October 7, 2025 • 41 mins
This week, Tommy is joined by actor Miles Heizer who you know and love from 13 Reasons Why, Parenthood, Love Simon and so much more. Now he is starring in the upcoming Netflix series Boots, dropping October 9th! Miles plays Cameron Cope, a bullied, gay high school student who joins the Marines with his best friend in hopes of finding some direction in life. The problem is he joined the Marines in the 90s when it was illegal to be gay in the military. The series is based off a powerful true story and explores friendship, resilience, and finding your place in the world. Today, Miles opens up about why this series is so important to him, why playing this role was a cathartic and healing experience, the scariest thing about stepping into this role, the reality show he watched to unwind from long days on set, the shift he has seen working in Hollywood as an openly gay artist, the wink he got from the universe when auditioning for Boots, the moment he got emotional during filming, why he’s already hoping for a Season 2, the supernatural twist he would want to see happen, dreams of being an opening kill in a horror movie, something he has never said before, and so much more.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hey guys, welcome to I've never said this before with
me Tommy di Dario. There are so many great shows
to watch at any given time, right, but sometimes a
really special one comes along that you can't stop thinking about.
Today's guest he is in what I am calling one
of the best shows of the year, and his performance
will make you laugh and cry and all of the
(00:23):
amazing things in between. The brilliant Miles Heiser joins my
show today who You Know and Love from Parenthood, Thirteen
Reasons Why I Love Simon and now the very bingeworthy
series Boots, which is coming out on Netflix on October ninth. So.
In Boots, Miles plays Cameron Cope. He is a bully
gay high school student who, with his best friend kind
of on a whim, joins the Marines to find some
(00:45):
direction in his life. The problem is he joined the
Marines in the nineties when it was illegal to be
gay in the Marines. So the series is based off
a very powerful true story and it explores so many themes.
I mean, friendship is finding your place in a very
difficult world. I am calling it now. Boots is going
to soar to number one within twenty four hours of
(01:07):
it being released. I'm even surprised words are coming out
of my mouth, to be honest, because I don't know.
I feel quite speechless when I think of how powerful
Miles performance was in this incredible story. So let's let
him find the words for me, and let's see if
today we can get Miles to say something that he
has never said before. Miles, how you doing today?
Speaker 2 (01:32):
I am good. I'm a little nervous, but I'm doing well.
Speaker 1 (01:35):
Don't be nervous. Although you did tell me it's your
first podcast, it is.
Speaker 2 (01:38):
Yes, I'm worried I'll say something unforgivable, but I'm curious
to find out what it is that he is say.
Speaker 1 (01:47):
Yeah, me too. To podcasts freak you out? Like does
long form generally freak you out?
Speaker 2 (01:51):
Yeah, I think it's the long form. Yeah, of it
not being said, I love podcasts. It's like all I
listen to, so there's a thrill to being on one
as well.
Speaker 1 (02:01):
Well. I am very honored you chose this one.
Speaker 2 (02:04):
Yes, thank you for having that.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
I am so psyched to have you. I was telling you,
I'm such a fan of Boots. I got to see it,
I guess now. Six weeks ago I watched it. So
it's been terrible because I haven't been able to talk
about it with that.
Speaker 2 (02:15):
Right, honestly, same. I think I saw it for the
first time like six weeks ago, and yeah, I have
no one to tell. I'm like it exists. I swear
it's coming out soon.
Speaker 1 (02:26):
It's unbelievable. It is such a special project. I've been
telling everybody, like, when you see it, it's it's going
to be one of your favorite shows of the year.
Speaker 2 (02:34):
Oh my gosh, Well I hope that's true. I'm we're
all so excited we started, Like it's been almost three
years now since we started, so it's it's very surreal
that it's like it's actually coming out. Like, I'm so
so excited, and I've seen it too, and it's I'm
just so proud of it and excited to see what
the reaction is.
Speaker 1 (02:55):
In your character. Man, he's he's so much fun to
watch his evolution. Right. So you play Cameron aka Cope, Yes,
and he enlists in the Marines with his best friend.
Speaker 2 (03:06):
That's true.
Speaker 1 (03:07):
He has a secret, right, he's gay, yes, And you
can't be gay in the nineties in the Marines, it's illegal.
Speaker 2 (03:16):
Right, That is true.
Speaker 1 (03:17):
So it's a very interesting story and you are, I mean,
you are the face of this series. Like, how does
it all feel. We're a few days a head of
the release and it's your baby, I mean, is it
a wild feeling?
