interview by JANA LETONJA

Paul Wesley is currently starring in Paramount+’s ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’, which will premiere its third season on July 17th. Fans best remember Paul as the charming and fan favorite Stefan Salvatore from the CW hit series ‘The Vampire Diaries’. Beyond acting and directing, Paul founded a production company Citizen Media, and is also the co-founder of Brother’s Bond Bourbon, a top-selling craft whiskey brand he launched with longtime friend and ‘The Vampire Diaries’ co-star Ian Somerhalder in 2021.

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Soon, we’ll be seeing you back in ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’, when it returns for its third season. What can fans expect from the upcoming season?

I'm playing a young Kirk and a lot of people are expecting me to be the Kirk that we all know immediately. What I love about this character and playing this characters is that I get to sort of slowly grow into the James T. Kirk that everyone knows. As we watch the show, he's going to slowly transition into the Captain Kirk that we all know, but it's going to take some time and it requires a lot of learning lessons. And I think the reason I got excited about this role was not because I wanted to do an imitation of William Shatner, but because I wanted to do my own thing, and I wanted to have the ability to create a version of Kirk that we don't really know, that becomes the version of Kirk that we all know.

How does your version of Kirk pay homage to the original while also breaking new ground?

I wanted to make him more less assured of himself because he's not captain yet, but at the same time, I wanted him to be a very instinctive guy. He's a very smart guy and he's an intellectual, which by the way, we don't see a lot of, so I wanted to make him more of an intellectual than I think what has been presented in modern day renditions of Kirk. We always think of him as this charming ladies man with no intellect, and I wanted him to have a little intellect. The version of the character that I play relies very heavily on his instincts, and we get to see that more in season three. He becomes really sort of someone who listens to his intuition and makes all decisions based on that intuition, even if it seems like it's the wrong thing to everyone else.

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With ‘Star Trek’ being such an iconic franchise, what were the biggest challenges of stepping into such a legendary role?

Well, the character is obviously a very important character to many people, and other than Chris Pine in the films, no one's ever played him on television. We all have this memory of Captain Kirk from the 1960s and 1970s, and also obviously the movies. It's almost an impossible task to jump into this role and make everyone happy. And I knew that if I went in and did an imitation of William Shatner, some people would be happy, and other people would be very unhappy. No matter what you do, there will be criticisms. And to be honest with you, I'm used to it because I remember even when I got cast on’The Vampire Diaries’, there was a lot of fans of the book that were very angry that I was cast because they didn't think that I looked like the character that they envisioned from the book. And I was very upset about it, but there's nothing I could do. I can't change my appearance. But eventually people sort of accepted me in the role, and now when people think of Stefan Salvatore, they think of me.

And I'm not saying that will ever happen with Kirk. Obviously everyone will always think of William Shatner, he will always be James T. Kirk. I just hope that I can bring something different and interesting to the character and offer something unique to the viewers that maybe they hadn't thought of before with the character. That's all that I'm trying to do. And if I can do that, then I'm happy.

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Your role as Stefan Salvatore left a massive mark on genre television. How did that experience shape your career and your approach to characters like Kirk?

Life is about wisdom, and wisdom comes from experience, and experience is something that you just have to go through. I was just talking to my girlfriend about the different roles and shows and things I did, and we watched the trailer to this movie I just did. I played this kind of tough guy, and I was telling her about all these roles that I was playing when I was younger, and how I would just sort of play all these different characters instinctively. For Stefan, I was telling her that when I auditioned for it, which wasn't easy, and when I got the part, I remember having a feeling that this was going to be a different thing. It was going to be a different kind of show. It was going to be bigger than anything I'd ever done before. And I was right.

The way it's influenced me is that I developed a lot of thick skin in the sense that it was a really crazy experience those eight years in terms of having to go through being so scrutinized. And by being seen by so many people, it can make you kind of very self-conscious. It can make you get in your head. And now, because I've had that experience, I approach things a little bit differently. I do what I'm going to do, and if somebody likes it, that's great. And if they don't like it, that's fine. I'm not going to put myself in this position that I’m constantly trying to satisfy millions of people because it's impossible. And it doesn't mean that you don't care, it doesn't mean you don't try as hard as possible to do your best, it just means that your decisions in life are less dictated by what people think of you, and more by what fulfills you artistically.

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You also directed several episodes of ‘The Vampire Diaries’ and other series. How has directing influenced your performance style as an actor?

