. But many times we just do it because it
just seems like what they would do depending on the scene. It’s not always in
the script.
TS: When you’re
in a partnership for a long time there are things you do all the time. Like we
have some habits. Like we had a scene in a bathtub and we said ‘okay we are talking
in the bathroom’ and it was our idea to have them in the bathtub.
AE: How do you like
your current storyline?
JW: It’s hard to
judge our own storyline, I think. How do you like it?
AE: I like it. I know
a lot people don’t like others intruding on your relationship.
JW: But don’t you
think that’s interesting? When you’re in a soap opera when you’re with someone,
it’s supposed to be for a lifetime, but you have to keep it interesting.
TS: For us it’s
so boring when we’re happy. We like the drama and the conflict.
Bad boy Robert was
brought in to tempt Olli…
JW: Many people
have written that they like Rob, but they hate Rebecca for example. They don’t
want to have Rebecca between us because they don’t know why Christian or Olli
would like Rebecca. I think the storyline has to be convincing in order for it
to work. We wonder why should Christian likes Rebecca.
TS: I found a way
to like her or rather Christian did. You have to come up with a way to figure
out why your character would do this now. Even if we sometimes think, "What’s that? My
character would never do that." It’s in the script so you have to play it.
AE: But like you
said, people like Rob. They find him very interesting as a character.
JW: Yes, he’s
every interesting as a character. He adds tension to our storyline. I like this
storyline especially after two years of being this happy couple it’s good to
have some big issues to go through, and who knows how the storyline will end.
But I think it’s a good thing to have Rob in the story.
AE: You guys were
working on a movie. What happened with that?
JW: The movie
hasn’t been filmed yet. It’s still in pre-production. So we can’t talk about
that at the moment. (Pause) It’s kind of
weird because we met a guy in London
and we talked to the production company, and we got shooting dates – but it’s
still in pre-production.
AE: So what are they doing? Where is the movie at?
JW: They’re
working on raising the money. They had some difficulties with financing.
AE: Are you looking
forward to doing it?
JW: If we shoot
it one day it will be great.
AE: Is it in German
or is it in English?
JW: It’s in
English. It’s an American production that will be shot in France. Most of the actors are
American.
TS: But we will
play German characters. We can’t play Americans. Because of our accents that
wouldn’t work [laughs].
AE: Do you get
negative reactions for playing gay characters?
JW: Very, very
rare. Most of the time we get very positive reactions. Even people who say
"I’m straight, and I usually don’t like gay characters," but we like
watching this couple.
TS: They forget
they are two men and ---
JW: They just see
two people in love. It’s not all about their sex. We were surprised that so
many women like the storyline because we couldn’t imagine that girls or women
would like a gay couple that much, but yeah, there are a lot of positive
reactions.
TS: My brother is
the best example. He said "You cannot play a gay character because I lived
in the countryside in Germany."
And I said, "Hey I’m an actor I’ll play everything." And now he says
"Hey, the show is interesting, and I can watch it." And I think
that’s a good sign.
AE: What do you like
most about working with each other?
JW: On the
professional side he’s very serious about what he does, and it’s important to
him. On the personal side we just get along very well. We experience so many
things together and we’ve done so many cool things together that I feel really
close to him. We spent so much time together in the studio and after work
because we have the same circle of friends, so it’s good that we get along so
well.
TS: The most
important thing for work is that Jo is very professional. He’s a fun guy. He
has a great sense of humor, and he’s one of my best friends.
AE: Let me ask you a
question about wardrobe and this is just my personal thing: I really don’t like
the clothes they have you wear, Jo.
JW: [laughs] I’m
really not allowed to judge Olli’s clothes, but I personally wouldn’t wear most
of the stuff he wears. Maybe you should write to the producers. But it’s not
our job to critique the clothes. There are four people on the show who get paid
for picking out our clothes. If the show wants Olli to look like a flag because
sometimes that’s what he looks like. I personally would dress different.
AE: I especially
don’t like the scarves.
JW: Funny you
should mention that. I hate them personally. Olli wears them so I wear them and
don’t think about it, but when I see it on television, I think "Okay, I
wouldn’t wear that stuff." Actually, I get a lot of letters saying the
same stuff you just did. But, it’s not my job to decide what Olli gets to wear.