Speaker 2 (03:31):
Yeah, it's it's very very crazy. I've been acting since
i was ten, you know, twenty years now, and I'm
very comfortable in all the roles I've played before. I'm
usually like a smaller character. There's this sort of disconnection
where you're like, there's not as much pressure on you
because I'm like, if people like it or they don't, like,
(03:53):
I'm such a small part of this thing that it's
I don't feel that that stress about the reaction into it.
And this is definitely a very different experience. I'm like
praying that someone will like it. I'm like, it feels
very very precious to me, but to all of us.
It's sort of a weird, weird show where typically everyone
(04:17):
has scenes separate from each other, and so you have
days where you're not working, you're not there all the time,
and the show is like, if you don't see us,
you can guarantee we were still there. It was like
every scene, we were all there, no matter what. So
we just spent so much time on it and so
much time together, so I think it just feels very
(04:38):
close to all of us and we hope people enjoy it.
Speaker 1 (04:43):
Do you spiral ahead of something like this, like are
you up at night? Do you have anxiety? Are you
able to be like? It will be what it will be?
I am not mistay and calm.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
You know, I'll be honest. Typically I'm like super calm
and not anxious, And this is definitely the first time
for me where I'm like genuinely anxious about it, but
sort of in a fun way. Since I saw the show,
I'm like, I love it so much and I think
that people will really like it if they watch it,
(05:13):
and so there's like a sense of calm there. It's
more excitement where I'm like, I'm so excited for people
to see it because I think that it's the show
when you watch it is very different than it reads
on paper, like it's it's very light and fun and heartwarming,
and I think that's sort of a different take on
(05:33):
the classic like boot camp or military story. So I
hope that people give it a chance and will end
up really liking it and feeling uplifted by the end,
and yeah.
Speaker 1 (05:46):
It's a really different kind of coming of age story, right,
and all the different characters in it are going through
their own journeys of trying to figure out who they
are in a really difficult world. And I think that's
something we all want. And sure, I imagine doing a
role like this and playing this character as someone who
went through your own journey and is sitting here as
(06:06):
an out gay man today maybe was cathartic or healing
in a way, Like did it feel like that?
Speaker 2 (06:14):
Yeah? I mean I feel like for queer people, it's
growing up. For a lot of us, at least myself included,
it's like your entire youth is spent like obsessing over
this thing and this fear of people finding out and
how people are going to react, and it's such a
part of our lives and our psychees that it's like
(06:36):
it's very easy to go back to that as someone
that's sort of passed that phase because it's just drilled
into my brain. So there is something very cathartic about
going back and sort of reportraying that because it is
still such a huge part of me. I think the
thing that I love about Cameron and this show is
(06:57):
that his journey is not really about discovering his sexuality.
I think that's something that he knows and is comfortable
with and has his best friend who supports him. And
ultimately his arc is really about sort of growing and
discovering new things about himself. But obviously there's this conundrum
(07:18):
of the price of that is sort of hiding this
other part of himself, which I think is really interesting
and not something we see too often.
Speaker 1 (07:27):
And I think there's something really interesting about your character
and worrying about feeling exposed in a group of these
like macho dudes right in Marine boot Camp. Like, that's
something that I think a lot of people who go
through their own journey discovering who the arc and experience.
I remember being in high school and I did all
the plays, and I was in theater and also in athletes.
(07:49):
It was a really weird balance to strike between the
two groups. But I remember in our theater like I
would be rehearsing and I used to do hip hop
and dance and teaching my co stars or my castmates
how to dance. And the football team will come in
and start training and doing runs up and down the
steps of our theater gym, and I'm like, there, I
am like teaching a dance to people, Like I feel
(08:12):
so exposed. Yes, I wasn't even out then, you know,
like it's just sure. I felt a lot of those
moments in this Yeah.
Speaker 2 (08:18):
I think that's something I really connect with. Growing up,
I was like raised by women. I had a single mother,
a sister, my grandmother was I was sort of surrounded
by women, and I think I developed this sort of
anxiety around boys because I was afraid that they were
gonna make fun of me or see something in me
(08:39):
that was different and therefore sort of other me. And
I think that I really avoided a lot of like
male friendships growing up because of that, And I think
a lot of a lot of queer people have that
same experience. I think that's what's so interesting sort of
about this show is that Cameron is put in this
(09:01):
place where he suddenly that has to go away because
all these barriers and walls he's built up to protect
himself are just out the window. It's like, you're here,
you have to do these things, you have to fail,
And I think that in the process of that, he
ends up actually discovering all these things about himself and
things that he didn't know he was capable of, And
(09:23):
in some weird way, I like sort of had that
while we were filming with this group of boys, Like
we all come from literally like different parts of the country,
very different backgrounds and people that I think maybe I
wouldn't have thought that I would connect with necessarily. And
it was like such a beautiful experience the way we
(09:44):
all came together and bonded so closely and sort of
put aside all these preconceived notions about each other and
our backgrounds and sort of just connected on a human level.
