Interview parue dans le numéro 88 (daté de mars 2002) du magazine britannique SFX.
Unlike Angel, David Boreanaz doesn't do brooding. That would be wasting time that could be better spent eating, he tells Honie Stevens.
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THERE'S A LINE IN VALENTINE WHEN SOMEONE refers to David Boreanaz's character, saying, "He's no angel." Boreanaz, now doing promotional duties for the video release of the movie which he actually filmed way back between Angel's first and second seasons, laughs at the mention, but doesn't seem entirely sure if the line was an intentional in-joke or not. "It just kind of happened. Everyone liked that, I know, from the audience response. I had nothing to do with it..."
It is, however, an observation that's as true of Boreanaz himself as it is of his character in Valentine. He is no Angel. In Boreanaz's own words, the soul-stricken vampire is, "a really stubborn person and self-absorbed. He's had a difficult time socialising with humans. I mean, he was cursed by gypsies and turned into a vampire. He was a vicious, tormented, tortured creature. He's a saddened creature, but he's also one who enjoys doing something besides brooding."
Which is a bit of a contrast to how he sees. himself. "I'm quick-witted, sarcastic, spontaneous. I'm very open and very vulnerable. I'm also a big dork: hitting my head, dropping things, bumping into walls, losing my keys... I'm not this dark, brooding guy. "
He's not deluding himself, either. While not exactly a hedonist - he takes his work very seriously - the Philadelphia-born Boreanaz seems to have taken his move to California to prove he can out-California the natives. He chats away with an endearingly animated oafishness about girls, food, football... Even when it comes to discussing philosophy, he cites the Dalai Lama as an influence because, "He's such a happy guy." Angel may have to stay out of the sun, but you're left in no doubt that Boreanaz loves the California climate and lifestyle. I mean, he's marrying a model. What does that tell you?
The lucky lass is one Jaime Bergman. "She's been the St Pauli beer girl, a Playboy Playmate of the Month, and she's done several movies, like Armageddon, Any Given Sunday and Daybreak," Boreanaz reveals with a boyish pride.
If things had gone to plan they would have been married by the time of this interview, but the events of September 11 meant that the ceremony had to be rescheduled. "That's right," nods Boreanaz. "We were scheduled to get married a week after that catastrophe but we called it off when it became difficult for our family and friends to get to Los Angeles."
Boreanaz proposed "on a mountaintop in the California desert" after a whirlwind romance. "We met in May. I proposed in August," he reveals. It's not his first marriage, the actor having previously been hitched for two years to Ingrid Quinn, a former social worker, now a writer. The experience, however, obviously hasn't put him off the idea of wedded bliss.
"Marriage is a rough institution," he admits. "Two people's love is much more powerful than..." He picks up and waves a piece of paper. "I did it the wrong way. That's why I got burned. But being in a committed relationship is important to me."
So what does he look for in a woman? " A sense of humour. I like a woman who can make fun of herself. And someone who is clean and smells good. She's got to have a great, sexy walk. You can tell a lot by the way a woman walks. Not just from the view, but from her attitude too."
With Bergman pretty much at the beginning of her acting career, struggling to find that breakthrough role, at least Boreanaz will be able to give her some hard-earned from-experience advice. Though it's unlikely she'll be "discovered" in the same way that her new husband was.
"An actors' manager spotted me walking my dog, Bertha Blue, and got me an audition with Joss Whedon," he says. "So that's how I found my manager. It was being lucky at a certain time."
Until then his acting CV had been patchy, his main success playing Kelly Bundy's girlfriend in an episode of Married With Children. He also had a couple of blink-and-you'll-miss-them parts in the TV movie Aspen Extreme and the film Best Of The Best 2. Ironically, shortly before joining the cast of Buffy, he played a vampire's victim in a short movie called A Bizarre Pair Of Shorts.
Inbetween times he paid his rent by taking on some less-than-glamorous jobs.
"There was one point in my life when I was parking cars and I was looking at myself going, 'What am I doing here?' Parking cars really sucked! It was the worst job I ever had. I was really down and depressed and sad. But I kept doing plays and memorising my lines as I was doing the car parking. Living through those bad times, I learned a lot about myself, and I definitely gained as a person. I met some interesting people. I look back at that time and say, 'Jesus, that was really difficult and hard.' I wouldn't want to go back there, but I see it in retrospect and I understand it. Now I feel blessed, in a way, that I went through it the way I did."
