Interview: The Bold and the Beautiful’s Jack Wagner

Dose.ca’s The TV Watercooler recently had the opportunity to speak with The Bold and the Beautiful star Jack Wagner during a promotional stop in Toronto. Before the Emmy Award-nominated star joined B&B in 2003, Wagner was well known for his role as Frisco Jones on General Hospital in the 1980s, which also helped launch his singing career. In the 1990s, Wagner joined the original Melrose Place as Dr. Peter Burns where he’d act opposite his current real-life leading lady, Heather Locklear.

The Bold and the Beautiful aired its 6,000th episode on Monday, February 7, 2011 where Stephanie Forrester (Susan Flannery) tried to convince Nick Marone (Jack Wagner) to quit smoking cigars after learning that he had a spot on his lung. The groundbreaking episode featured testimonials from actual lung cancer survivors including Emmy Award-winning actress, Kathryn Joosten (Desperate Housewives, Joan of Arcadia and The West Wing). 

Wagner spoke to us about being part of B&B’s groundbreaking storyline, what went wrong with last year’s Melrose Place update, who he thinks is his character’s soul mate on the B&B and what storyline he feels is deeply unresolved.

The Bold and the Beautiful is mostly known for its love triangles rather than social issues. Can you talk about the change of pace it’s been for you to dive into a social issue storyline as opposed to being caught between a mother and daughter?

Great. I think it’s such a great idea. It’s a way for the show and CBS to give back. Lung cancer is something that has a real stigma around it and we really brought that to the forefront.

As an actor, do you feel you have more of a responsibility with this type of storyline?

Episode 6,000 was groundbreaking because there was no script. I was in character when were getting testimonials from actual cancer patients who were telling their truths, so I’d have to respond [to them] in character of a guy who doesn’t want to quit smoking and [who] is in denial.

The show has broken the “fourth wall” in recent episodes with Susan Flannery’s (Stephanie) voice-overs. Initially with the homeless storyline and then again in the 6,000th episode with the support group. Do you feel this takes away from the escapism of the soap opera?

Well, I hope that it brought people in. [Breaking the fourth wall is] something a little new and groundbreaking. Daytime needs to be shaken-up anywhere it can. To do a storyline where you actually give back and bring awareness to a social issue that’s affected so many people [is wonderful]. I’m glad to be chosen as the actor to be a part of it.

Kathryn Joosten played herself in this episode.
 
Kathryn represents Hollywood. She’s a well-known actor that’s had lung cancer, so to tell her story as herself – but be an actor in character was very different. I think she brought a message from somebody that’s recognizable that says, “This is what I’ve gone through, this is what happens and this is what we need to do.”

How did this storyline come about? Stephanie’s cancer storyline was very recent. What made head writer Brad Bell decide to bring this up with Nick as well?

Mine came on as a spot on the lung. My character smoked on the show for years, but they had backed away from it for a couple of years now. They didn’t want the smoking. Nick started smoking the cigars again recently and that was able to bridge the storyline over to my character.

We initially saw Nick receive support from Stephanie and then Jackie (Leslie-Anne Down) and Owen (Brandon Beemer). We only saw Agnes (Sarah Joy Brown) involved briefly. Sarah Brown fans have been waiting for a more prominent storyline for the actress, could this be it?

Since Nick put his cigars in the fireplace, I think that is where the storyline ends.

B&B is also well known for its quick pairings. What’s your take on Nick’s ever-changing relationship status?

Yeah, that’s been a little weird hasn’t it for about six years? [Laughs] I think that now [the show] has gotten away from that relationship-driven stuff with Nick. So what’s to come next, I really don’t know. This was a pretty important storyline for the show and I think it’s really paid off. There was a great reaction and response and I hope they do more of them.

Out of Brooke, Bridget, Felicia, Taylor, Katie and now Agnes – who do you think is Nick’s soul mate?

I’d always like to say that it was Brooke because that’s really how he was bridged onto the show. It was through her. I think there were some great storylines back in ’04, ’05 and ’06, [which also] included Bridget. I think they kind of went away from that [Nick and Brooke pairing] and really focused on Ridge and Brooke – and really stayed there.

Nick helped raise Hope (Brooke’s daughter with Deacon) and now they don’t even mention that relationship. Hope considers Ridge to be her father.

There was some amazing stuff with the little girls that played Hope when Nick was acting as the father. Those two cute twins! It was phenomenal to work with them. I think that since they’ve grown this character up for storyline purposes, that [father and daughter relationship] has kind of been put to bed.

A lot of soap fans still remember you as Frisco on General Hospital, do you still keep in touch with anyone from there?

Kin Shriner [who played Scott] is someone who I stay in touch with. Yeah, we’re buddies! And obviously Kristina [Wagner; ex-Felicia], my ex-wife.

Do you have any upcoming musical projects?

I still get out and tour. I do a few concert dates a year. I just finished writing a few new songs and produced them. Artistically, I’m still into music. The music business has changed so much now. I don’t really know where I’m going to go with it. I’m not really a computer, website and self-promotion kind of guy.

Yeah, you’re not on Twitter yet!

Not on Twitter, not on Facebook. None of that stuff! But that doesn’t mean that there won’t be a website for a new album someday. I’m looking into that and trying to educate myself on if I really want to go that route or not. The new music is much more “me” than my old music.

Why do you think the new Melrose Place failed last year? What do you think went wrong?

My personal opinion is that I don’t think they included enough of the older characters. I think they needed [more of] the original characters to launch it and then to develop the younger actors and let it be their show. It was too much of the brand-new people and brand-new stories with just an old name.

I think that it got better once Heather Locklear came back as Amanda.

Not to criticize it all, it just seems like it was an attempt that just had the wrong direction.

Back to B&B, how was the 6,000th episode celebration in L.A.?

It was great. There are new credits, so they rolled those and Brad Bell made a great
speech congratulating everybody. 6,000 episodes is quite an accomplishment.

Soap fans are obsessed with opening credits. What can you tell us about the new credits?

It’s very fashion oriented. High-end and slick.

From the preview that I’ve seen, it takes place at a fashion show.

Yes, there’s a lot of models and that type of thing. It’s just much more stylized, I’d say.

Where do you think Nick is headed storyline wise, now that the cancer story has wrapped up?

I have no clue. I’m going to South Africa for a press tour for the show. That’s all I know. If I go on a safari, I just hope I come back!

Where would you like Nick’s story to go? A few months ago, Nick found out that his wife, Bridget, was really carrying Owen’s (his stepfather’s) baby.

I think that the whole Bridget and the baby [storyline] has been very unresolved. I really believe that the story needs to be somehow brought back.

Isn’t Ashley Jones (who plays Bridget) on recurring now?

She’s on recurring, yeah. She’s very hot right now and doing so many other things. Whether she’ll be back or not – or if they’ll recast the role, I don’t know. But that [storyline] is something that has to be looked at. How Nick feels about this baby, where it lies with the mother, Owen and all of that. It needs to be revisited.

The Bold and the Beautiful airs weekdays at 1:30 p.m. ET on CTV and CBS. Canadian fans can also catch up with the soap online, at http://watch.ctv.ca. Jack Wagner will host The 5th Annual Jack Wagner Celebrity Golf Classic on April 18th, which will benefit The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.