Priya's Articles

Priya Jayatillake talks one-on-one with Sean Faris, who played the role of Ben in several episodes of Vampire Diaries.

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The love of Vampires is besieging the world that was once ridiculed for its vivid imagination; of aliens and creatures and behaviors that no one in real life would give a second-thought about. To be honest, I’m not a real twilight-fanatic but meeting this hunk of steel, Sean Faris, from the CW’s sleeper-hit series The Vampire Diaries, my thoughts have since changed. – All for the better.

Faris plays the role of Ben McKittrick, a football-star-turned bartender who works at the local Mystic Grill in Mystic Falls. Behind his human appearance, deep down lies a ruthless vampire who, with undercover girlfriend, Anna (played by Malese Jow) takes on the mortal town of Mystic Falls. Talking personally about the nitty-gritty of the life of an actor, sex, love and vampires, Faris gets down and dirty:

Are you a fan of vampire stories yourself?

Sort of, haha. I’m not one of those Vampire fanatics that chase after Twilight Books. But I do have this, I don’t know what you call it… infatuation with Vampires. So I do read stories of that genre – just not all the time.

How does your role in the VD differ from the other roles that you’ve had before?

Trying to portray yourself as a blood-sucking vampire is really difficult. I know it looks simple on television. But it’s really hard. The first few days after reading the script were really spent on personal research and lots of sessions with my mentor and acting out in front of the mirror whenever I had the chance. My role was different in the way that I had to create two different personas, something that I still find difficult to produce.

Do you have any funny stories about shooting the VD episodes?

We’re a pretty serious bunch. But re-take some scenes up to 4 or 5 times. And Atlanta may be a great place to shoot, but working in Atlanta’s cold climate takes its toll. During the day and night, the temperature dipped a lot and most of us were shivering while trying to speak coherently.

You were number 38 on Elle Magazine’s 50 Sexiest Guys. How do you feel about this raised status and being considered a sex symbol?

I’m still the same person my parents raised and my brothers and sisters grew up with. I’m beyond flattered to even be called sexy. In fact, I think it’s great! But I’m still Sean, and at the end of the day, that’s what matters, right?

True. What was your most memorable part of working with the VD Cast?

They’re the nicest bunch of people, you’ll ever meet. I mean Marcos (Siega) and Kevin (Williamson) and Julie (Plec) run a pretty tight schedule. But everyone’s co ordinated and they know their responsibilities. At the end of the day of shooting (which is usually early in the morning), we just head out to the local café and talk with eachother… we pretty much have heaps of fun together. Nina (Dobrev) and Zach (Roerig) and the rest are so supportive. Just arriving on the first day, everyone welcomed me in. The feeling was just so surreal.

Vampire-related shows seem to circle around erotic sex and love. What’s your input in this?

No sex scenes for me, haha. It’d be good, wouldn’t it? But I’ve only appeared for the 3 episodes. I think the whole sex and vampire thing really get the ignition started, no pun intended. It’s really just appealing to see a mere mortal engaging in activity with a vampire. The whole mysterious and sexy kind of vampire really tugs on people’s hearstrings….come on, if I was a girl and saw a sexy, mysterious guy, it’s agreed that the sex would be expected to be great.

There’s a wide network of Fans, particularly in Twitter and Facebook. Do you have a twitter account?

As of now, I don’t. But it’s just amazing to hear that I have so many fans dedicating their passion for me on twitter and facebook. Maybe one day I will get Twitter, but right now it’s one of those tasks written on the last page of my diary. I’d like to also thank my fans and how they’ve supported me throughout my journey in acting. It’s amazing to have so much support and I love my fans to the bottom of my heart. Hopefully soon, I’ll be able to interact with them more often.

One thing you won’t leave home without?

My pants.

Sean Faris is a truly remarkable man who loves the Vampire stories, works well with his friends and is a truly passionate actor climbing up the ladder to fame. Be sure to follow this down-to-earth man as he appears in the Vampire Diaries and in his own film The Glass Eye – I know I will.

Priya_Jk will be able to answer questions about Paul and Sean from having met them with everyone through my site on formspring and twitter.

Thanks to shineonmedia for providing photos of Sean Faris.

Getting to Know Paul Wesley!

This is an article that has been brought to our attention about Paul’s days on “Fallen”, the ABC minseries.

Courtesy of TeenMag.com
Thanks to P.K. Jayatillake

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Paul Wesley doesn’t just look like an angel, he plays one on TV! In ABC Family Channel’s new flick “Fallen” (which prem
iered Sunday, July 23), Paul stars as Aaron Corbett, a teen orphan who learns that he’s actually an angel, but not the sweet, fluttery stereotype you think of when you hear the word. Aaron already feels like an outcast, so when he has to deal with his newfound powers, his life spirals out of control. We recently chatted with Paul in Los Angeles about this extraordinary role and have shared his thoughts with us!

