Get Flip on Facebook! Now you can make and share flipbooks on facebook. Add the application!
•
Quizzes We've got lots of Style, Entertainment, Beauty, Love, Life and Friends quizzes. Take one here.
•
What Do You Think? Want to talk to other members or share your opinion on anything on your mind? Come sound off on our boards.
•
Read Your Daily Horoscope Want to know what's in store for you, your best friend, crush, or boyfriend? Read Fiona's astro predictions.
•
Say Anything Read and rate our newest mortifying moment.
Jesse Spencer: Uptown Guy
Gorgeous Australian actor Jesse Spencer has been a star in his native country for years, ever since rocking the series Neighbours — the same show that also launched the careers of Kylie Minogue, Russell Crowe, and Natalie Imbruglia. But he's only just made the leap to Hollywood, with his starring role in Uptown Girls as Neal, the rock-star love interest of Brittany Murphy. Want to meet him? Read on ...
What do you think is up with this Aussie invasion of cute young guys with accents? It's like as soon as you're a certain age...
It's like "Okay, now I'm gonna go to America!" No, there are a lot of people that stay. I've been in England the last four years, so this isn't my first journey out of Australia. I guess a lot of Australians come to L.A., but I went to London. I think a lot of it is, to be completely honest, has to do with the amount of work. Australia doesn't have a huge industry, and there's a lot of work over here. In the end, actors want to work.
Can you talk about working with Brittany?
She's a great girl and we got on really well. We'd jam in between takes, which was great. We had good chats about music and stuff. She's a talented girl, she's a fantastic actress, and this is a really different role for her, because a lot of her stuff's been quite dark. She's got a lot of energy — she's similar to [her character] Molly in that respect. I get tired just watching her.
Did you have any scenes with Dakota Fanning?
No, All my stuff was with Brittany. I don't think I had another scene with anyone else! [But I] met her during the read-through. Her script was shut because she knew all her lines!
Your character is a rock musician. Do you actually sing in the movie?
Sort of. I've got a couple of songs on the soundtrack, which is pretty lucky actually. I've played a lot of music, but I'm not a professional musician. To end up with a couple of songs is great.
Brittany is going to record an album in the fall. Do you have any music aspirations?
Is she?! She was talking to me about that actually, last year. The actor-musician thing can be iffy, but great. Wow, I'm going to have to talk to her about that! Can I have a song on it? But no, that's not really my kind of thing. It's funny, because there's a big stigma about Australians going over to London and releasing singles. And they all come from Neighbours and I did Neighbours. So when I went over to England, they were like, "Are you going to release a single?" I was like, "No I want to act." So it's kind of weird that this music thing keeps popping back up, but no I'm not gonna do anything.
How did you get into acting?
When I was a kid, my parents liked to encourage us to get into musical instruments, and I chose violin for some reason. So I started playing that, and then Mum decided that I could sing a bit, so she put me in a choir, which I hated and it was just a nightmare. I was a rebellious sort of choirboy. I just didn't like it, but from that one of the choirmasters asked me to audition for musical theater. I went for it and got it my first audition. I did the show, and it was brilliant, really enjoyed it, so it just carried on from there. And from there I got into TV and left music behind.
What's next for you?
I just did a play in England. It was my first theater, and I really enjoyed it. So I think I might be heading back to London to do some more. I never had the chance to do theater when I was younger because I came from a TV background.
Did you have culture shock filming in New York?
I spent four months filming in New York. Yeah, it is a bit of a culture shock. New York just has everything; it's massive. I've never seen anything like it. I'm from Melbourne — it's a city of about 3 million — but when you're growing up in a place like that and you think it's quite a big city, and then you travel around and you go, "Actually...no." So when I go back now, Melbourne feels like a country town. My mum will be in like 15 cars of traffic and she'll be complaining. And I'm like, "That's not traffic, I'm sorry!"
Where are you based now?
I usually just go where the work goes, I guess more so in London than in Australia. I live with my girlfriend; we've got a share house, me and my girlfriend and a couple of other actors. She's an actress as well, a British actress.
So you're cool with her having to kiss other boys and stuff like that?
Well...that'll be weird, actually; she's never had to do that yet. But I'll be cool with it.
Have you ever thought of a woman as your muse [the way Neal does]?
Not really, no. I always find guys writing about love in music...you know, think of something else for a change! I'm sorry, but it's been done.
