With Season 1 of Once Upon A Time being released on DVD, and Season 2 starting one month from today, we had the pleasure of sitting down and chatting with Prince Charming, Josh Dallas. Josh talked with us a bit about how he ended up as Charming and what has challenged him the most about the series so far…
Check out our interview with Josh Dallas below!
How would you describe the premise of Once Upon A Time?
Josh Dallas: Once Upon A Time is a charming fantasy show. It’s fun and it’s entertaining, but it’s also a little weird and a little different. It features fairytale characters that we all know and love – but they have been cursed by the Evil Queen to live in the town of Storybrooke, Maine. This is a place where there are no happy endings and nobody can leave… Until a new arrival in town starts to break the spell.
Who do you play in the show?
Josh Dallas: My character, David Nolan, is also Prince Charming. Charming is a prince who gets his hands dirty. He’s an everyman; he can swordfight with a baby in his arms!
What are the main differences between David Nolan and Prince Charming?
Josh Dallas: Because of the curse on Storybrooke, David does a few stupid things. He has a total disconnect from Charming. All of the qualities that Charming has, David can’t have; that’s the nature of the curse. That means David can’t be honorable, he can’t be confident, he can’t be honest all the time and he can’t be forthright. He keeps putting himself in ridiculous situations, but he has Charming within him; he’s just waiting to get out.
Do you prefer playing David Nolan or Prince Charming?
Josh Dallas: I love playing both. It’s challenging to play David because he is cursed. He’s very conflicted and confused – and that’s fun to play as an actor. It’s the total opposite of Charming, who is a confident man with a sense of purpose about him. David is lost and he’s trying to figure out where he belongs, as well as his true identity.
Is it difficult to identify with a fairytale character?
Josh Dallas: You can identify with all of the characters in the show because they are fairytale characters as real people. They have real emotions, real problems and they are in real situations. It’s fun to be able to play two characters within the same role. In fact, I think that’s one of the things that attracted me to the project in the first place.
How much pressure do you face in playing such an iconic character like Prince Charming?
Josh Dallas: Is it a big responsibility, but as an actor I can’t think about playing him as an iconic fairytale character. I have to play a person that has emotions like everyone else. If I thought too much about it being Prince Charming, the pressure would be too great and I’d crumble. It is a great role, though. I love it.
How did you get involved with the project?
Josh Dallas: I got a call from my agent telling me about the script. And once I read it, I thought it was one of the most unique scripts I’d ever read for network television. I was really excited about the project, so I went in and met the producers and creators – and a couple of days later I was cast as Charming and David Nolan.
What research did you undertake for this fairytale role?
Josh Dallas: I certainly went back and re-read the Snow White story. I looked into the relationship between Prince Charming and Snow – and how they got together. It’s been fascinating to discover that there are so many different stories about them; there are many different variations of the tale.
How would you sum up the first season of the show?
Josh Dallas: Oh, it’s been crazy. There is so much going on in Season One; there’s so much to see and think about. As the first season reaches the finale, it’s like a train that will not stop. I want people watching to be shocked, I want them to be awed, and I want them to be amazed.
What’s been your most challenging scene so far?
Josh Dallas: I’ve had a lot of sword fighting to do for the show – and I specifically remember one really hot day in the woods of North Vancouver that was incredibly tough. My costume is made from leather and we had to run around a lot, so there was definitely a lot of sweating going on.
