INTERVIEW: Nolan Gould talks MODERN FAMILY, Timberlake, and GLEE dance-offs

So I’ll be honest, you’re brain frightens me. A 13 year old genius, I’ve got an IQ of 139, you can crush that can’t you?

Nolan Gould: Well…crush is kind of rough. I was thinking of something more gentle, like pulverize? I think everybody has their own gifts and talents so I never think being smart makes me better than anybody else. I learn things really fast which is nice for memorizing lines and school, but other than that, I’m pretty much like every other kid.

Having a high IQ really isn’t interesting to a teenager. I’ve tried it as an opening with girls, they look at me un-amused. I’m sure at some point in life that will help, but at 13 I think being taller would serve me better.

You were pretty eager to have a dance off with the kids from GLEE on Emmy night when you guys won every piece of metal in the place. What song do you want playing when you call them out and what’s your dance style? Break dance, a little b-boy shuffle, the robot, the shoulder shake, you know I’m making some of these up right?

NG: We mess around a lot with the guys from GLEE but its all in good fun. We’re all really good friends.

But in case your’e wondering: I would totally blow them out of the water. I have the best techno-robot-shoulder shake -shuffle moves on the dance floor.

You get to do a lot of broad comedy on MODERN FAMILY, as you get older is that the kind of stuff you want to do or do you want to move toward more drama, maybe some sci-fi or horror and do you even want to continue acting when you become an adult?

NG: Of course I want to continue acting when I’m an adult! Most people don’t know this but I had done mostly work in dramas before Modern Family. I really love doing comedy but one of my favorite parts about acting is trying new things and new experiences.

Last summer I got to try horror when I shot a movie called GHOUL. I’m waiting for the day when I get to do a western or an action movie where I can do my own stunts. I take stunt, trapeze, and free running classes. I love to do anything physical and dangerous. My mom calls me her emergency room kid, so I’m hoping for a role that let’s me do something like that, maybe without the ER.

What can you tell me about GHOUL?

NG: GHOUL was so much fun. Totally different than what I do on a day to day basis. It’s a thriller about three boys in a small town who are being threatened by a monster that lives in the abandoned mining tunnels. People keep going missing so the boys decide to stop the monster.

A lot of the heart of the movie is about the boy’s relationships and their loyalty to each other but there are some good scares in there too. It was so much fun getting to be the hero. It will be coming out on the Chiller network sometime early next year. It was also shot on location in Louisiana and the food there is RIDICULOUS!

So you do a ton of improv, a live show weekly but on MODERN FAMILY, obviously the writers do a great job, and you have that safety net. Is improv just flat out thrilling or is there a little fear that maybe you will say the wrong thing, not get the laugh?

NG: There’s definitely a factor of fear in doing improv but it’s also kind of thrilling. That’s what makes it fun and exciting. I believe improv gets you out of your comfort zone and it helps you learn how to come up with something quickly on your feet.

I’m always worried that I will say the wrong thing or say it in the wrong way and then not get the laugh. It can be embarrassing sometimes but it really strengthens your confidence and skills. Nothing is better than hearing instant feedback when you hit a home run.

As I said before, you’re a genius, a Mensa member and obviously the cast of MODERN FAMILY is a nice mix of kids, teens, and adults. Which group are you more comfortable hanging around with?

NG: Mensa’s a great organization and its great to go and meet others with a strange mind like mine and talk about the nuclear fusion we discovered in our microwaves. But the cast of MODERN FAMILY is like a family to me. Ariel, who plays my sister Alex on the show, is always giving me advice and we’re always getting in brotherly-sisterly fights or on each others nerves.

Julie, who plays my mom on the show, is just like my real mom. Julie wipes things off my face, fixes my hair, and tries to nose her way into my business. She has three boys of her own and sometimes I think she forgets I am not really one of hers. She and Ty, Phil, are always running their hands through my hair like you would do with your own kid. The problem is at the end of the day I end up with a giant fro.

You’re the rare 13 year old in that you’re, you know, gainfully employed and obviously you’ve got this wealth of knowledge and these fantastic and unique experiences that have enhanced your perspective, so I wonder, do you still encounter people who discount you because you’re a kid?

NG: Yes! I feel like I’m discounted a lot because I’m a kid or people don’t really take in mind my opinion. I think in general, whether or not people know I’m an actor, I’m discounted a lot, as most kids probably are. But on the set, it’s the exact opposite. The adults are very respectful to the kids and they treat us like anybody else.

Even the directors and the writers take in our opinions and let us improv and add lines that we think would be funny. Of course we’ll never be treated like adults, and that’s to be expected and probably for the best in some instances.

I just want to be respected as a co-worker, fellow actor, and someone with a voice and something to contribute.

So Luke comes off as a bit, well…un-bright, do you think that’s accurate or do you think he is really an evil genius? I mean his play against his sisters to get the attic-mega bedroom was pretty slick, slicker than anything I would have thought of at that age and I was damn evil.

NG: I have never thought Luke was stupid. I think he has lots of amazing ideas bouncing around in his head and there is so much he is interested and curious about that he just has trouble focusing. His brain probably jumps around at a million miles an hour. When he sets his mind to something, he can be really creative and successful, like his Van Gogh project or his money scheme.

His other problem is he doesn’t look before he leaps, which I actually love about him, and so he doesn’t think things through before he does them. He just wants to have the experience and doesn’t worry about the consequences. Luke is the kind of person who sees things differently and thinks outside the box. I think when he grows up, he is going to create something revolutionary or solve a problem no one else could because he isn’t hampered by boundaries.

You were in FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS with Justin Timberlake, was he offering up tips on how to be smooth or is he not sharing? Same question about Ed O’Neil, smoothness lessons or is he keeping it all to himself?

NG: Well, I am sure Justin would have shared his tips on being smooth, but of course I didn’t need any help in that department (laughs). I had a great time working with Justin. My favorite actors to work with are the ones who were kid actors. They get it and they’re always so nice to the kids because hey have been there and they know how to communicate effectively with us.

We had a lot of fun together. We used to make up rap songs and we had this crazy long handshake we made up. Every time we had a break we would add another piece to it. I was amazed he could remember it all. Ed I think could care less about being smooth, which in a way makes him uber-smooth, doesn’t it? If you have to try to be cool and smooth, then you probably aren’t.

——————————————————————–

MODERN FAMILY airs Wednesdays at 9:00/8:00 on ABC.