And I feel like that's really the message of the
show as well.
Speaker 1 (10:00):
And you have now an entire fraternity of brothers that's
a big group of guys.
Speaker 2 (10:05):
And one sister, Angus O'Brien my my bestie.
Speaker 1 (10:10):
Everybody is so good in this. I mean, there's so
much I want to say, but I'm not saying.
Speaker 2 (10:15):
Oh right, we can't.
Speaker 1 (10:16):
But here's something for you. What was the scariest part
of doing a show like this?
Speaker 2 (10:21):
You know this is this is easy for me to
answer sort of a spoiler, but there's like an element
of boot camp that involves being high up in the air,
and I have like an extreme fear of heights, not
like acute, like I can't do it like a full
(10:41):
like Maury Povich running through the hallway. Yes, like very scared.
And so we had to do this and I talked
to someone ahead of time and they're like, well, we'll
build like a miniature. We can like fake it with
the angles, like do not worry about it. And of course,
worse I get there, there's no miniature. It's a full size.
(11:03):
Like I actually have a bone to pick with production
because on camera it looks like, oh, it's yeah, it's
kind of high up, like in person, it was so
tall it was very scary. Unfortunately, we had a stunt coordinator, Jade,
who did like circ Disolay, was a tightrope walker, and
(11:24):
he like seriously walked me through it. We had a
rehearsal day where I was like, I literally can't do it,
and he was like, we're gonna do it, and we's
sure enough. Like he got me there and I was
able to do it on the day. That was definitely
the scariest part for me, but I knew in advance.
I was dreading that the whole time. I'm like I
(11:45):
can't believe I have to climb this this.
Speaker 1 (11:48):
Thing, but you did it.
Speaker 2 (11:49):
I did it. Yeah, it was very sweet. The boys
were like they were all there at the rehearsal and
cheering me on. It was very very much mirrored the show.
Speaker 1 (11:59):
That's really yeah, and good on you. Not only do
you have to like act to make it look really believable,
but you're doing things that genuinely freak you the hell out.
Speaker 2 (12:07):
Yeah, that's like my number one off limits. Cannot do it,
but I did it.
Speaker 1 (12:13):
So you're ready in your next role to skydive.
Speaker 2 (12:15):
I'm not okay, Yeah, I'm not gonna do it, but
you know I'm I'm at peace with where what I
did and where I'm at now.
Speaker 1 (12:23):
Good for you. What surprised you the most about playing
this role and doing the show? Like, was there any
point during filming where you were just like, wow, that
was not what I expected, or I feel a certain
way I didn't expect to feel, or anything like that.
Speaker 2 (12:37):
Yeah, I mean there's so many aspects of it, honestly
getting there. When we first arrived in New Orleans where
we filmed, I had like pretty extreme imposter syndrome. I'm like,
I don't belong here. I'm scared like Vera Farmiga is
probably somewhere nearby. I should not be anywhere near her.
(13:01):
And I think through the process, I think we all
had this again because we were all there all day
every day. I didn't think I would be able to
work that much and to be to not have a
complete breakdown, and it was like that was something I learned,
was like, wow, I can actually do this thing that
I've never done before and never thought that I could do.
(13:25):
And another thing that was was really cool for me
is we had three military advisors on set with us
the whole time, and they were sort of they helped
us train a little bit before we started, and then
each week, like or not week, but each episode, whatever
we were doing in the forthcoming episode, we like have
a day with them where they walked us through it
(13:47):
and trained us, and then they were there on set
every single day to like to watch and make sure
that every there's it's the Marines are so meticulous. There's
like the belt has to be in a certain place,
and there are all these things that they were like
they were there to monitor. But that being said, I
(14:08):
think especially for like a gay kid, I have these
perceptions about sort of masculine worlds. I think for me,
when I think of the military, it feels sort of
hyper masculine in some type of way, and I think
you just, without knowing, sort of develop a perception of
that world. And it was so enlightening to have spent
(14:31):
so much time with them and to really connect with
them and see like all these things that I might
have thought about marines was so not true. And I
think we both sort of had this learning experience from
each other where like we come from such different worlds
and were able to come together and learn a lot
from each other and about each other. And it was
(14:53):
really a very powerful experience for me.