When you're an actor, the first thing you are really focused on is just you. And it doesn't mean you're not aware of the camera. I've been doing this for 25 years, so I know where the camera is, I know how to not block someone's light or I know I need to open up when it's not my coverage for somebody else. There's tricks that you learn, technicality that you just begin to understand and it becomes second nature for you. But with all that in mind, you're still very singularly focused on your character, on your task, on your performance. And even though I'd been doing this for so many years, I really was not aware of how important every person on set is until you start directing television and you rely so heavily on the camera operators, obviously the director of photography, but even everyone after that, the editors, the sound design. These are all things that will essentially impact a performance. I have to do my job and be truthful as an actor, but at the end of the day, if you don't have all those people supporting you, it's not going to be a good product. And it's a thing that I I didn't fully grasp until I started directing.

One of the biggest things I learned as a director is that sometimes less is more. You have to really have a good intuition when it comes to actors. Sometimes there are actors who respond really well to lots and lots of direction. And then there are other actors, like myself, who just really don't get too cerebral about it. The more simple, the better. Almost speak to me like I'm a 5-year-old child in the most basic rudimentary way, and I will do something that is instinctively in line with what you want. I had to really come to terms with that as a director too. I recognized that there would be certain actors that I just would say one or two words to, and it adjusted entire performance. And then there's other actors that want you to tell them exactly where to go, where to stand, and the exact emotion that they should be playing. There's nothing wrong with that either. But it's an acquired skill to be able to sense the difference between the two people.

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Your production company Citizen Media has had a strong run developing projects. What kinds of stories are you most passionate about producing?

I have to be honest, we live in a very difficult environment in the sense that I've sold maybe a dozen television shows and none have gotten on the air yet. I've produced ‘The Vampire Diaries’ and a couple other things, but I never had a show get on the air yet from my production company. Obviously, there's some great television out there, but it's becoming increasingly commercialized in the sense that people really want them. There's so much competition now between all of the different streamers and networks, and it is really difficult to take chances on subtlety and on character. People really want sort of like laundry TV, and it means that you could fold laundry and watch the TV at the same time without having to really focus or think too hard.

There's some amazing thought provoking television shows, but it's becoming increasingly difficult to sell things that I am really passionate about. Maybe this is temporary and people will go back to sort of rich character study stories. But right now, with TikTok and social media, people's attention span is really short. The stuff that I'm interested in, and I'm not trying to sound cynical about it, it's been more difficult to develop. And I sort of gravitate towards things that I also like, that are a little more commercially viable. For example, I'm doing this hilarious and very smart comedy that I typically wouldn't. I love comedy, but I never thought of doing a comedy with my production company. We're in development and let's see where it goes. I'm stepping outside of the box of what I would normally do.

How do you balance your roles as actor, director, and producer?

I'm someone who when I'm not overwhelmed with things, I actually become more overwhelmed. I remember when Covid hit and we were all sort of inside our houses. It was the first time my body could relax, because we all kind of stopped working. I was privileged enough to have some money saved up where I could turn my brain off and say I don't have to be anywhere. I literally just stayed at home and I rescued a dog. I enjoyed the simple things in life. But really, when there are things happening and I'm not doing anything, I feel very anxious. And so I enjoy wearing different hats, so to speak. It's just how I've operated my whole life, and I don't really know how else to live.

Beyond acting and directing, you and Ian Somerhalder also co-founded your brand, Brother’s Bond, which has quickly become a fan favorite in the whiskey world. What inspired you and Ian Somerhalder to start the brand?

We drank bourbon on ‘The Vampire Diaries’, like our characters drank bourbon. And then Ian and I also loved bourbon in real life. We were filming the show in Georgia, and the South is a big bourbon culture. It just was such a big part of our lives, and we mentioned multiple times throughout the show how cool would it be if we had our own bourbon. Then back to Covid, Ian called me up and he is like “Should we start a bourbon company?” And I was like “Sure”.

We just started blending for fun, and coming up with a name and with different ideas. Obviously, I wanted it to do okay, but I wasn't thinking it would really become this whole big thing. I just wanted to make a cool bourbon. If we could sell a few bottles, give it to our friends, great. But it turned into an entire company and we're very proud of it. Truthfully, it began as a little fun passion project we did together just because we love bourbon. It's that simple.

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How involved are you in the day-to-day creative and strategic decisions for the company, and how do they differ from the film and TV industry?

