GUY POPULAR: JAKE ALLYN

Meet Jake Allyn, from the BET show “The Quad”, AKA our new guy crush. On “The Quad”, Jake plays football star BoJohn Folsom, a struggling athlete with some major anger issues that could derail his entire football future. But for Jake real-life success is definitely in his future, and he is currently writing and starring in two new thriller films: Wicked Love and Ex-Patriot (starring Charlie Weber from How To Get Away With Murder‘s, and Star Wars Rogue One actress, Valene Kane).

We caught up with Jake to find out how he juggles Hollywood life as actor, writer and producer. Check it out.

1.What gets you up in the morning? The hustle. I pride myself in my work ethic so I take the Michael Jordan approach, I start working while everyone else is still sleeping (Not to say I’ve never hit the old snooze button though!) Honestly, there are many actors that are more talented or are more blessed with honest gifts than me, but I’ve yet to meet one that is willing to work harder than me. Especially in an industry where so many things are out of the actor’s control, work ethic and grind is the one thing that is 100% in our control. A casting director or producer may determine if they want a tall actor or a short one, a black guy or a white guy, but we control when we set our alarm clock, we control if we’re on time to an audition, we control how much energy we put into our craft daily.

2. Your biggest virtue? Loyalty. I think it can come in many forms but loyalty is something I’ve relied on my entire life. Whether it’s loyalty to my family, my career, myself or the Dallas Cowboys, I find it to be the one things that keeps my life steady and on the right track. Staying loyal helps me maintain perspective and do things for the right reasons. Now sometimes staying loyal to your career or yourself means doing what you gotta do to get a paycheck or pay your bills which is totally fine. But in the long run, staying loyal to yourself allows you to make better long term decisions that help your ultimate happiness rather than solely pay the bills or put money in your pocket. So in the adjusted words of The Most Interesting Man in the World, “Stay loyal my friends”.

3. Your biggest vice? Trying to make everyone happy… Sometimes I find myself trying to make everyone around me happy or to like me that I forget to just do my job or stay true to what I believe in. Especially as it comes to acting. It’s easy to walk into an audition room and just try to make the producers or director happy rather than simply act. While that may land you a job or two it definitely won’t satisfy you in a long career. Eventually it will catch up to you and you’ll be on some set you don’t want to be on and you won’t be happy. Everyone around you might like you, but you kind of won’t like yourself. So ya, I’d like to continue working on simply making more decision based on what would make me happy or do what I think is the right choice in my life rather than what I think other people will respond positively too or what’s the choice that will make them like me.

4. Do you have a party trick? I don’t know that this would constitute as a party trick but I make a mean Irish Coffee or this Mexican coffee called Carajillos. Once you hit your mid 20s you will have probably been to every type of pregame or party, but I promise you’ll have never had as good of an Irish or Mexican coffee as I can make. Don’t believe me, come down to my place in Venice and I’ll show you.

5. How would you describe your style? Hmmm maybe Urban Cowboy. I was born and raised in Dallas so I definitely try and stay true to the jeans and cowboy boots form but I also like some of the newer styles like the brands Vince, John Varvatos or even Jordan stuff. My friends wouldn’t be surprised to see me in a pair of new Jordan kicks and a denim button down. Somehow I think I make it work, or maybe my friends are just too nice to call me out.

6. What would constitute a perfect day for you? I wake up around 6AM, get an early morning workout in with my big brother Conor. Then drive to the set of the film I’m shooting of which I’m co-starring with Matthew McConaughey, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Jonathan Tucker (my three favorite actors). We get after some great dramatic scenes all day then after wrap we all share a couple shiner bocks (my favorite Texas beer) in Matthew’s trailer. Afterwards, we finish up just in time to head to my place where the Dallas Cowboys are playing in the Superbowl. I gather all my best friends and family and watch the Boys win a sixth super bowl. I’d say that’s the perfect day. I’d then probably retire the next morning.

