Who would you say was your character’s professional mentor, Ridge or Eric? “That’s a hard question to answer. They are both major influences. However, I would say that his father was a more effective influence because Thomas wanted his father’s approval — but he also disapproved of his father’s decisions in their family and so you have this weird dynamic to overcome, so everything his father did affected him more significantly than what his grandfather did.”
Who is your character’s most trusted co-worker? “I would say Steffy. I think they have a good business relationship. They get along great both at work and at home. She is really good at running the company and Thomas is really good at what he’s doing now. I don’t think that Thomas sees the head designer as less than the CEO. I think he views those two positions as being more equal, and together, they make a very strong presence.”
Is there anyone else on the show whose job your character envies? “At the moment, no. He’s very happy doing what he’s doing.”
As the head of the design team, Thomas has a number of employees reporting to him. How would you rate Thomas as a boss? “I actually think Thomas is a pretty great boss, other than when he’s manipulating others and hurting people [laughs]. If you remove that element of his past and his history, I think the way you’re seeing Thomas now is in a much more contented state and working well with people and open to new ideas and not letting his ego get in the way too much. I think Thomas is a great boss.”
Thomas was CEO of Forrester on an interim basis. Do you think he has ambitions to take over the company again someday? “Yes, I think he absolutely does.”
What would you say is Thomas’s greatest strength and his greatest weakness as a businessperson? “His greatest strength is his ambition and his talent, and his greatest weakness is his ego.”
What do you think of your character’s professional wardrobe? “Thomas is an artistic kind of guy, and artistic guys usually make more interesting choices. You do see him wearing a suit but more often, you’ll see him wearing a cool jacket or trying new things, but if you saw him in the position of CEO, you’d definitely see him in a suit and tie and happy about it. I think he can fulfill both of those roles. It just depends on what role he’s playing at the time, which will affect his dress code…. I see Thomas as almost like a David Beckham character in that he’s just as comfortable in a nice three-piece suit as he is in shorts and a T-shirt. He’s completely comfortable in everything. It’s just about however Thomas wants to express himself that day.”
How do you think you would fare in the corporate world? “Well, I wouldn’t like it as much as what I’m doing now, that’s for sure. Set schedules are not necessarily [my thing]. I’m definitely more on the creative side of things. I do enjoy that more.”
What traits do you think you personally could bring to a business setting? “I think something you learn as an actor is relatability and communication skills. [The] training you get going into audition after audition after audition, and having to meet with all different types of people constantly, it really does actually help you in that area of communication, which is huge and massive for any business environment.”
What do you consider to be your character’s crowning corporate achievement? “Honestly, the role that he is in right now — or perhaps the time as CEO of Forrester Creations is the pinnacle for him because that’s what he saw his father and grandfather doing, so it’s fulfilling the family legacy.”
