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Interview

ICYMI - Daniel Goddard, Jason Thompson And Jess Walton Interview

"The Young and the Restless" Set
Jess Walton, Daniel Goddard, Jason Thompson "The Young and the Restless" Set CBS television City Los Angeles 11/03/17 © Howard Wise/jpistudios.com 310-657-9661 Credit: JPI

MODERN FAMILY

Y&R’s Jess Walton Adores Her TV Sons, Daniel Goddard And Jason Thompson — And The Feeling Is Mutual

 

Soap Opera Digest: Jess, did you offer any input when Y&R was casting the role of Cane?

Jess Walton: The first time I ever saw Daniel, he was behind the bar in that club and they said to me, “That’s your son.” It was a done deal already. Isn’t that true, Daniel?

Daniel Goddard: Yeah, I hadn’t met you. I was actually avoiding you and Jeanne [Cooper, ex-Katherine] because I wanted to meet you on set for the first time in our first scene. Jeanne didn’t know why I was avoiding her, so she thought I was an upstart and rude because I hadn’t introduced myself to her yet, but then I explained to her afterward that the first time I wanted to meet you be on camera so that it was more authentic.

Walton: So then she was cool with it.

Digest: Jess, what was your first impression of Daniel?

Walton: Well, I thought he was very handsome. I didn’t know what he was like or anything but we had an instant connection, that’s for sure.

Goddard: Instant! Jess was wearing the perfume that my mother wore, so therefore we connected very well. Do you remember the name of the perfume?

Walton: How can you promote this perfume and you don’t even know what it is [laughs]?

Goddard: I just remember smelling you and I thought, “Oh, my God, you smell like my mother,” and then I asked what you were wearing and it was the same one my mother wore.

Walton: Our connection was great. I look back on those early scenes and it was really wonderful. It really was.

Goddard: They were written with a lot of heart and a lot of feeling.

Digest: Did either of you meet Jason before he came to Y&R?

Walton: I hadn’t.

Goddard: No, but before I got the job at Y&R, I read for the role on GH that Jason got [Patrick Drake]. When I heard they were recasting Billy, Jill Phelps [former executive producer] was here and I knew that Jason had just left GH. I went, “I bet Jason Thompson is going to become Billy.” I just had this feeling, and then he got the job. When I saw him, I was like, “That’s crazy. I read for your part years ago at GH and now you’re over here playing Billy.”

Digest: Jess, you once commented after Jason was brought on that it was strange to look at a Billy that actually looks like Jill’s son.

Walton: Absolutely. They always wanted to make the Abbotts blond. All of a sudden we had this dark-haired, dark-eyed Billy and it was really amazing. I felt a special bond with him at the beginning just from that alone.

Digest: Jason, what was your first impression of Jess?

Jason Thompson: I think out of every relationship that I have, it was the easiest with her. When I say “Mom” in a scene, it feels real to me. There’s a lot of things that we can say about Jess, but she just makes it all feel easy. She’s been great from the beginning.

Digest: Jason, what do you remember about meeting Daniel?

Thompson: He introduced himself and told me a quick little story about the GH audition, which was pretty funny, and then it really quickly became about work. He started giving me a lot of feedback because he’s lived through a few Billy Abbotts and knows the history of their relationship, so he was very helpful right from the get-go. It really helped us get off on the right foot.

Digest: Who filled you in on the history between Billy and his mom?

Thompson: Well, Jess helped with that, too, in a lot of ways, but Daniel did also. I had lists of email questions back and forth to the writers and producers before I got here, but when you get it from the actors, it’s a whole different kind of history. I could immediately tell that everybody really cared about the show and their characters. To me, that was a perfect situation to walk into.

Digest: Do you like to run lines together?

Walton: When we have the time.

Thompson: The majority of the time we do.

Walton: The good thing about us is that we trust each other so much and we know each other’s rhythm. There’s something about being short on time that makes the lines go into your head so fast because you don’t want to look like a fool. The emotions are already all there because of our relationship. Right, guys?

Goddard: Yeah, and I also think that when you work with two really good actors, like Jason and Jess, you know you can kind of massage the scene if you choose to go in a different direction and they can go with you. Jason and Jess will always have very good timing and it makes it really easy. And that makes it fun, too!

