Interview with Forbes March

Nuke fans can breathe easy because Luke’s biggest nightmare, scarf-loving gay film professor Mason Jarvis is leaving Oakdale next month.

Which means Forbes March is out at As The World Turns.

This past summer, One Life To Live’s timeslot competitor, World Turns made Nash fans happy by casting the popular and talented English-born, Canadian-raised heartthrob to play a possible romantic spoiler for their uber-popular super-couple, Noah and Luke.

Unfortunately, the show never developed nor invested in the Mason character. Consequently, the fledgling Noah-Luke love triangle was dead on arrival.

TV Guide Canada spoke to March about leaving World Turns, why ABC didn’t re-hire the actor to reprise his first soap role, All My Children’s Scott Chandler, the reason why the Nuke storyline is cursed, what ultimately killed his breakout role as Nash Brennan on One Life, and joining the cast of the upcoming Degrassi TV-movie.

TVGuide.ca: So, you are finished as Mason on World Turns, right?
Forbes March: Yes, I finished up my stint a couple of days before I booked my Degrassi TV-movie gig. My last airdate is sometime during November Sweeps. We tape so far ahead these days. 

TVG: Are you bummed out that World Turns didn’t develop your character, Mason, more?
FM: It was a case of a new writer [David Kreizman] coming in and the old one [Jean Passanante] going out. They literally put the Mason/Noah/Luke story into neutral. Yeah, it was frustrating but I was new there so I wasn’t aware of what was happening behind the scenes. I avoided the politics on the show because it was only a short-term role. By the time the new writer was in place, my time in Oakdale expired. I had fun, though. It wasn’t what I had hoped for, but the last few weeks were a blast. I like the way they wrote out Mason. He doesn’t die so he can always come back.

TVG: Telenext/P&G is infamous for pussyfooting around their gay storyline — was that frustrating as an actor? FM: Yeah, it was odd. Their gay characters aren’t very gay! [Laughs]. If someone turned on the soap for the first time, I think it would take them a while to figure out Mason was gay. Let’s face it — Luke and Noah are two J. Crew guys, two of the nicest and most wholesome gay boys you’ll ever meet. World Turns needs someone like American Idol’s Adam Lambert. Because I was completely taken with Adam, I went into my World Turns’ audition with black leather pants, rock-star jewelry and snakeskin boots! I pulled all of that out for the audition to give them ideas. The looks on their faces? A resounding, “Nooo!” Mason is supposed to be a gay indie moviemaker but they ended up dressing him like freakin’ Indiana Jones! Nuke is about as gay as Bill Cosby! [Laughs] Throw a wrench in there, people. World Turns needs an extroverted, effeminate gay man on that show. Give Mason eyeshadow! But they didn’t like that. The only input they accepted from me was Mason’s endless scarf collection.

TVG: The Nuke fans are a passionate and loyal bunch — have they welcomed you as the interloper with open arms?
FM: You know what? I don’t pay attention to the message boards, so I don’t honestly know what they think of me or Mason. I never went to any of the World Turns fans events because I live far out in the country. I like to focus on the work and not necessarily concern myself with the public side of the business.

TVG: Your gay following must have increased though.
FM: [Laughs] I’ve always had a gay following! Heck, I think my first fan base was the gays!

TVG: Because you’re so butch and stuff.
FM: [Laughs] Right! [Joking] I think the gays love my brutally masculine looks. [Joking] It’s my overwhelming homophobic quality which permeates my entire being that drives them mad! [Laughs]

TVG: Were you disappointed with how the Mason/Noah/Luke triangle was written and played out? Or not written, as the case may be? FM: World Turns is caught between a rock and a hard place with their gay storyline. I don’t think they anticipated two vocal, polarizing views on the Nuke storyline. I honestly don’t think America is ready for a gay storyline on a soap. It’s just too hot button of a topic. They're criticized by the gays for not making Nuke gay enough, and then the American Family Association boycotts them. I get the sense that executive producer Christopher Goutman didn’t anticipate this kind of relentless backlash from the far right. He got hammered from each side. Any time I wanted to put my hand on Noah’s shoulder, several serious discussions ensued whether or not it would pass the mustard. Any body contact had to be cleared from higher-ups.

