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Wild, Wild West
Shane West bagged our 20 Hottest Guys August cover — partly thanks to the fact that he's supremely hot (check out the stars section of ym to find out who the other 19 guys are), but also because he has a new movie out, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Here Shane tells us how he's ditched the teen flicks in favor of an action movie and reveals what a girl has to do to turn him on — now we're the one's feeling the heat!
Where are you from?
I was born in Baton Rouge [LA], June 10, 1978. I moved out to California when I was about 10 and started acting when I was about 17.
How did you get started in acting?
I was almost a junior in high school and I got an agent, got a manager, got my first audition and callback pretty quickly. It was for a commercial — Corn Pops, I think. But then the hard times came and I basically didn't work for two years.
What do you consider your big break?
I did The Cider House Rules onstage at the Mark Taper Forum one summer and a lot of people came to see that. I booked my first movie, Liberty Heights, about a month later and while I was doing Liberty Heights I booked Once And Again. So I think the play started the break into everything [else].
What were you like at school?
I didn't get into much trouble during high school or before that. The worst thing that happened — worse than detention — was just because I had to go to an audition the day we were rehearsing our graduation walk, and if we missed the rehearsal we wouldn't be allowed to walk. Of course that day I had a serious callback, so I had to miss the rehearsal. So [my school] said I couldn't participate in graduation. We worked it out because they forced me to do 30 hours of community service at the school during the summer. I had my own bucket, mop, and gloves, and I hung out with the janitorial staff and cleaned up the school. It was an absolutely insane punishment since I never did anything wrong but miss a rehearsal.
Were you excited to get cast in The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen?
I was more in shock in the beginning — I never expected to get an action film so quickly in my career. So I was very happy. Working with Sean Connery was another great thing.
What's the plot of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen?
There are two things. It's an action movie. But the coolest concept is that all the characters are literary characters from our past. I play Tom Sawyer and he's all grown up and part of the CIA, a special agent. There is Nina Harker from the Dracula story and the Invisible Man, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Captain Nemo. Sean Connery plays Alan Quartermain. They're all put together to stop this evil from destroying the world, yet none of them get along.
For research, did you go back to the Mark Twain books?
I read Tom Sawyer the original, I read it over a couple of times so I could get more of how he had lived and what his personality was. [Then I had to] age that by about 15 years [for the movie role].
What was the highlight for you with this film?
Besides working with such a cool, eclectic cast — not one of them were from America. Besides that, living out a lot of childhood dreams. Doing a lot of my stunts. I couldn't do all of them, because it was so dangerous. But learning how to fire a gun and how to fire it properly and safely.
Some actors say they listen to certain albums to get them into character. What were you listening to on the set of League?
I was listening to some White Stripes, some stripped-down rock, simply because of my character being from the South and things like that — I wanted a white-trash theme. I listened to Stealers Wheeled, "Stuck in the Middle With You," which is one of the greatest songs ever.
Did you have to do a Southern accent?
I had a bit of a tinge. When we first started shooting the movie, I had a long beard and wig that almost looked like a mullet. And I did a true Southern accent. When the dailies got back to America and they saw me with this wig, I had a goatee and a Southern accent, the studio freaked out, because they couldn't even tell who I was. I ended up with a much shorter wig, and no Southern accent at all, or barely one. They wanted Tom to be more like myself, basically, so I'm not so white trash in the movie anymore. I put a little tinge of a Southern accent, but I don't think it prevails.
You just have the one tattoo, right, the Celtic symbol?
Yeah, but I want to get another one. I want to get a fleur-de-lis somewhere. I want to put it with my Gemini Celtic pendant because it all embodies me. France is where a lot of my ancestors come from.
Do you have any idea of where it is going to go?
I think I am going to intertwine it on my back with the other tattoo, somehow. I'm getting a friend of mine to do the artwork for me.
Are you into girls with tattoos?
Very much. Not coated in them, but I think tattoos are sexy, especially if they mean something. A tattoo on a girl's lower back is very sexy. I think it is being overdone now, but it's very sexy. On a girl's feet, too. I dated this girl once who had a star on her big toe. It was a star, and then a couple of stars leading the way. That was amazing-looking.
Is there anything else that stands out about girls for you?
A laugh is very important. I have said this millions of times before, but I have to make a girl laugh. Otherwise I am not interested. But it is also how they laugh as well. If they are confident, I think that could be really sexy. And also, just how they present themselves. I'm into the "wake up in the morning" kind of look. I like a girl in a halter-top and jeans, simple stuff like that.
Are you getting used to the "hot guy" label or does it freak you out?
You get used to it because you keep hearing it, but I try not to pay attention too much, because next year it's going to be someone else. There is always some new hot dude and some sexy girl, and it is constantly changing — since I was 14 reading magazines and Kirk Cameron was the hot guy. So I take it as a compliment for now, but you can't really think about it too seriously.
