Meet Ian Verdun!

Meet Ian Verdun! The talented actor who plays Xander, a small town fisherman who gets caught up in some bizzare events surrounding a mysterious women, in the freeform series “Siren”, one of Popular’s favorite shows! Season 2 just premiered last week and we can’t wait to see what they have in store for us!
We got a chance to catch up with Ian at his photo shoot in the Hollywood Hills, and asked him some of our exclusive questions!

Tell us about your character Xander McClure in Siren.
Xander is your average, blue collar guy, and a fisherman who’s been thrust into the middle of all the mermaid madness and deals with everything in pretty impulsive ways (for better or worse). He’s loyal, smart, and he wears his heart directly on his sleeve which tends to be the thing that gets him into trouble. He’s a dream of a character to play.

Do you believe in mermaids?
When you think about it, all of us are living on a floating rock, held to it by an invisible force as we hurdle through an empty void, circling a massive glowing ball of fire. Who’s to say mermaids don’t exist.

What would be your idea of a “perfect day”?
I’ve got a few definitions of a perfect day, but they all generally involve family, friends, and copious amounts of food. Though I can imagine the day you win an Oscar would be pretty close to perfect. Can I do both things?

What is one of your proudest moments?
Definitely when I wrote, produced and starred in my own pilot, “Life’s A Drag”. I was never one of those actors you hear about who just kind of fell into opportunities. After college I was lucky if I got 5 auditions in a given year. So after years and years of nothing, I finally just created my own opportunity. Eventually the project got into a few festivals and won some awards. I even had my first pitch at a network the day before my studio test for Siren. There’s nothing like watching something that you created develop and grow into something tangible. I’m proud of many things in my career so far, but that one kinda takes the cake.

What is one of your most embarrassing moments?
People who know me, know that I’m something of a klutz. I’m constantly running into things, knocking things over, and generally embarrassing myself in public. One time, when I was working as an usher at a theater in NYC, my haste plus my clumsiness nearly made me crash into Janet Jackson as I was rounding a corner. She was throwing her album release party for Discipline at their theater and was dressed in this impossible dominatrix outfit and she gave me this look that just made me want to curl up and die. I didn’t knock her over, thankfully, but everyone saw the near miss. Sorry Janet.

What is your biggest fear?
I used to have a fear of being homeless. Getting to the point where I would lose what little I had, but been there, done that. Once you’ve hit rock bottom and survive, there aren’t too many things that scare you… except spiders. Those bastards are terrifying.

Dream concert ticket? (any band, any decade)?
Oooh, great question. Definitely Michael Jackson in the Thriller era.

Favorite Movie?
I get this question a lot, and the answer’s been the same for years; “Hook” followed pretty closely by “Death Becomes Her”. I could watch both of those movies over and over again and never get bored.

Karaoke anthem?
I have a few, as I’m kind of an unofficial karaoke rockstar. My go to’s are Valerie by Amy Winehouse, Senorita by Justin Timberlake and Rollin on the River by the one and only Tina Turner.

What would be your last meal?
My mom’s gumbo. If you tasted it, you’d agree.

Tell us a secret/ fun fact about yourself?
I’m a former football player, from a family of athletes. My father and my brother were both pros, so you could say it’s in my blood. I played for ten years, but I wouldn’t say I was ever that good. I ended up quitting when I was 16 to be in the school musical. I was Danny Zuko in Grease that year; so worth it.

Do you have a party trick?
I’ve been known to break out into song for absolutely no reason, so I guess you could call that a trick. At the very least an adorable (annoying?) personal quirk.

What does Popular mean to you?
I was never a popular kid, believe it or not theater kids aren’t exactly revered in high school. Popularity to me is pretty subjective, it all depends on who finds you popular. I always thought that if I was just myself then the right people would like me, so I never really focused on popularity, just authenticity. That philosophy has served me pretty well so far.

Can you tell us about any other projects you have coming up?
I have a few irons on the fire, so to speak. I love writing and producing, so I’m working on really upping my creative output this year. Everything is in the developmental stages, but when it’s ready… you’ll definitely know.