AE: Thore, how do you
think the absence of your brother [Gregor, played by Andreas Jancke] will
affect Christian?
TS: It affects
him more than you see on the show because they didn’t want to talk about it
that much. But he was the last part of my family. My father died on the show,
my mother died on the show, my cousin left the show. He was the last part of my
family. My best friend as well. I don’t have another best friend on the show.
He was the last guy I could talk to about my problems. (Pause) I think it affected Christian a lot. And me
as well. I loved working with him. I loved playing with him because we were
like brothers. And so it’s a pity.
Christian said goodbye
to his brother Gregor
when actor Andreas Jancke left the show.
AE: When did you
first realize how popular Christian and Olli were?
JW: When we got
the first emails from America.
I think that was the point we realized that people outside Germany knew about us. We were so
proud when we started getting letters from America. We showed it to everyone
‘look we got a letter from the States’. And then we started to see the videos
on YouTube. We didn’t know about that. Someone wrote me an email and told me.
So we slowly realized the impact of all that. And yeah, we couldn’t believe it.
AE: I imagine the
other actors on the show don’t have that kind of popularity. Are there any
jealousies that you got to come to America?
JW: They are so
happy for us. But in a way there is some jealousy because we get to experience
so much more than most of them ever do on the show because we get to travel so
much, and we get so much attention from all around the world. We get presents
nearly every single day from somewhere in the world, and that’s something
special.
AE: Do the writers
take into account that you are popular world wide when they write stories for
you?
JW: I think if we
weren’t so popular and had all these fans they would have split us up. The
original storyline wasn’t supposed to be so long. It was meant to be three or
four months, but then they realized how popular the couple was, and they
decided to keep it as a couple.
AE: What would you like your next storyline to be?
JW: One thing I
would like is if my family came. Olli has a brother, and I would love him to
show up. Olli has a very difficult relationship with his mother. She was on the
show in 2000. That would be good if she came back and met Christian and all
that stuff. Apart from that I want to be surprised. I just like to play
whatever they give me. It’s always interesting when we get new scripts and find
how what happens to the characters.
Is this a clue as to
what’s ahead for the boys?
AE: Do you know
what’s going to happen far ahead of time?
JW: Sometimes we
do. At the moment I know what’s going to happen at the end of summer. Something
big happens then. On screen it will be September – October.
AE: Is it something
you’ve already shot?
JW: No, we
haven’t shot it yet. But we know what it is. It’s something the fans will like.
TS: Nothing like
it has happened on German television before.
AE: So it’s never
been done before?
TS: No.
(Pause) I would like it if Christian
would make some mistakes. I love it when my character has a bad conscience.
JW: After you
kissed Rebecca, that was bad.
TS: Yeah, but I
was drunk [laughs].
GOOL THEATER
Emmerdale
Poor Aaron! That’s what I kept thinking watching him
this past week. He just looks so sad and pathetic you want to hug him. Or
something. I like that Aaron isn’t still completely comfortable with himself.
He’s gay and he’s out, but he’s hardly ready to be open about it, especially in
the face of blatant homophobia.
Older and more seasoned men than Aaron have
denied or simply refused to address they were gay when it was going to prove to
be problematic. Who could blame newly out Aaron for doing the same?
But, I loved the scenes with Aaron and Adam at the bar. Adam
is supportive and accepting of Aaron, but still had a bit of internalized
homophobia. It doesn’t make him a bad person, it actually makes him more real
because it’s how a straight guy like Adam would act. I especially loved the bit
where he couldn’t get why people would assume he was gay. Apparently, he’s
never looked in a mirror.
The scenes with Aaron and Jackson were fantastic. I do find
Aaron’s obsessive behavior about Jackson
to be a bit troubling and I see problems further down the line. Indeed, I suspect Aaron
will be a very jealous boyfriend someday. But it also makes sense he would cling to the
first guy the thinks ‘understands’ him. And while he may not want to admit it, Jackson is very drawn to
Adam. Best of all is that Danny Miller and Marc Silcock have terrific chemistry. I love the setup for the next beat of this story as this soap continues to shine.