TVG: Hence, P&G renaming their TV wing to TeleNext! One Life to Live has a hugely successful gay storyline. So far, ABC claims there hasn’t been any negative reaction. And they allow their same-sex couples to kiss! Heck, a gaggle of gay couples are set to marry next week on the show.
FM:  Luckily, ABC owns their own soaps. Chris is trying to desperately figure out how to tell this story because he is personally invested in it, but P&G isn’t. I think Chris is a good storyteller. I like him a lot, actually. I respect him a lot which is why I was eager to work with him on this show.

TVG: What did your family think about you playing gay for pay on World Turns? FM: My wife thought it was a great opportunity. We didn’t think much of the part until we actually learned Mason was gay. As for my daughter, Mason being gay never crossed her mind. Our family has been involved with the arts for almost 20 years. We have as many gay friends as we do straight friends. I wasn’t familiar with the show nor the boycotts from each side when I signed on. I didn’t really realize how popular and polarizing the Nuke romance is. But to answer your question, I had played gay before in Roger Newcomb’s film, Manhattanites, so it was no big deal for me to tackle this character.

TVG: Do you find that being a Canadian living in America gives you a unique perspective?
FM: America is a huge, extraordinary country. There is a broad range of people living here and political discourse, so I don’t like to generalize Americans. However, because I do come from an amazing country, of course it colours my world view. But let me tell you something, living in America has made me see how perfect our country is. I’ve lived in Italy, France, and the U.S., and I think Canada is the closest to a utopia that any country has found. Socially, it’s a spectacular place to live. We don’t live in open conflict nor do we have corporations running our governments. We are a mosaic of cultures, not a melting pot. Canada proves democracy can work peacefully and equally. And we’ve been like this for a very long time. Come on — why can’t gay people get married federally in the U.S.? That’s like saying black people can’t get married. It’s all bullshit. The whole Proposition 8 thing makes me livid. Immature baby talk saturates the American media and politics.

TVG: My favourite soap opera airs on CNN 24/7!
FM: I blame the American media for the war on Iraq. I don’t blame President George W. Bush. The whole world knew there were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq weeks, even months before the Americans did. I remember reading that on the cover of Canada’s Globe & Mail newspaper eons before the U.S. media reported on it. Ugh!

TVG: The soap media, however, immediately praised your work in your breakout role, Nash Brennan on One Life. FM: Thank you. I wish they had written an exit storyline sooner. I had wanted to leave a long time before they finally killed Nash. TVG: In the current storyline, a mysterious person is stalking Jessica. She believes it’s Nash or Nash’s ghost. FM: Yeah, I heard! Someone who keeps leaving hearts for her, right? [Laughs] I don’t know if you remember this but Nash drew a little heart from his breath when he was outside of Jessica’s hospital room. It’s funny because I got a lot of heat from the producers/directors for that. It was a spur of the moment decision on my part, but in the end, they kept it in. So it’s cool to hear they’re still using Nash’s calling card on the show. I take that as a compliment. TVG: Fans were hoping you’d return to One Life as Nash’s evil twin brother, Dash! FM: I wouldn’t object to that! His name could be Splash!

TVG: It was clear to me that you truly loved playing Nash with all your heart, too. Do you harbour any residual resentment towards One Life for writing him into a corner?
FM: Usually when I leave a job, there tends to be some hard feelings involved, but I have to say, in hindsight, I loved my time there and working with [executive producer] Frank Valentini, who is a fantastic producer. If you bring a good idea to the table, he’ll figure out a way to include it. He encourages a dialogue between cast and crew across the board. A lot of actors have contributed to the writing of the show. One Life opens its doors to the cast and crew which is very rare in this business. Frank is also always on the floor, very hands-on. He’s in the trenches with us. A couple of times, I remember we were taping heavy scenes between Antonio, Jessica, and Nash and Frank actually shut down production so we could go into his office and hash it all out. What Frank is able to do on that show, considering his budget and his ability to come in under budget, well, it’s pretty spectacular. Frank is clearly behind the steering wheel.

TVG: Which is why it’s sad to hear that ABC may cancel One Life instead of All My Children next year.
FM: [Aggravated] It makes no financial sense to cancel One Life. If two shows are garnering the same ratings, why would you cancel the show that costs less and is more profitable for the network? I’m not privy to any inside information but it makes no sense to me if these rumours are true.