Speaker 1 (14:57):
And you got yelled at quite a bit in the show.
Speaker 2 (15:00):
It's funny watching it. I'm like, oh, it's funny, like
hearing them scream at us. But yeah, when we were
there pretty quickly it was like, oh boy, there's yeah
more screaming.
Speaker 1 (15:11):
Did you go home and like heard that in your dreams?
Just being yelled at.
Speaker 2 (15:15):
I'm sure I was checking out when I went home.
We would have like two hours before you had to
be asleep. I was watching Rock of Love. That's how
checked out. I was, right, I don't know what that
is that's on you?
Speaker 1 (15:29):
Oh man, do I need to google it?
Speaker 2 (15:31):
Yeah? Okay, yeah, it's like an early I guess early
two thousands MTV dating show with Brett Michaels, and it's
it's just it's a disaster.
Speaker 1 (15:42):
Okay, yeah, but one that you go back to over
and over.
Speaker 2 (15:45):
I was just watching it. I'm like, I don't know
what I'm doing. I would order pizza, watch go to sleep.
Speaker 1 (15:52):
Why not something maybe a little more current, like Love
Island or.
Speaker 2 (15:56):
You know, that's a good question. I'm a huge reality
TV like I watch. I watch a lot of them.
I did just watch Love Island, but I don't know.
For some reason, I had started Rock of Love before
getting to New Orleans, and so I just I kept
kept kicking on that.
Speaker 1 (16:14):
Okay, so you're a big Like Housewives fan.
Speaker 2 (16:17):
I'm not believe it or not. I love like the
competition reality shows specifically. I never watched Real Housewives, but
I did watch Love Island.
Speaker 1 (16:26):
But did you like the competition shows before you did
a show about being in the Marines? Oh yeah, okay, Oh.
Speaker 2 (16:32):
My gosh, yeah, this is this is deep deep in
my history. I started watching Big Brother when I was
like ten or something, and yeah, I've always been very
into reality competition shows.
Speaker 1 (16:45):
I like that. Yeah, I like that. Well, maybe one
day you'll be on one.
Speaker 2 (16:48):
Trust me, I have this this horrible little fantasy of
being on Big Brother one day. But I'm like, I can't.
I can't do it, Like, nope, No, three what is it?
Is it? Three months? Yeah?
Speaker 1 (17:00):
And you're leading a show on Netflix. You're right, You're
okay right now, you're a little busy, Like, let's settle down.
Speaker 2 (17:05):
I can't lead three months.
Speaker 1 (17:07):
We're good, we'll work that out later. What I love
about this show too, is and so many shows right now,
there's like a rise in inclusive content right like Heartstopper
and overcompensating in this and you're just seeing more and
more of it, which I think is so great because
(17:28):
the stories are great, Like it all begins with a
great story for sure, and I love that we're getting
quality content more and more and more. Do you feel
like as an actor, as an artist that the industry
is kinder to you in this day and age being
an outgay man and being a person who deserves and
wants to seat at the table. Do you feel like
(17:49):
the change.
Speaker 2 (17:50):
I mean I feel it's sort of night and day.
I mean, I started acting when I was ten, and
you know, as I was aware I was gay, like
so early, and I think growing up, I seeing the
industry and seeing how the landscape of it was sort
of like if you're gay, like you need to move
(18:12):
somewhere else, You're never gonna work again, et cetera. So
growing up, I had such fear surrounding this where I'm like,
it's gonna hit a point where it's like I'm very
clockable as a gay person and they're gonna start being like,
we can't hire him. And I remember having conversations of
like even playing gay characters, there was this sort of
(18:34):
trope of like once you do it, like that's it.
Like you're sort of in this box where like you
can only play gay characters. And there aren't a lot
of gay projects or a lot of times there's like
not funding behind them, and it's like, it's so crazy
to be in a time where there's like high quality,
good content about gay people, Like for me to be
(18:58):
on this show is just so crazy. Thinking back, like
I was so afraid of being like an out gay
person in the entertainment industry and to have an opportunity
like this is like really not wasted on me. I
know how wild it is and what a special opportunity
it is. I'm just very grateful obviously, like there's still
(19:21):
plenty of progress to be made, but yeah, as of now,
I'm like it is. It's exciting that there there seemed
to be more and more opportunities for people.