As The World Turns
This clip was an example of why I don't care for Noah, especially as he
is still doing his "come here, go away thing" three years later. He
told Luke he wants to work things out, then pushes him away again. He doesn't
call to say he's left the hospital, but as soon as he gets his eyesight back, he
rushes over to see Luke and no doubt expects for Luke to be at his
beck and call as always. Grow up, Noah.
To Silbermann’s credit though, I thought he did a
very good job when he saw Luke kissing Reid through the window. He looked hurt, shocked,
upset and then really angry. A realistic and very well depicted array of
emotions.
I really thought the Luke/Reid scenes were well done. Luke's confidence in initiating the kiss was
perfect, as was his seductiveness and we’re seeing another side to Luke as he continues to mature. And these
guys have amazing chemistry. Luke and Noah are sweet, but Luke and
Reid are HOT.
I also enjoyed learning a bit about Reid's background and
completely enjoyed seeing him knocked off the pedestal he’s put himself on and that he can
be a little geeky and vulnerable and very sweet. It made me fall more in love
with Reid Oliver, and I didn’t think that was possible.
All That Matters
Is it a crime to so thoroughly enjoy a story about
infidelity and to a love a character bent on destroying a happy couple? I guess
I’m guilty, because I’m digging the ongoing Marc/Roman/Deniz triangle. It’s not
hard to see why Roman can’t resist Marc – he is an incredibly charming and sexy
man. And even though he’s bent on destroying a happy relationship, the actor is so
appealing you can’t hate him (well, I don’t) despite his less than honorable
intentions. And Roman and Marc have such chemistry that you want to see where
this leads.
I also think the scenes between Roman and Annette are very
realistic. They both know he is headed down a path of self-destruction and
she’s doing what a good friend does: listen, advise and pick up the pieces when
everything falls apart. And that is undoubtedly what is going to happen.
Roman’s conflict is palpable. You can feel his angst pouring
off of him in every scene. He knows what he is doing is wrong and he knows he’s
going to ruin everything. But he can’t help himself. It’s like watching a slow
motion train wreck and no one, not even the person behind the wheel, can look
away. Also, I’m glad that Deniz isn’t quite so clueless anymore, but I still
feel he should pick up more about what’s going on.
Doctors
I guess it’s realistic that Simon would still be mourning
the loss of Will, though it seems like his grieving lasted longer than the
actual relationship did. That being said, this new story arc isn’t working for me. It’s just
not believable. I don’t buy that Simon would sit around and let himself be
spoken to with such disdain by a co-worker as Simon has always been proud of who
he is. His keeping quiet implies a sense of shame, as if Charlie has a point
that he should keep quiet. But that’s not who Simon is, so I just don’t buy it.
I realize this plot arc only works if Simon remains quiet as
the homophobic behavior escalates, which it probably will. But it’s just so out
of character for Simon to behave this way. If he had spoken up weeks ago, Charlie
would be out immediately, so I guess he has to sign this contract so the other
doctors are stuck with him once his behavior is revealed. I understand the plot
dynamics. I just think there was a better and more realistic way to get there.
Forbidden Love
So far I’ve been on Christian’s side in this increasingly
ridiculous storyline, but now I see the writers are intent on making Christian
act as idiotically as Olli has been. Christian’s reasoning for kissing Rebecca is
nonsensical. Olli is working a party so naturally his focus has to
be on the guests and not his boyfriend.
For Christian to get drunk and act out and kiss
Rebecca … well, I don’t blame Olli for being so upset as to take a few days off. But I
wish the show would stop making these guys act so out of character just to drive the
plot. We could enjoy the story so much better if we actually believed their behavior.
I do have to credit the writers for attempting to flesh out Rob
a tiny bit, and it would be nice if they continued to do that rather than
making him the one dimensional bad guy. Elsewhere, I think Andi should give up
on Helena since
she always believes the worst of him. And I still don’t feel sorry for Rebecca.
Even less so for David. Why are these two still on my screen anyway?
Botineras
Umm…. Maybe Manuel should pick his secret boyfriends a
little better. This Lalo guy might be hot, but he’s not exactly the nicest guy.