Hmm, his shades don't look rose-tinted... Still, maybe this is the attitude which means that he's more than happy to be playing Angel for a sixth year, with no fears about typecasting. And he thinks there's little chance of burnout any time soon.
"No, not at all. Angel's personality changes. There's a lot of different personalities in him, and I enjoy playing each one of them. It's giving me the opportunity to take something and grow with it and evolve with it, rather than be stagnant with it, because I think there are so many different ways I can go with Angel now."
Certainly there are some bizarre developments in the third season of Angel which will see its star stretching his acting talents in new directions. It's a challenge he relished, but there are some drawbacks about breaking away from Buffy The Vampire Slayer.
"I miss working with Sarah," he reveals. "She's great. Before kissing scenes, we tried to gross each other out by eating things like onion rings and tuna fish. We'd have fun battling each other with disgusting foods."
Food, it turns out, is a subject very dear to Boreanaz's heart. Even when we start talking about his hometown, the conversation soon takes a culinary turn.
"Philadelphia, that's my hometown. I miss it. Philadelphia has a special place in my heart. It's the home of the Philly cheese steak. They're the best in the world. Someone sent me a Philly Care Package where the meat's kept separate from the roll until you're ready to assemble the sandwich. The roll is the most important ingredient. It's gotta be right."
Other favourite mouth-waterers include "English muffins. They're hip and crunchy - all the nooks and crannies. I love Eggs Benedict, BBQ ribs and Italian food." So it's no surprise that when asked to name his favourite TV shows, he reveals, "I love Cooking With Emeril. I'm a big Food Channel guy."
A love of the more esoteric side of TV may also come from the fact that his dad - Dave Roberts - is a TV weatherman. Not a meteorologist, Boreanaz is quick to point out, but, "a performer who broadcasts the weather on television". Though he's now been working for WPVI in Philadelphia for a few years, Dave's dad's job meant that the young Boreanaz did a lot of city hopping while growing up. "It meant going from job to job, city to city. I travelled with him. I got to know what it was like to be an outsider looking in, kind of like Angel. I guess everyone feels like an outsider at one time or another."
Despite living on opposite sides of the country Boreanaz remains very close to his dad in every other sense. "My father is like my best friend. We talk almost every day. I turn to my family so that I remember where I came from. They are the people who look at me for who I am. At the end of the day, that's what's most important."
And he still has friends in Philadelphia who he returns to see as often as he can. "It's a wake-up call. They slap you around. What's great about old friends is that you can pick up exactly where you left off. That, to me, is what life is all about. It's simple. You look at it for what it is and not for what you want it to be. If you are in it for fame and notoriety, you're in it for the wrong reasons."
Not that he's going to turn down a starring role in a movie: when it's offered to him. But why did he choose Valentine as his first film?
"All those beautiful women! " he laughs. " Ah, yes, and it was a challenge to take a one-sided character and wonder what can we try and make with him? What can we do with him? Where can we take him? How can we make him different? It was a fun thing to do. The film is all about obsession and revenge. I play this newspaper sports writer whose journalist girlfriend is being stalked by a madman. Something happened to a circle of friends back in grade school. It has to do with bullying. All these years later, someone is seeking revenge."
He also felt that it wasn't a typical slasher movie. "Not at all. It appealed to me because these characters are not teenagers. They're all young adults. It's a sexy, mature thriller - and it was a real joy-ride to make. I expect that those who see it find it the same kind of joyride, fans who like these kind of slasher films."
Valentine's Vancouver shoot also gave Boreanaz a chance to indulge in another of his favourite passions. "Definitely. I'm a shopper and I spent a lot of time rummaging through Vancouver's thrift shops for '70s and '80s vintage wear. I remember [co-star] Jessica Capshaw saying, 'I swear to God, you are worse than I am. I can't keep up with you.' I guess that comes from growing up with two older sisters. One [Bo Slavin] is now a costumer on Ally McBeal."
This sartorial advice has given him a fashion sense that is distinctly different to Angel's trademark black and leather.