TVG: And One Life is the best show on daytime TV right now, while All My Kids is the worst show on the tube. Are you sad that you’re not on One Life right now considering its quality these days?
FM: I understood why they let me go. There are two different ways to view writing on soaps. There is the day-to-day, and long-term storytelling. On the day-to-day front, I thought they wrote Nash fantastically. But as soon as they paired an 'integrated' Jessica with Nash, I knew the end was near. It is very rare when all the ducks are in a row. We had that with Tess and Nash — we all shared a common goal and vision for this couple. Nash and Tess were a spectacular success. When I got into an elevator, people would immediately talk to me about Nash to the point where it was almost annoying. It was insane. He was ridiculously popular. Nash and Tess reminded me a lot of the relationship between Bruce Willis and Cybill Shepherd on Moonlighting.

The problem happened when they were reunited so quickly. One Life should have milked this star-crossed romance for years. Integrating Jessica was a fatal error because Jessica wasn’t as interesting as Tess. By eliminating Tess and pairing Nash with Jessica, well, the story was over at that point. There was no more story to tell. I had no family, even though they teased the audience with the possibility that Paige could be his mother. The Claudia story lasted about a minute so that didn’t count. When One Life started auditioning other guys [for the role of Jared], I saw the writing on the wall. I wished they had killed Nash far sooner. Having Jared accidentally kill Nash was such a lightweight and unimaginative way to go about it.  This whole need to please the daytime fans is killing the genre. I think it’s a fatal flaw. It’s a catch-22 because by giving the fans what they want, you ultimately kill their favourite storyline. Look at Romeo and Juliet, for example. During the first scene in the play, Romeo and Juliet make eye contact. Based on that eye contact, the audience wants them together. But if you put them together at the end of that first party, the show is over. You don’t give the audience what they want — that’s the whole art of storytelling. Once you do that, the story is over. Period.

TVG: Yeah, I always considered Nash to be one of soaps’ most loyal and loving heroes. I think most fans are still mourning Nash. To be fair, Ron came back from the writers’ strike with a lot of material to fix. But I agree, the BE takeover was just bad Dynasty. Luckily, the show is back to its spectacular self. But it is funny to note that historically, One Life hasn’t had much success with super-couples. When they luck out and find one like Tess and Nash, the writers inevitably ruin the storyline for some strange reason.
FM: I knew when Jessica and Nash wed in the hospital that we were done. They put a pretty little button on the couple by marrying them off like that.

TVG: I was also pissed off that Nash and Jess didn’t warrant a big wedding. Heck, Antonio and Jessica got all the bells and whistles —and they weren’t even the endgame.
FM: Dena Higley created that storyline and I think she wanted to put a pretty bow on their wedding/reunion as she walked out the door. I will be forever grateful to Dena for creating that storyline and my character. Originally, I took the One Life job because I thought it was just going to be a summer gig. I didn’t even move out my family to New York that summer — I commuted back and forth. Luckily, Nash took off.

TVG: Your first soap character was All My Children’s Scott Chandler. What did you think of AMC recasting your role?
FM: I was surprised because last November ABC contacted me about reprising Scott, whom they were bringing back to the canvas in February. So, I didn’t look for work because I thought I was going to jump over to AMC. I was disappointed no one contacted me to inform me that they were going to cast another actor in the role. I was side-swiped. This business is so frustrating because there are so many layers to all these decisions, that if you try to figure it out, you’re just wasting your time. All you can do is show up to work and give your best performance. When you actually spend your 15 minutes in front of the camera, that’s the fun time. The rest of the acting life isn’t fun.

TVG: What did you think of AMC moving to L.A.?
FM: It makes sense, I guess. I have a feeling New York City is going to lose a lot of scripted TV. It’s just cheaper to film out in L.A. Also, you have prime-time TV stars prepared to work on soaps now for a brief stint.

