Ryan Kwanten: Single and Loving It

Ryan Kwanten made a flying visit back home to Australia recently to help promote a new internet TV gizmo. While he was there Keshnee Kemp of Australia's New Weekly Magazine caught up with the bronzed Aussie hunk to talk about relationships, his life in LA, the infamous sock and that rumoured sex-book. Sitting in his Sydney hotel room Ryan described to New Weekly how much his life has changed since True Blood became such a hit in the US. But it was a slow fuse that gradually burned hotter as time went on. Now he's happy to be at home to get away from the increasing paparazzi pressure in LA. Don't get him wrong, though, Ryan fully appreciates that fame can have its rewards, such as being invited to promote the new T-box for Telstra (the biggest Aussie telco) and the fact that he can make a living from acting:

I love doing it so much – the fact that I get paid for it is a bonus.

There is also the added bonus of being able to fly his parents to the US to visit on occasion. But his busy lifestyle leaves little time for romance. Ryan admits that he's had the odd "kind-of" relationship but nothing serious and he's been single now "for a long-time". And is it just constantly being in the limelight that is the problem?

Oh, even beyond that! Not even necessarily because I'm in the public eye, but with any prospective girlfriend I have to say "My work and my family come first at this point in my life, so if you're willing to play third or fourth fiddle…" It sounds so callous to say that, but it's the way it has to be for me right now. Inevitably it works fine for a month or two, but eventually the girl wants to work their way into the priority list…"

Maybe it is also about finding the right sort of woman. Ryan reveals what is important to him in a mate is not just beauty, but brains as well.   He admits to a celeb crush on Jennifer Connelly.

She's a very-well studied girl. She's got a couple of degrees and does amazing work. She's also very beautiful.

His perfect date, he says, would be a picnic on the beach watching the sun go down and having a nice conversation.

I'm a real simple man with simple needs. …You can jazz it up, but the more you jazz it up, it looks like you're trying too hard. You can do that later. It's always nice just to keep it real and find our about someone when they aren't on guard.

Of course when it comes to talking about Ryan's alter-ego on True Blood, Jason Stackhouse, the topic of nudity inevitably arises (ahem), 'cos let's face it, Jason spent a fair proportion of Season 1 naked. Ryan isn't fazed at all about getting naked in front of the cast and crew, but he thinks it is a lot more difficult for his female co-stars, as most of the crew are male.

There have been a few times that I could literally feel then shaking in my arms. I make sure that we go nowhere near the set until they are totally and utterly comfortable.

While Jason spent a lot of Season 1 unclothed, the later seasons saw other male actors taking their turn in the buff. Did he have to give the guys any nudity pointers?

No, all the guys have their fair share of it. It's one of those things you can't just dip your toes [into]. You have to completely dive into completely dive in and go for it. I kind of set the bar pretty quickly because literally my first day on set had two sex scenes back to back! Jason, in the first two or three episodes is very rambunctious. In the third season I get to keep my clothes on a lot more – which has been nice.

When asked what he felt was the best thing about playing Jason, Ryan explained that:

It's the fact that he doesn't think. That he can't think. It's really liberating for someone like myself who tends to analyse things far too much. So the moment I step into his shoes I can just switch that part of my brain off.

And is he really writing that book on sex advice?

I am absolutely not writing a sex book! I am writing a book and it's a satirical look at the self-help world. Somehow it's been misconstrued – maybe the word "self" has been replaced with "sex". If they're talking about it, that's fine.

Oh, and yes, there was a sock question, but really, we Trubies know all about it already n'est pas? Source: New Weekly (Photo credit: HBO Inc.)

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