Already accused of attempted murder, drugging a teammate as well as a few other crimes, now he’s
a suspect in another attempted killing? That’s not exactly the rap sheet one
looks for in a guy. That said, Manuel and Lalo still have terrific chemistry
and I’m glad we were able to see a bit of that this past week. The show hasn’t
forgotten that connection and may have offered fans a glimmer of hope for the
couple in the future.
However, it’s still unlikely that things are going to end
well for them. Their secret is on the verge of coming out as too many people
know. Frankly, Manuel and Lalo aren’t as discrete as they should be and it looks like something major is going to happen here. Let’s hope the guys are
still standing (and pretty as ever) when it all comes down. But, I’m a sucker
for hot guys who weep over losing their boyfriends (and in Manuel’s case his
wife and his kids too), so my heart went out to Manuel when he sobbed over
everything he’s lost. That was a nice moment.
General Hospital
Hey, this job is not all glitz and glamor. Sometimes it’s a
lot of pain and sacrifice. And there is a lot of pain and sacrifice in having
to watch General Hospital. To say that I despise this show is being kind. It’s reliance on
violence, its depiction of mobsters and killers as the heroes of the show and
the continued debasement of women are only three reasons why this soap ceased
being on my viewing schedule long ago.
I first heard about this plot twist involving a male character
being raped awhile back, and I hoped the show wouldn’t go there. Not because I
don’t think soaps shouldn't handle tough issues. Quite the opposite. I actually think it's important.
There were
rumors that As The World Turns were
thinking of doing such a storyline with Luke Snyder at one time, but they
chickened out and I don’t think GH is
the show to be tackling the issue.
Was Michael raped… or
is he just having a bad hair day?
Already the story is hampered by the fact that Chad Duell as
Michael is a terrible actor. Since a lot of his angst is internalized, you
really need a young actor capable of letting us see his inner torment. And
Duell simply isn’t up for the task.
On top of that the outcome is utterly predictable. The
attacker will try for Michael again and will wind up dead, probably at the
hands of Michael himself. Michael will then go through a few off screen therapy
sessions, meet a nice girl and it’ll all be forgotten.
Six months from now it’ll be like it never happened, trust
me.
GOOL SCOOPS AND
SPOILERS
As The World Turns – Noah is shocked to see Luke kissing
another man… and is even more stunned to realize that man is Dr. Reid Oliver,
the guy Luke has been claiming to hate for weeks. Noah holds on to the
revelation and lets Luke and Reid remain unaware that he has his sight back –
and that he knows about their relationship. Eventually though, Noah is unable
to keep quiet and everything is out into the open.
This forces Reid to demand that Luke make a decision about
which man he wants. Luke admits he still loves Noah, but he can’t deny his
growing feelings for Reid. Later, Luke invites Reid to a family gathering at
the Lilypad, but Reid, feeling more uneasy with everything refuses to come. However,
Noah does show up, and he and Luke have another go around. After Noah leaves,
Luke spots a necktie and suddenly flashes back to the moment he and Noah first
kissed.
Just then Reid, having changed his mind about the party,
arrives. Caught in the memories of his past and looking at the man in his
present, what will Luke do now?
David hopes he doesn’t
have to change diapers in between classes.
Física o Química - After you’ve wrongly accused your boyfriend
of cheating on you, is it a good idea to go out and cheat yourself? No? Well,
someone should tell that to Fer because after his fight with David, he ran out
and slept with Yoli. Did I mention she’s a girl?
If that weren’t bad enough, they didn’t use protection and
now fear she might be pregnant. David and Fer are squabbling over the
infidelity, while Fer and Yoli sweat out a pregnancy test. Even if Fer can
avoid being a daddy, can he avoid losing his boyfriend?
Glee - Sue embarks on a new scheme to destroy the Glee Club,
but this time Will is onto her and he gets some sweet revenge. Will it prove to
be worth it? Meanwhile, Quinn is feeling out of sorts as her due date
approaches. Mercedes steps in and helps the young mother to get in touch with
her funky side.
In other news, as Regionals approach, the gang gets some
really bad news. Plus, there is a traitor in the ranks and it’s not who you
think it might be.
The Glee kids get down
and get funky.
Coronation Street - Sean Tully is having a really bad week.
