Ain’t He Sweet?
With his impulsive “I love you”s and über-romantic gestures, BOLD AND BEAUTIFUL’s Liam is pretty much the human equivalent of a basket of kittens. Is it difficult for Scott Clifton to portray? We playfully discuss the business of being cute!
Soap Opera Weekly: Liam is just so gosh darn adorable. Do you see a lot of yourself in him, or is it hard for you to channel all that sweetness?
Scott Clifton: This is such an interesting question to me, because — and I’m not kidding — my girlfriend hasn’t watched the show in a while, and recently, she was like, “I’ve watched five episodes of B&B. Can I give you some constructive criticism?” And I was like, “Oh, God, oh, no, oh, God…but yeah.” She goes, “You look like you’re cutesy. Why are you being all cutesy?” And I was like, “I’m not! It’s the character! He’s this cute, awkward, kind of precious guy.” And she said, “Yeah. It’s a turn-off. Sorry.” [laughs] So I guess it’s not entirely me. When I read a script, I can hear how [Liam would speak]. I have an image of Liam saying these lines in my head, and I just try to be faithful to how that seems. That could very well be a terrible philosophy for acting, but on paper, that’s how Liam seems to me, so I just try to do that!
Weekly: He’s incredibly earnest, particularly for soaps. It’s rare to find someone who wears their heart on their sleeve the way he does!
Clifton: Yeah. I like not being a “tough guy” or a “badass.” I also like variety; don’t get me wrong. But I think that’s an important role in the ensemble: the vulnerable one. There has to be somebody vulnerable. I mean, it’s a soap opera; everybody’s vulnerable, but to what degree and how often? When you have a character who has their guard up and, in one of these wonderful moments, you see them vulnerable, I think it’s just as important to have the vulnerable character and then, once in a while, you get to see them assert themselves. I dig that, too.
Weekly: As earnest as he is, that’s not to say Liam doesn’t have teeth, because I think he definitely has a strength that allows him to go toe-to-toe with Bill.
Clifton: Right. It just means he’s perceived as weak, which is interesting, in and of itself. It makes for good drama.
Weekly: It really does, and I think it’s funny that your girlfriend is just not into Liam at all.
Clifton: I know. She’s like, “Ugh, total turn-off. I would not date him.”
Weekly: So, I guess that tells us that you’re not all that similar to him!
Clifton: I must not be! I was just doing another interview where I told someone, “Oh, I’m very much like Liam.” But what do I know? [laughs]
Weekly: Your girlfriend would be like, “Sorry, Scott, no, you’re not!”
Clifton: “If you were, I’d dump you like a bad habit.” [laughs]
Conversation
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