Everybody at Brother’s Bond has a different role. We didn't assign these roles, we just naturally gravitated towards them. And one of the things that I recently really became sort of spearheaded with is the design, the optics and the vision and the visuals of Brother’s Bond. We just redesigned our entire bottle, our entire website, our entire look, logo, everything. But also, how we put ourselves out in the world in terms of marketing, that's something that is really important to me. And I think I'm pretty good at it. And Ian has really taken over as somebody who is very involved in the blending process. We have different different skews and expressions coming out all the time, and he's very hands-on involved in that process.

I've never started a company before, and the one thing I like about it is the control. When you're an actor and you're hired to be a part of a project, of course you have an important voice, but it really isn't yours. Your character is kind of yours and you can sort of make decisions about your character in a way, but as far as the actual product, it's really not yours. And what I love about Brother’s Bond is that it really is ours. Everything is our creation, the name and the bottle and the label and the product and the juice and how we market it. It's very cool to be so hands-on and involved in something, as opposed to just being hired to do something.

What have been the biggest surprises or challenges in building a successful spirits brand from the ground up?

I can actually give you a perfect example that ties it back to ‘Star Trek’.Primarily, a lot of men watch it. Women also watch it, but it's more of the male audience. And you could say the same thing about bourbon. If you look at it from a statistical percentage, there's plenty of women that like bourbon, but it's more of a male driven spirit. And I got to tell you, men are hard to convince, they are hard to win over. Like, we really have to work hard to tell these guys we're not just trying to create some bourbon brand for superficial reasons. We actually love bourbon. We blend it ourselves. We've won some of the highest acclaims and one of the top awards in the world. By the way, these are blind tastings, we can't just pay to have awards. We're winning the most prestigious spirit awards in the world, but there's still a stigma “They're the guys from ‘The Vampire Diaries’.They're a bunch of actors and it's celebrity spirit. They don't really know anything about bourbon. They don't really care”.

And slowly, we're winning those men over, but it's a lot of work. It's taking time to really educate them and tell them that we're here for the right reasons. And we actually are part of the bourbon community because we love it. And we really care about the product, we're very involved, we're not just faces of the brand. This is our brand that we built and put a lot of time and effort into, and we just want people to give us a chance. And we are getting there. People see our passion now. We're doing all these really interesting blends. I want people to to try the bourbon and really give it a shot, because I guarantee you they will fall in love with the product. That's how good it is.

Looking ahead, what are your biggest aspirations, whether on screen, behind the camera, or as an entrepreneur?

I would like to keep building Brother’s Bond, make it honestly one of the biggest bourbons in the world. We think we can get there, we really believe this is a special product that will be generational, and I'd like to give it to my kids one day and keep it in the family. I just want this to be like a legacy brand without sacrificing quality. I never want to become some commercial brand that is selling bourbon just to sell bourbon. I want it to be always in line with our ethos and what we believe is important for the company.

And then as far as acting, it's all about the material. I just want to do great material, I want to do interesting things. I never want to take a job because I have to. I know some people do, and there's nothing wrong with it, but I hope I don't have to do that. I hope that I can just do things that interest me. And I've stopped really directing television because I want to transition more into film, and that is something that I'm going to do for sure. At least direct one feature in my lifetime. We'll see how it goes. If it goes well, maybe a second.

Outside of acting, directing or Brother’s Bond, what things bring you most joy and fulfillment in life?

So many people will say the same thing, but relationships with others is really just the most important thing. For example, I had three days off from shooting in Toronto, and I flew home just to see my girlfriend and my dog. Being able to have two amazing beings waiting for you and excited to be with you and spend the weekend with you or whatever, that's so awesome. Just having great relationships, whether it's taking care of your parents, making sure they're okay, things like that, that's really the most fulfilling thing. And simple things like nature. I really enjoy nature. It really just resets everything, puts everything into perspective.

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talent PAUL WESLEY
photography MARK SELIGER
styling SEPPE TIRABASSI at THE WALL GROUP
haieup ERIN ANDERSON at EXCLUSIVE ARTISTS using KEVIN MURPHY AND SMASHBOX COSMETICS
production MADI OVERSTREET
digi tech WILL FOERSTER
photography assistant JONAS SØNDERGAARD
styling assistant ALANA SARDO
editor TIMI LETONJA
editorial direction and interview JANA LETONJA
cover design ARTHUR ROELOFFZEN

IN CONVERSATION WITH PAUL WESLEY

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IN CONVERSATION WITH MOUNA MODELS