He’s been trying to track down his long lost son via Facebook (don’t ask), but
thus far it’s proven to be a failure, leaving all avenues to find his toddler
blocked. Before he can figure out his next move, he’s shocked with the news
that his place of business has been torched by the town psycho, putting him and
all of his friends out of work.
Sean still has a part-time job at the pub, but that won’t
pay the bills. With lots of people out of work all at the same time, jobs are
suddenly scarce. What is he going to do?
Is this a guy whose
boyfriend would cheat on him?
All That Matters - Upon hearing that Deniz is out of town on a
modeling gig, Marc takes the opportunity to try and advance his relationship
with Roman by surprising him at his apartment. When a conflict arises between
Roman, his father and his brother, old emotions are stirred and Marc is there
to soothe him. In fact, he soothes him right into bed.
Later Marc demands that Roman choose between the two of
them, but being in love with both Marc and Deniz, Roman is unable to choose. He
decides to work out his thoughts in a letter (never a good idea) while Annette
visits Marc and encourages him to leave town.
United States of Tara - Is it ever a good idea to try to turn a
friend into a lover? That’s the problem Marshall has when he realizes that he’s
starting to fall for his pal Lionel. When Lionel starts to avoid Marshall,
maybe it’s a sign that it’s not going to work out. Marshall goes to his sister
Kate for advice, but as usual, Kate’s more concerned about herself to even give
her little brother some attention.
Besides, does Marshall really want advice from his sister
given that she’s changing everything about herself to satisfy her new
boyfriend? Meanwhile, as Tara probes into her past a new alter makes her (or
maybe his) presence known.
Kévin can catch the
bad guys, but is he ready for marriage?
Les Bleus - After overcoming a number of obstacles, Kévin is
finally ready to make a commitment to Yann and proposes marriage to his
longtime lover. Will Yann accept? Kévin has already bought the plane tickets to
Madrid where they’ll be married, putting the pressure on Yann. In other news, Kévin’s
latest case has him and his partner getting on each other’s nerves. More than
usual, that is.
Good Times, Bad Times (German) - Carsten is getting lots of
support from Lenny’s family after his brush with death and he appreciates it, but
he can’t help worrying about Lenny making it through his six month stay in
prison, not to mention the fact that he misses his lover terribly. To distract
himself, he helps Lenny’s family deal with their own crisis. When Alexander
does something to tear the family apart, Lucy is devastated and can’t deal.
Will Carsten be able to help her through it?
Carsten and Lucy turn
to each other in a time of need.
Emmerdale - When Declan offers Jackson a job helping out with the remodeling
of Home Farm, he couldn’t be more thrilled at getting the work, even though it
means working in Emmerdale where he might run into Aaron. His joy quickly turns
sour when he finds out that Adam put in a good word for him and helped him to
get the job.
Certain that Aaron is trying to get in good with him,
Jackson charges over to the garage to tell him to butt out of his business and
out of his life. How will Jackson feel when he learns Aaron knew nothing about
it? For his part, Aaron isn’t pleased
with Adam’s actions and tells him to leave it alone because nothing will happen
between them. With Jackson working so close by, might there be a chance?
Aaron and Jackson
aren’t exactly starting off on the right foot…
Forbidden Love - After finding Christian and Rebecca kissing,
Olli is hurt and angry, but he’s also fearful that his boyfriend is going back
to dating women. Christian realizes what a big mistake he’s made and that he
has to find a way to fix things. In order to make things right, Christian makes
a big sacrifice for Olli’s sake. Will it be enough to heal things between them?
And what does New York City have to do with it all? Hmmm . . . !
Is Christian headed
back to het land?
AND ALSO THIS WEEK…
Shameless (U.S) - Mickey embarks on a new scam …
Doctors - Simon becomes embroiled in a messy love triangle …
Good Times, Bad Times (Dutch) - Lucas demands that Lorena come
through for him …
Hollyoaks - Kris is determined to prove his brother innocent of
murder …
Shortland Street - Gerald’s game playing annoys everyone around
him …
GOOL SNEAK PEEKS –
WHAT TO WATCH FOR IN THE COMING WEEKS!
Will Olli be smiling
when Christian
tells him what he’s been hiding?
Forbidden Love - Christian tells Olli a big secret …
Les Bleus - Kévin looks for a new place to live … but why?