"Definitely - lighter and more vibrant. I can wear pink shirts that no-one else can pull off," he says with mock pride, before adding, "even though I have gotten grief for it. Blue is my favourite colour. I am a creature of comfort; I hang out in jeans and a cashmere sweater. But when I need to get dressed up I like two-button suits, crisp shirts and, of course, that nostalgic bohemian wear. I love London style like Paul Smith. I also love Helmut Lang. My taste is very subtle, but I like to add a little bit of flash, whether it be a scarf or a velvet waistcoat."
Boreanaz's fashion no-nos include: " Anything itchy like wool. Shirts with tags in the back. Also, tight shirts. Sometimes [on Angel] I have to wear these tight workout shirts, and I look like a Tootsie Roll! I hate turtlenecks. They make me feel claustrophobic. Plus, I have a big neck."
Asked to name his style gurus, there's no hesitation. "Muhammad Ali. Because he is just who he is - an unbelievable athlete and someone with real confidence. Yul Brynner was cool, too. "
And if you're a woman who wants to catch Boreanaz's eye, here's what he likes to see the fairer sex wearing. "It starts from the shoes up. I love when women throw on a pair of really sexy boots. But I love flip-flops and sandals too. I love a woman in a red leather jacket. I love a woman who can wear funky pants, scarves, sweaters. I love a woman in a gown, too."
Doubtless there'll be more shopping opportunities on his next movie, a romantic comedy called I'm With Lucy which also stars Monica (Along Came A Spider) Potter, Henry (ET) Thomas and Julie (Demon Seed) Christie and Harold (Ghostbusters) Ramis. Boreanaz is increasingly proving to have a talent for comedy on Angel (who can forget his dweeb dance?) so he's keen to take on a comic role. He admits, though, that it's easy to make him laugh.
"Lots of things do. I can find humour in anything. I can be in a room by myself and laugh. My father makes me laugh. Jaime makes me laugh. My niece - she's seven - makes me laugh. My nephew - he's five - makes me laugh. He's hilarious, man. Some things that kids say are just too funny! He calls me Uncle D, and that makes me laugh."
But is he ticklish?
"Only on the inside."
With his big screen career taking off, does that mean he's happy to concentrate on acting, or does he hanker, as seemingly every actor in a telefantasy shows does these days, to get behind the camera, either to write or direct?
"Not writing an episode," he reckons. "Directing, possibly, yeah, but we'll see what happens with that down the line. "
But with flashback sequences to Angel's past now a regular part of the show, Boreanaz does have some ideas of other time periods he'd like the stories to explore. "Definitely. I would like to go back to a World War II era with an espionage story. That would be really cool. I would love that."
His favourite part about being an actor, he reveals, is, "Doing dialects. I'm a good mimic. I love doing the New York dialect, along with British/London speech... and German and Italian." You may note, however, that Irish - the accent he has to attempt most often on Angel - is absent from the list. Make of that what you will...
But the dialects answer is typically Boreanaz. He seems to love reinforcing his "self-parodying" image. He reacts to being asked whether he liked to take on more serious roles by laughingly replying, "Yeah, since I'm a very serious guy... hah! I look at it as work. In the long run, [cinema and TV] are the same thing. You hit your mark. You know your lines. You don't bump the furniture. You go home. That was Spencer Tracy's attitude."
But ask him which actors he admires, and notably he reels off a list of heavyweights... "Gary Oldman, Liam Neeson, Leonardo DiCaprio, Al Pacino, Gwyneth Paltrow, Willem Dafoe, Marlon Brando, Robert DeNiro... and I'd love to work with Martin Scorsese."
You can't help liking Boreanaz for his down-to-earth attitude to his trade. He admits that he's aware that he could wake up one day to find that all his fame and fortune have vanished, but, he argues, he has no great gameplan to become the next Kevin Spacey.
"I'm not really a goal-oriented person. What I consider a goal is learning. I want to be able to look back on any project I do and say, 'Well, I tried to do this, and I learned from it.' That would be my ultimate fulfilment in life. My plan is just be able to explore new avenues and enjoy myself. I look at my career - and my life - as a work-in-progress, every day." SFX