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Exclusive Interview Stephen was nice enough to take time out of his busy schedule to do an e-mail interview with me for the site. It took a bit of time to get the questions back, but the important thing is that I did get them back! Enjoy! * Who or what inspired you to go into show business? When I was just a wee little tike back in elementary school I had a huge knack for getting into trouble. At an almost daily basis I would somehow find myself in the principal’s office. I always had to be the center of attention. I tried a variety of sports, but that barely did a thing, then somehow I was thrown into an acting class in central Florida and I’ve been doing it ever since. * Judging by your YouTube videos, you're a fan of comic book superheroes (Iron Man and Batman, in particular). Were you a fan since you were a kid? Let’s just say I was the kind of kid who would wear a Batman shirt, use the table cloth as a cape and make the Bat Cave out of chairs and blankets. So to answer your question, yes, hahahaha. I think I’ve always been into the idea of being a hero, but not a superhero, I like that Batman and Ironman are just regular people (with a lot of money) trying to make the world a better place. Hahaha. I could get into a serious, intellectual conversation about these two fictional characters, you have no idea. Hahaha. * Iron Man vs. Batman... Who'd win? If they were pitted against each other in an epic battle to the death, Ironman would most definitely be the victor. You could argue that Batman has a bunch of cool gadgets and the Tumbler and I could argue that Ironman has a suit of titanium alloy and flares that shoot out of his thigh; however all of that comparison is unnecessary. Just take a look at the movie of Ironman. He was shot at by a tank in mid flight, falling hundreds of feet only to turn around and fire a tiny little missile at the tank that just shot him down blowing it to smithereens. I’m sorry, but it just shows right there’s no gadget on that utility belt would do any good against Ironman. * What was the audition process for Dragon Knight like? My agency had sent me the script, telling me that they have already been through thousands of kids to try and find the right Dragon Knight. I took a look at it and I was sold, I had to audition for it. The characters were rich with life and the story was compelling, I wanted to be a part of this immediately. * What was your first day of shooting Dragon Knight like? I was scared s***less. Hahaha. Even though many actors will say, “Oh my first day on the set? Oh I was fine.” They’re lying. I think everyone has their “first day” jitters about any job or profession. It’s a new environment and you have no idea if what you’re doing is right. In fact I think the entire first day was only my scenes, so all eyes were on me, literally. However I was working with a great crew and Steve Wang was fantastic with direction, I was able to overcome the nervousness quite quickly. * What was your favorite part about playing the role of Kit? Kit is a very “young” person, I should say. Not in years, but in attitude and in character. He thinks he’s a lot older than he is and tries to convey that through acting tough both inside and outside of the suit. So that was most definitely a challenge to play a character was hasn’t really “lived.” Though as the series progresses you’ll notice that he starts to grow up, he’s actually forced into growing up because of this situation. That was a lot of fun to accomplish as an actor. However, I just liked the fact that I got to ride around on a bike as Kit. That was bad ass. * How much did you have to train for the civilian fights? The character of Kit had no martial arts background, he’s basically just a regular kid who is in way over his head. So we wanted to keep my character that way, so there was very little training for the actual stunts. It was basically all improvised, or we would rehearse just a few hours before hand. I did however do a lot of training for the actual role, I watched the original Ryuki series and saw that Takamasa Suga is a very skinny person. I wanted to be somewhat true to the look of his portrayal of Kamen Rider Dragon Knight, so I lost quite a bit of weight. Which was awesome because I ended up doing a lot of running in the show, hahaha. * Do you study martial arts at all? If so, what style, and how advanced (belt rank) are you? I took one karate class when I was 14, I was so sore the next day that I basically said, “Forget this.” Hahaha. So I don’t have a background in martial arts, anything that I’ve ever learned has been through a trial and error basis in actual fights. Hahaha. * Any funny