Shameless (U.S.) - Mickey has problems in his love
life …
Física o Química - Is there a new gay at school?
Glee - Will the club win Regionals?
Emmerdale - Aaron tries … and fails to make up with Jackson …
EastEnders - Syed finds his desires aren’t so easy to get rid
of …
Deniz is back. Will Roman tell him the truth?
All That Matters - Roman struggles to be honest with Deniz …
GOOL NEWSBEAT
Mathew Bose returns as
gay Paul Lambert on Emmerdale
Two years ago, when then Emmerdale
executive producer Anita Turner took over the show, she couldn’t get rid of
the show’s gay characters fast enough, ending a gay love triangle that had been
running at the time and firing nearly all the actors involved. The only actor
spared was Mathew Bose, who played Paul Lambert, but even he was placed on the
back burner until the actor left the show in early 2009.
Since then, of course, gays have returned to Emmerdale in the form of Aaron Livesy,
played by Danny Miller and Jackson Walsh, played by Marc Silcock. Now Bose is
returning to the show for a brief stint to air in a few weeks.
Bose will reportedly be in Emmerdale for a few weeks to attend the wedding of his on screen
sister Nicola. As to whether this could be a permanent stay, some reports claim
Bose may be back for a longer stint, while others say no such thing is planned.
One thing that is for sure is that Jonny, Paul’s spouse played by Richard
Grieve, will not be with him.
And for those of you wondering, while Paul is in town, he
and Aaron will cross paths.
Danny Miller (Aaron, Emmerdale)
in an appearance on an Irish talk show.
This website isn’t the only one that is a huge fan of Emmerdale’s Danny Miller. The
talented actor is huge in the UK and Ireland right now as his storyline has
both fans and critics raving. Over the past year the show, due in part to the
storyline, has picked up some 2 million new viewers. Miller recently made the
rounds of Irish television as he was in the country to attend the Irish TV Now
Awards for which he was up for Favorite Male Soap Star.
As at the British Soap Awards, Miller lost, though the
Dingles (Aaron’s extended family) were named Best TV Family. In an interview on
the Irish talk show Expose, Miller gave
some insight on his storyline as well as some surprising behind-the-scenes dish
on what goes on at the set of Emmerdale.
Were those real tears
during the climactic courtroom scenes during which Aaron came out?
“There are different clips where in different parts of the
court where some of them were. But the tear duct gets empty so you do need a
bit of help so they give you a bit of a tear stick now and again.”
Those were real tears …
sometimes.
What was your initial
reaction when the producers came to you with this storyline?
“I was a bit shocked to be honest because knowing the
character and playing him for a year, I couldn’t see it … why he would be gay.
But then the executive producer Gavin Blyth explained it and it was genius. I
couldn’t turn it down.”
Do you feel any
responsibility as a role model?
“In a way I suppose I do because you have to. With every
character, not just me, you have to play a certain role and do justice to it.”
What has been the
reaction to the storyline?
“It’s blown up. We never expected it to get as big as it
has, really. We expected to go big because it was a big storyline, but we never
expected it to get this big. You do get all sorts of fan mail from gay men and
gay women who sort of write in and say ’I’m going through what Aaron is going
through; what should I do?’ … In the street I’ve had nothing but positive
feedback. I get a bit of the negative, but you don’t highlight that.”
What are they
drinking in the Woolpack, Emmerdale’s
town pub?
“It’s real beer so you have to be careful when you’re
drinking it, of course [laughs].”
Actor Scott Evans, who was Oliver on One Life to Live until the actor was fired earlier this year in a
very controversial move by ABC, has gotten a new gig. The actor will appear in
the gay indie film The One, also starring Jon Prescott as
Evans’ love interest. Prescott recently appeared on As the World Turns where he played Mike Kasnoff and One Life to Live where he played
persistently shirtless pool boy Chad. Filming starts on the movie in June.
What is the movie about? It’s described as “a quick-witted, tender romantic dramedy about a
young, successful Manhattan investment banker who lives the charmed Upper East
Side Manhattan life about to marry the woman of his dreams who, a month before
his wedding, meets and unexpectedly falls in love with a charismatic man from
his past.”