Digest: Do you ever hang out together in someone’s dressing room?

Walton: Daniel has a central dressing room and we probably meet in there more than anywhere else.

Digest: Daniel, are you still in Jeanne’s dressing room?

Goddard: Yeah. Jess comes in there and she gets all nostalgic, so then I’m like, “Come on, enough nostalgia.” And then Jason comes in and he goes, “Oh, my God, Jessie, are you nostalgic again?” And we sit there and we just watch Jessie get nostalgic and we’re like, “Okay, we have to run the lines,” so she finally steps out of nostalgia and we get down to work.

Walton: You have to remember, I spent 27 years in that dressing room with a lot of history! There was a lot of cigarette smoke back in those days.

Goddard: You know what Eric Braeden [Victor] said to me? He was like, “You know, you should change this furniture. They sat here and smoked. It’s in the furniture!”

Walton: He did not!

Goddard: Yes, he did! He told me there are so many carcinogenic smoke particles in this furniture!

Digest: What has been one of the funniest moments that has happened on the set involving all of you?

Thompson: Maybe Jess not knowing my name just a couple of weeks ago? That was pretty good. Right, Daniel?

Goddard: That was really funny.

Walton: Oh, Lord.

Thompson: I’ve been at Y&R for two years and Daniel said, “Jason Thompson,” and she was like, “Who’s Jason Thompson? I don’t know Jason Thompson!” I said, “I’m Jason Thompson!”

Walton: I just think of you as Billy/Jason. I’m sorry. I apologize.

Thompson: See? We’re very, very close friends.

Walton: What’s your last name again?

Digest: Daniel and Jason, would you take your families to visit Jess in Oregon?

Walton: Oh, I wish you would! Come see the horses! We have four horses. Your kids would love it.

Goddard: The only reason I haven’t gone is because Jess has got a no-clothes policy, so when you get to her house, you have to take all your clothes off and I couldn’t be around Jess that long because I’d be a wreck for too long.

Walton: Oh, my God. Stop it, Daniel!

Thompson: Yeah, I would love to go. I can handle that.

Walton: Oh, you would love it, Jason! You should come, your babies would love it! They can play with my grandchildren. How old is [your daughter] Rome?

Thompson: Rome is 8 months and Bowie just turned 2.

Walton: Oh, see! I’ve got a 3-year-old grandson and I have a 10-month-old granddaughter. They’d just have a great time together. There are horses and four dogs and two cats!

Goddard: Sounds like a sitcom.

Thompson: How many bedrooms?

Walton: There’s one guest room; we used to have two. My husband’s ex-wife is moving in upstairs.

Goddard: Whoa, it is a sitcom!

Walton: She’s kind of retiring, so she’s moving in upstairs because we all get along really great, we always have. She’s the mother of my stepdaughter and she’ll be upstairs, so now we only have one guest room.

Digest: Jess, do you ever get maternal with Daniel and Jason?

Walton: No, I don’t really. We’re all on the same level. Then Daniel goes on and on about something and I just want to whack him.

Digest: Daniel and Jason, can you tell me what you’ve learned from working with Jess?

Thompson: Jess will be kind of all over the place just before a scene starts, and then there’s this moment where it happens and she’s just right there with you and it doesn’t matter what it is. We go very quickly; there’s makeup coming in, there’s wardrobe coming in, there’s people counting down, but there’s this moment where she just locks in and there’s something very comfortable about it. I think Daniel can agree. There’s so much going on and you just try and be in the moment, but I think she does it very well.

Goddard: I agree with that, absolutely. The other thing I learned from Jessie is to be honest in your scenes and never rush scenes. She used to call me “Daniel” in the scenes and she’d be so on point with her acting. Then they’d go, “We have to go again.” And she’s like, “Why? What happened?” “You kept calling him ‘Daniel’. ” I was like, “Can we somehow cut around that?” And they’re like, “No, we have to go again.” Jess is a very honest and giving actress. What a privilege.

Walton: Thank you.

Goddard: We miss you, Jessie.

Thompson: Yes, we sure do.

Walton: Aww, I love my boys!

 

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