TVG: What were the differences between working on World Turns and One Life?
FM: I don’t know how to put it other than they are two very different machines. ABC is big. There is a grandness to ABC. The actors are always fired up. They are explosive on set. There is a lot of creative conflict on the set. When Frank comes down on set, everyone from the directors to the actors shout at him and vice versa. There is a lot of passion on the One Life set because everyone cares about doing their best. Afterwards, they all head over as friends to the bar across the street and get plastered together! [Laughs] At World Turns, everyone is professional. They show up, say their lines verbatim, and leave quietly to be with their families. Even when there was a controversial affair at World Turns, that was immediately over because one of the actors was let go. That’s an example of how World Turns works — they refuse to deal with drama on set. If that had happened on ABC, there’d be no actors left! [Laughs] Let’s not forget that Hollywood has made movies about ABC! It’s a mad house. Working on ABC is like going to Frosh Week.

TVG: Speaking of high school behaviour, you just taped a role in Degrassi’s upcoming TV-movie, which will air on CTV next year. How was that? FM: That was fun. I’ve been going up to Toronto for a long time. I visit Toronto at least once a month. I am hoping to land a regular TV gig in Canada. I’d like to spend more time at home. I still stay in touch with a lot of the crew members from Mutant X. One of our wardrobe guys works on Degrassi. I was the best man at his gay wedding and that’s how I met the show’s producers. I still had to read for the part, though.

TVG: What other projects are you working on?
FM: I’ve crossed over to the dark side — the other side of the camera. Right now, I’m working on a film script that I fell in love with.

TVG: [Joking] Be very afraid! [Laughs] So, are you over soaps?
FM: I’m not over soaps. I love acting. I honestly don’t see any differences between acting mediums. Yes, there are pay differences and surely a prejudice associated with soap work, but for me, acting is acting. I’ll pretty much act in anything that pays me appropriately to the budget and if I am cast in role I want to sink my teeth into. I’d go back to a soap any day. I’d do indie films again. I’d do sci-fi again, too. I wouldn’t mind booking a prime-time show just because of the schedule, to be honest. When I was on Mutant X, I really missed the four-camera aspect of soaps. I think soaps are the best medium for an actor to work in to be honest with you. It’s like theatre. There are three walls, four cameras, and you get to improvise. Remember when Nash gave a three-page monologue to the stars and moons early on with Tess? It was a huge turning point in their romance because that’s when Nash told Tess for the first time that he was in love with her on the fire escape. I had over 60 pages of dialogue that day because we shot an entire week’s worth of episodes all in one day as Nash and Tess were isolated from the rest of the story. When I got to the aforementioned monologue, I told Frank and Larry [Carpenter, One Life's director] that I didn’t know the speech. Frank simply said, “You know the story so just talk and we’ll keep the camera on.” That doesn’t happen in other mediums. And what came out of that was a beautiful, heartfelt admission of love from Nash. That was one of the most enjoyable acting experiences I have ever had in my career. Those are the moments when you realize why you got into the business.

TVG: Now I really miss Nash!
FM: So do I!

TVG: One Life is kill-happy when it comes to Jessica and Natalie’s love interests. They’re killing off Jared soon.
FM: Yeah, I heard that. Jessica is becoming the Erica Kane of One Life! And you know that they’re not getting rid of Bree anytime soon. I learned if you profess your love to Jessica you can never profess your love to anyone else.

TVG: In a perfect world, Jessica wouldn’t either.

Want to dish the soaps with Nelson Branco? Join The Suds Report discussion Facebook group today.

Follow TV Guide Canada on Facebook! And follow Suds Report on Twitter!

Nelson Branco is a Toronto freelance entertainment journalist, who regularly contributes to Hello! Canada, The National Post, The Los Angeles Times' theenvelope.com, TV Guide USA, tvguide.com, Inside Entertainment, OUT, and fab magazine, along with spearheading the soap coverage for TVGuide.ca's popular daytime TV hub. After graduating from Ryerson University in 1997, he moved from Toronto to New York in 1998 to take on the roles as senior news editor at Soap Opera Update. Branco first freelanced for Soap Opera Weekly as an intern in 1994, and after leaving Soap Update to help create and launch Bauer Publishing's In Touch Weekly in 2003, Branco continued to freelance occasionally for its sister publication, Soaps In Depth. Most recently, he helped create and launch Canada's first celebrity magazine, Weekly Scoop in 2005 as its news and entertainment director. Branco is also a contributor to a new TV show titled Planet Soap to air in Canada and America.