No word on which role Evans will play, but we can tell you
that Evans and Prescott will reportedly have three love scenes.
Jon Prescott and Scott
Evans play lovers in the indie film The One.
The recent scenes on As
the World Turns that had Luke and Reid at a western bar were supposedly set
in a bar in Dallas, since that’s where Luke and Reid were at the time, but
according to Van Hansis, who plays Luke, they never left New York, where ATWT is shot.
“It’s at this bar on the Lower East Side called Mason
Dixon,” Hansis told Soap Opera Weekly.
“I’ve ridden mechanical bulls before so it was old hat for me. Also they put it
on the lowest speed. And then the guy who was the operator went on it and it
was like a bronco. Those things go really fast and I would have flown off in a
second!”
“It only took one take,” said Hansis. “But then they had a
lot of shots they wanted to intercut so I was on there for a couple of minutes.
By end I was like ‘okay, the novelty has worn off!’”
Van Hansis went for a
not so wild ride on a recent As the World Turns.
While the gay romance between EastEnders’ Christian and Syed has been incredibly
popular, it doesn’t mean there hasn’t been a downside. Actor Marc Elliott has
taken his share of heat for the controversial storyline about a married Muslim
man having a gay love affair. In fact, the actor says he’s often verbally
attacked in the street because of his character’s behavior. But he doesn’t let
it get to him.
“Since playing Syed, I have really got it in the
neck when I'm out,” Elliot told the Daily
Mail. “A lot of people are supportive, but there is still a huge amount of
negativity. Any insult, I’ve had it thrown at me. I haven't been threatened,
but there's a lot of cat-calling in the street. It's an incredibly important
part. In so many cultures being gay is still something swept under the carpet.”
Actor Antony Cotton, who plays gay Sean on Coronation
Street, has spoken out in the past for gay
rights and on gay issues. And he’s taking action with his latest project. The
actor, along with film star Ian McKellen, has filmed a PSA denouncing
homophobia. The video was done with the Lesbian and Gay Foundation as part of
their ‘Enough is Enough!’ campaign. The video is narrated by McKellen, who
talks of the damaging effects of homophobia as we see images of a beaten and
bruised Cotton.
Cotton says that this is a serious, ongoing
issue. The actor told The Manchester
Evening News that he gets letters from children who are suffering
homophobic bullying and attacks. A recent study done by the National Union of
Teachers revealed that 65 % of educators had seen or heard homophobic behavior
and acts among their students.
“Words are sometimes the cruelest weapon. I've had those thrown at me,
shouted in the street or whispered in my ear, and I have had many letters from
young people who say they're being bullied at school or they're frightened to
tell their parents in case they throw them out,” says Cotton. “I've had letters
from people in prison and a soldier in Afghanistan, too. They shouldn't have to
feel like that anymore. This is something society as a whole has to stand up
to.”
Nicolas Gob as gay cop
Kévin Laporte on Les Bleus
We just got it back, but now it looks like it might go away
again, only this time for good. I’m talking about Les Bleus, the French cop series starring Nicolas
Gob as gay cop Kévin Laporte, which just wrapped up its third season. But
according to M6, which produces the show, the ratings were so poor compared to
the two previous years that the network has cut back on the episode order for
Season 4, which will now only be two episodes, and there may not be a proposed
fifth season. No definite decision has been made at this point, and we’ll have
future updates as they come in GOOL.
The kids of Glee have
reason to celebrate.
One show not going away anytime soon is Glee. While the show hasn’t even finished airing its first season
or begun producing its second, it’s already been picked up for a third year.
It’s highly unusual, perhaps unprecedented for a television show, to receive a two-season
pick up.
Daytime soap operas, in their heyday, would get renewals for anywhere
from three to five years, but even that isn’t done anymore with soaps being in
such dire straits. Congrats to the fledgling series. Let’s just hope future
seasons can keep up the same quality as the first, which wraps up on June 8th.
SNAPSHOTS - Out
and about with Emmerdale’s Danny Miller (Aaron)
Miller clowns around
on the set of Emmerdale.
Miller with talk show
host Siobhan O’ Connor
at the award ceremony in Ireland.
Miller with co-star
Dominic Brunt (Paddy) at the British Soap Awards.
