josh duhamel - e!online interview

 

Soap Star Ditches Teeth, Bets Big on Casino Drama

by Kimberly Potts | September 3, 2003

He would have made having a toothache less painful, but dentistry's loss is Hollywood's gain. Former wannabe molar driller (and All My Children star) Josh Duhamel hits prime time this fall in NBC's Las Vegas.

The action-packed drama, created and produced by Fast and the Furious scribe Gary Scott Thompson, features North Dakota native Duhamel (pronounced "DOO-mel") as casino security expert Danny McCoy. In the pilot, he draws the ire of his boss, Big Ed (James Caan), when he's caught flagrante delicto with Ed's wild-child daughter (Molly Sims). Need more drama? Fellow former sudsers Vanessa Marcil and Nikki Cox, plus British actress Marsha Thomason, pop up as potential romantic entanglements.

And Duhamel's celluloid love life takes a big turn next February, when he makes his feature debut in Win a Date with Tad Hamilton!!!, a romantic comedy about a superstar who falls for a fan after she wins a rendezvous with him.

Is it true you were just one class away from being Josh Duhamel, DDS?

Oh, no, my mom would have killed me! "You know what, Mom, I'm one class away from being a dentist, but screw that, I'm gonna go be an actor!" Yeah, that wouldn't have happened. I was actually one class away from getting a biology degree, and then I was going to be a dentist.

What's it like working with James Caan? Do you ever stop and think, Omigod, Sonny Corleone is my boss?

When I first found out I got the job, I called my dad and was like, "You are not going to believe who is playing Big Ed!" It was pretty exciting, and then it was pretty intimidating--and then I just wanted him to like me. But after working with him now, he's just a great guy--very funny, very cool.

Did you do any special preparation for your high-tech role?

I went to Vegas a few days before we shot the pilot. They gave me a full tour of Mandalay Bay, and they showed me the security room. It's amazing how they can use the cameras and zoom in on a watch from 100 yards and read what time it is. There's something like 2,000 cameras going at all times. Big Brother is definitely watching!

A lot of actors who make the transition from soaps to prime time try to distance themselves from that world, but you really seem to embrace the whole experience.

All My Children is the reason I'm here. I can't say enough good things about the people there. They gave me my first shot, and it really allowed me the opportunity to get better. That's how I got the confidence to come out [to L.A.] and go for it.

So, no regrets about that dental school thing?

I'm going to finish up the degree online, but I couldn't imagine doing anything else than exactly what I'm doing. I'm having so much fun. The last six years have been full of things I dreamed about. It's long hours, but there's no place else I'd rather be.