7. What would your very last meal entail? If it could be anything in the world? Well when I was a kid, I lived just over this red brick wall from a burger joint called Balls Hamburgers. It was a sports arcade and had the best sliders in the game, they called them Little Leaguers. It actually recently closed but if I was having a last meal, I’d do anything in my power to reopen it for the day. I’d have my friends and family there to play the old school arcade games and chow down on some little leaguers… Man this is making me rethink the perfect day question, I might have to change that answer to watching the Superbowl at Balls Hamburgers instead my house.

8. Three people—dead or alive, real or fictional—that you’d like to invite to dinner? Tough one, that’s too hard for me. If it were just dead folks from the past, I’d say George Washington, Jesus, and Marlon Brando. Then three alive I’d say Tony Romo, Matthew McConaughey, and would it be sketchy to invite my celebrity crush Alicia Vikander? I think I’d have to,

9. Turn ons? Definitely a woman who is driven and succeeding in their field. Whether it’s an actress or not, a woman who’s independent and “getting shit done” is sexy as hell. On a different note, I love a girl that can rock jeans and a t-shirt and look great. Maybe it’s just because I live in LA, but I think girls do a little too much to be honest. I’m way more attracted to a girl with a great smile than wears a baseball cap and some blue jeans, than a girl who takes 2 hours to get ready in the morning so her makeup can be perfect.

10. Turn offs? The opposite of my turn ons. A girl who is very dependent and for lack of a better term, “too needy”. I think there’s no chance of balance in a relationship if that’s what it’s based on. I think only a weak man wants a woman who needs them 24/7. Now that isn’t to say I don’t want to be a man who takes care of his lady, I just don’t think it’s sexy if a girl doesn’t have stuff going on in her own life.

11. Tell us a secret.  I’ve never been on a roller coaster. I am very deeply afraid. I don’t know if it’s in a situation where I have zero control or the simple height/going upside factor but ya, I’ve never done one and if it’s up to me, I never will… not for me.

12. Your favorite quote? “Sling that Mother Fu#*cker”. Here’s the short story: in a New England Patriots Superbowl a couple years ago, the Patriots needed to get one more first down and then they could run out the clock to win the game. On the sideline, the coaches and quarterbacks were discussing whether they should be safe, run the ball, and then punt. Or they could take a big risk, pass it and maybe get the first down. Out of nowhere, the back up quarterback yells to Tom Brady, “Sling that mother fu#*cker”. Long story short the Patriots take the risk, they pass it successfully, and go on to win the Superbowl… Now as an actor, I think it’s just such a great simple concept and really for any profession, I don’t care if you’re an actor, a lawyer, or an uber drive, I think we’d all have more success and simply be a littler happier if we took more risks. Go big or go home, right? I never leave an audition saying damn, I wish I had NOT taken that big risk or made that decision that the producers ended up not thinking was right for the character. But I always beat myself up in the car afterwards if I made weak choices or didn’t go bold.

13. An embarrassing moment? I was at an audition at a studio lot once and needed to hit the restroom before my audition. The closest one to the audition room had a sign on it that said “John Stamos’s bathroom”… I assumed it was an inside joke so I went ahead and went in. The second I walked out, the casting director I was reading for was standing by her door calling my name. I said I’m here and she immediately called me out for using John Stamos’s bathroom. Turns out it was definitely not an inside joke and I did not book that audition to say the least.

14. Your proudest moment? Calling my mom to tell her I’d booked a series regular role on my TV show, The Quad. I’d auditioned like seven times and had been auditioning around LA for about 2 years straight. She knew how bad I wanted this one and what it would mean for my career. So when I finally got to make that call and I could tell she was starting to cry, it was pretty dang special. A moment I’ll never forget.

15. Could you tell us more about some of the projects you are working on? I actually just wrapped shooting an Independent film in Oklahoma called OVEREXPOSED. It’s a thriller revolving around a sexting scandal that leads to murder in a small town. My character is grieving from loss and starts his own personal investigation into what’s going on under the surface in this town where everyone knows everyone, yet everyone has a secret. It was really awesome spending a month in Oklahoma diving into a new character. The movie is coming out this Fall. I think people will really like it because the interpersonal drama and character development is really strong so that when those thriller moments come like chase scenes or the final showdown, the audience will really be on the edge of their seat.