Also from April of this year...
http://www.thetvaddict.com/2010/04/13/10-questions-with-glee-star-chris-colfer/
Ten Questions with GLEE star Chris Colfer
In anticipation of GLEE’s much-anticipated return tonight (9:28PM FOX, Global in Canada), say HELL-O to star Chris Colfer, with whom we recently had the pleasure of posing a few questions to.
With all the build-up surrounding these back nine episodes, can they possibly live up to the hype?
Chris Colfer: Because maybe they’re tired of us? [Laughs] Actually, I have absolutely no fear whatsoever because the next episodes are above and beyond anything we did in the first thirteen. The ratings will speak for themselves, but as far as the material, it just gets better and better.
What’s in store for Kurt, specifically?
We are in a heavy battle with Vocal Adrenaline, our competing Glee Club which is starting to see the New Directions as a threat. But in terms of Kurt, he has a diabolical plan of getting Finn’s mom and his Dad to get married so that he can be close to Finn always. Kurt tries setting them up so that he can be Finn’s roommate.
Will Kurt ever move on from Finn?
I think he’ll always has a soft spot for Finn, but I’m pretty sure Kurt will get a real boyfriend in the first couple episodes of the second season. One that I’m hoping is less attractive than me because I don’t want to be the bad end of the couple. Of course knowing the producers, they’re probably going to get some adonis of some kind which will really suck for me, but that’s okay.
How similar are you to that of your character?
Like Kurt, I was kind of an outcast and was bullied in high school. We’re both very different people, but the fact that we’ve had so many similar experiences, it makes the character so much more relatable because the emotion is coming from a real place.
Do you think gay teens can identify with your character?
I definitely hope so. One of the reasons why I decided to play him like I portray him on the show is that there are a lot of very over-the-top flamboyant loud characters like Kurt on television. I grew up in a very small conservative town and I didn’t know too many people like that. But I did know a lot of people that were very quiet, internal and thought themselves very superior to everybody around them and that’s how I play Kurt — like the real people that I knew and I think that has what people have been responded to.
Do you hear from a lot of fans responding to Kurt?
Thousand. I get so many letters and messages. I think fan mail lis written all digitally now. On facebook, there are so many letters from so many people just so relieved to see someone being honest with who they are in high school. It’s so important to them, I’ve gotten so many messages it’s impossible to read it all, there’s just so many yet every time I’m a little down I open up my facebook and read them.
Is there a downside to fame?
I think fame does have its ups and downs. There’s a lot you have to sacrifice, like being able to go outside without someone stopping you on the street. There’s been a couple of incidents when fans have stopped me and I kind of wish they hadn’t. Embarrassing places like the pharmacy, or the grocery store when I’m buying prunes! But it’s a give and take.
Knowing how your life has turned out, what would you tell your nine-year old self?
Oh gosh. I would tell him not to be afraid to be out of the box. I would love to tell him, ‘Hey, you’re going to be on a hit TV show so don’t worry about anything!’ But yeah, I think I would just say hang in there, it definitely will get better.
What’s it like working with Ryan Murphy?
It’s great. He’s one of the few people that can make me laugh really hard. It’s really great to watch him get inspired by something because you can see in his eyes, the wheels start turning in his head and all his creative juices start flowing. He’ll meet someone or hear a song and decide to right to it, it’s a cool sight to see.
Is there any added pressure on you now to be a role model offscreen.
There are a lot of people that look up to Kurt and personally I think that my biggest responsibility is making sure the character is handled with the respect and that it needs because he means the world to so many people. In terms of off-camera, we’re always so busy we don’t really have to worry about making fools of ourselves because we’re always working and never go anywhere. But I do think there is pressure to be the best we can both on screen and off.
End of article
My favorite line in the article (with editing):
"There are a lot of people that look up to Kurt and personally I think that my biggest responsibility is making sure the character is handled with the respect that it needs because he means the world to so many people."
Chris has expressed this sentiment in more than one article, and I marvel at his maturity and sensitivity. I also feel nervous when he is asked about being a role model, becuase its such a slippery slope, as I've mentioned previously. Role models are thrown to the wolves eventually in our society. Because no one can achieve and maintain the level of perfection that is expected of a role model. The character of Kurt obviously has flaws, as does every character in Glee. That's one of the reasons why the show is so compelling.
Chris Colfer is a twenty year old young man dealing with sudden fame, and all of its peaks and valleys. He's intelligent, articulate, hardworking, and talented. I have seen the industry change people like Chris, make them hard and introverted and less willing to open up about their lives and their thoughts because people pick apart everything they say and do.
There have already been some conflicting statements printed, which I loathe to mention but its pertinent to the discussion. Most articles about Chris mention that he is out of the closet, and of course Chelsea Lately proclaimed him gay on her show, as she does with most of her guests who are assumed to be gay, whether they have publicly stated the fact or not. Chris did not correct her.
But in at least one article, he has appeared to backpedal a bit, stating that he doesn't discuss his sexuality. People have speculated, and I happen to agree with this, that the backpedaling wasn't Chris' idea, but his handlers: press agent, the show, FOX, somebody or somebodies said to him, "If you're too open in this line of work, you're going to run the risk of pidgeon-holing yourself in terms of future jobs. You don't want to only play the gay kid for the next ten or fifteen years. And you don't want every interview to be about your sexuality."
Again, he's twenty years old, he's a greenhorn in the business, and he's got untold numbers of people giving him advice and whispering in his ear. Even under the best circumstances, he's not going to be perfect, he's not going to always say and do "the right thing." What he'll have to learn to do is listen to the advice and then make the decisions that are right for him. He needs to surround himself with people that both know him and know the industry, have his best interest at heart, and will help him navigate the dangerous waters of "Hollyweird" without sacrificing his integrity.
Here's to hoping.
gleekette
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