TEENMAG: What was the best part of playing Aaron in Fallen?

Paul Wesley: I enjoy the fact that he’s a social outcast and I really like the fact that we don’t know much about his past. He’s never met his parents. There are so many interesting things to that. I thought it gave me a lot of range to play with. In the script it doesn’t really tell you much about what happened to Aaron when he was in orphanages and stuff like that, it gave me the opportunity to make up my own stuff and create my own history for him. I really dug that. It’s a really cool way of interacting with your character.

TEENMAG: Can you relate to feeling like an outcast?

Paul Wesley: I went to this private, all boys Catholic school and I got kicked out of there because I didn’t jive well with them. Then I went to a public high school and I didn’t really jive there either. So then I went to another school and then I graduated. So I never really got to establish my clique. There were always so many cliques and I never really felt into a group which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, I actually recommend it.

TEENMAG: If you didn’t identify with one particular group in high school, how did you make it through those years?

Paul Wesley.: I had a lot of extracurricular activities and I had one girlfriend that I consistently dated throughout high school. So that was always good. I was acting. I started acting junior year so I was actually out of school a lot. That was my problem, too, that I wasn’t there that often because I was doing the soap opera Guiding Light. Also, I was really into ice hockey. And I studied a lot; I got good grades. I also have strong family values – I’m very close with my parents.

TEENMAG: What do they think about your career?

Paul Wesley: They’ve been phenomenal supporters since day one. I went to college for a semester. They consistently preached, “You’ve gotta get good grades. You’ve gotta go to a good school.” When I made the decision to drop out of college to pursue acting I had already been moderately successful doing the soap opera. Instead of being hesitant they said, “Do it,” which was really cool. I respect that.

TEENMAG: Were you familiar with the books the movie is based on?

Paul Wesley: I wasn’t familiar with the books but to be honest with you I’m not that familiar with that kind of genre. I don’t know anything about comic books. I’ve never seen a Star Wars in my life. I’m literally clueless to that genre. Not that this is like Star Wars, but that whole sci-fi thing. The thing I like about this is that I think its less sci-fi and more mythology. Its more historical, its biblical in a way. But I wasn’t familiar with it at all.

TEENMAG: What’s the worst date you’ve ever been on?

Paul Wesley: I haven’t gone on many dates to be honest with you.

TEENMAG: That’s pretty shocking…Well, then, what’s the most romantic thing you’ve ever done for a girl?

Paul Wesley: When I was courting my first girlfriend, I was about 14 years old, and I sent a five-foot teddy bear to her house. It was so huge. But I had the wrong address and it was this whole mix-up. I wanted it to be this big surprise and they ended up calling her and saying, “We’re trying to deliver this teddy bear and we don’t know where it is.” It was so embarrassing but she thought it was the most romantic thing ever because I was only 14 and what 14 year old does that?

TEENMAG: Do you have a twitter account?

Paul Wesley: No I don’t. But I’ve heard there are many accounts under my name, which is really annoying. Maybe some day I will get twitter. But not yet.

TEENMAG: Favorite food?

Paul Wesley: Haha. I don’t really mind whatever there is to eat. I’m a little bit of a sushi maniac, though.

TEENMAG: Do you believe in love at first sight?

Paul Wesley: Oh. Wow. I really don’t know. Like, people will meet and swear later on that once they “saw eachother” it was immediately known to them that they’d be partners together. To be honest, I’m not a real believer of love at first sight. It’s more lust, isn’t it?

TEENMAG: Agreed. Do you search yourself up on Google/Youtube?

Paul Wesley: There has been the odd occasion where I have searched myself up, like Wikipedia and sites like that. I don’t usually do it, mainly for the sake I’m too busy to go and search myself up.

TEENMAG: What country would you really like to visit one day?

Paul Wesley: Australia. It’s just such a remote country and I’ve been told that the people there are so friendly and open and honest. Oh and the beaches … Gosh I love going to beaches.

TEENMAG: Will we be seeing you at the Oscars/Emmy’s one day?

Paul Wesley: Oh I hope so, haha. Some day. Be sure to write an article about that! (chuckling to himself)

Paul Wesley is an amazing actor, not only one who has got the most amazing looks, rivaled to our very own Brad Pitt and George Clooney, but also an “open, honest” and caring man who doesn’t mind having a laugh now and then. An uprising star, be sure to watch Paul Wesley on Fallen. Who knows, maybe some day we WILL see him at the Oscars. I’m rooting for you, Paul.

The interviewer, P.R.Jayatillake, will also be interviewing Sean Faris. She would like input on questions for her interview. Please feel free to contact her with your questions at formspring.me/priyajk or through Twitter @Priya_JK