moments you'd like to share about things that happened off camera, on the set? Well Matt Mullins and myself had two ongoing jokes throughout the shoot. The first being that we, in physique, we very similar to Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Sean William-Scott in The Rundown. He’s 6’2” and I’m 5’10” so we would constantly make references to the film and fake a bunch of fights. The other joke is over PG, so I probably shouldn’t say what it is, hahaha, though just know that we mocked one of the best lines from The 40 Year Old Virgin, “You know how I know you’re gay…” Hahahaha. * Did you ever get injured on-set, be it from fight sequences or other circumstances? Fortunately no, though at the wrap party everyone was on the dance floor and someone fell in the crowd which created a domino effect and the final guy landed on top of my leg, causing me to sprain my ankle. I think it’s hilarious because I can go 40 episodes with so much as a scratch, but the second they call, “That’s a wrap” I become a target for accidents. * Which episode was the most fun to film? How about challenging? Well, I would tell you that, but that would be giving away the end and I don’t want to worry about spoilers. Hahaha. Just know that there is a lot of change. * Do you hang out with any of the actors off the set? Being the youngest on set I had schoolwork most of the days that I was filming, so it was schoolwork, the gym or set. I didn’t have much time for just hanging out, but since we’ve wrapped I’ve become good friends with a lot of the cast and crew. We’ll have Halo and Rock Band parties, combining the best things, rock and Mast Chief. Hahahah * Who was your best friend on the set? I had really great connections with all of the directors. Though I’d have to say the best was Carrie Reichenbach, who plays Kamen Rider Siren, though it wasn’t exactly best friend. I planned to take her to Spain and profess my undying love for her. Little did I know, she is currently married, so that was an epic fail. Curses on you Siren, curses. Hahahahahaa. * How would you describe your fellow co-stars? I HATED THEM ALL. Hahahahaa. They were a great bunch; I couldn’t have asked to work with a better group of people. I learned a lot not only from the experiences on set but from all of them, and for that I’m forever grateful. * Did you have any ideas for personal quirks or maybe odd habits for Kit that didn't make it onscreen? I wanted to make the character a little bit funnier; the series needed just a little bit more humor, instead of straight action. Though working with the Wangs, Mark Allen and John Fasano we were able to give Kit some really funny moments, that I’m quite proud of. * How different was filming Dragon Knight from filming Bratz: The Movie? Hahahah. Besides everything? Hahahaha. They were two completely different projects. On one hand your trying to appeal to a girl audience on the other you’re trying to appeal to a boy audience. Kamen Rider is really action based and Bratz had maybe one stunt? Hahaha. Both were fantastic to work on, but truly different, which I prefer, I don’t want to get stuck doing the same thing for ever. Hahah.. * What's it like to have an action figure of yourself? So surreal, I used to play with Star Wars action figures when I was younger and I would constantly be like, “I’m going to have my own action figure!” It’s weird to know I actually do. Though my action figure has a ridiculous set of abs, I seriously need to work on that a bit more. Hahahah * What are you up to now? Has your work on Dragon Knight opened any doors yet? It has, I’m currently under negotiations with another CW show and a new sci-fi flick. I just finished a horror film called Maneater, starring opposite Dean Cain, which should be out sometime later this year. * Would you return to the Kamen Rider franchise in the future if future series get adapted? What kind of role would you prefer (mentor, Kamen Rider, supporting cast)? It all depends on the script and who’s going to have creative control. There’s a great possibility that I will return to continue the series or the character of Kit, though it depends on so many different variables.. As long as they don’t make it a musical, I think I’ll be happy. Hahahaha. * Randomly: What kind of music do you have on your iPod (or similar device)? I have a red nano, which is perfect to match Dragon Knight’s attire, hahaha. Let’s see in my most played I have Zeppelin, Kings of Leon, AC/DC, The Clash, ect. I love classic rock, hip-hop and I have a serious collection of movie scores. I’m a huge, huge fan of John Williams, Hans Zimmer, Harry Gregson-Williams, John Powell, David Arnold, ect. I always feel like I’m in a movie. Hahaha.