Speaker 1 (19:32):
I think that's really cool. I don't know about you,
but over the course of my career, I sometimes felt
like I had to work harder than some of my
peers to prove myself because I'm a gay man, and
like I needed to be looked at in the same way,
and I didn't want to be overlooked or not looked
at because of that. Did you feel that coming up?
Speaker 2 (19:50):
You know it's in a way yes, in a way no,
I think like a big part of it was like
trying to be person received as straight or someone that
they could buy as a straight person on a TV
show or in a movie or something. But I think
(20:11):
deep down, I like, whether it was right or wrong,
I sort of never felt like that was an option
for me. I'm like, at a certain point, it's like
everyone is gonna know and they're not I'm not gonna
be right for those types of parts and stuff. So
I feel like I had a good disconnection from that
where I'm like I was a little at peace just
(20:31):
knowing like I'm not gonna be Jennifer Lawrence's husband and
something like it's no one's buying it. It's not gonna happen,
and more developed like peace with that, but again, like
to be in a world now where there there's a
show like Boots for that I could be on. That's
that's just insane.
Speaker 1 (20:51):
Yeah, but so so needed, right, Like so needed.
Speaker 2 (20:55):
I was when I got the audition for it. I
read the pilot and I was like, I can't believe
this show is being made, let alone by Netflix. It
was like I connected with it so so intensely, and
it was one where when I read it, I'm like,
all right, I'm gonna really give it my all, Like
(21:17):
I'm gonna try as hard as I possibly can on
this one. And here we are.
Speaker 1 (21:24):
And opportunities like this don't come up a lot. They
just don't. So did that do that make you just
hold on to it extra tight? Like did it consume you?
Like I have to book this role? Like how do
you even go into something like this one. It's i mean,
such an epic moment in your career that could happen.
Speaker 2 (21:42):
Yeah, I mean, honestly, I did my first audition and
I didn't hear anything back for truly, like three months,
so I just sort of like letting go. I'm like,
I mean I felt the connection, but it's like for
a first audition, I've learned at this point, like just
do your best and just forget about it afterward, because truly,
(22:02):
like ninety nine percent of the time you don't hear
a word back and that just is what it is.
And when I got the callback, I was like, oh
my god, this is wow. Yes, like I'm I assumed
I had no shot at that because it's been three months.
But then yeah, it was a pretty quick but intense
audition experience after that callback, and I was getting very
(22:26):
attached to the whole thing. I'm like, after doing you know,
forty pages of auditions and stuff, Yeah, I was like
really really attached to it. It's also funny there's a
and I sent this to like our producers after I
booked the job, but there's a song hold On by
Wilson Phillips that sort of plays a part in the show.
(22:48):
And I've like have this very long history of like
loving that song. This is obviously humiliating, but I have
like a video of myself singing it in a CVS
when I'm like eighteen, I think, and it's like very strange.
I don't know why, but like once a year basically
(23:10):
my agent will like send me that and be like,
I still love this video of you.
Speaker 1 (23:15):
Haha.
Speaker 2 (23:16):
It's like been this recurring thing in my life and
when this happened, I'm like, there's some some weird universe
thing happening where I'm like I need to be a
part of this. So yeah, it was. It was. It
was tough not to get attached, but it worked out.
Speaker 1 (23:32):
So I will one hundred percent have to see that video.
Speaker 2 (23:34):
I'll show you. I'm wearing a really sad like shirt
with flowers on it, like I look on well, I
have blonde hair. Yeah it's a bad look.
Speaker 1 (23:45):
Oh my god, that's amazing. It was meant to be.
I mean, I don't believe in coincidence. I just don't.
I think that was somehow things aligning And you know,
what are the chances of that song that you sang
in CVS is suddenly a big part of this show.
Come on.
Speaker 2 (23:59):
It does make make you wonder, It definitely does.
Speaker 1 (24:03):
If there were to be a theme song to your life,
what would it be? Oh my god, we're in this
era of your life right now, what would you say
that is?
Speaker 2 (24:14):
That's like the hardest question I've ever heard. I have
some like classics that sort of stick with me that
are like very important to me. There's a song called
zurich Is Staying by Pavement that I like. For whatever reason,
I'm like, this is like just my song. I just
connect with it. I feel like it's like it's something
(24:35):
that I'm like, this sort of sounds like my personality
or something. And I have some Teagan and Sarah's songs
that are like core core, you know, me discovering my identity.
Like there's a song called nineteen by Teagan and Sarah
that's like my forever song. It was sort of like
the first thing that I heard and latched onto in
(24:58):
a very toxic way where I was like, this is
my personality. I have asymmetrical hair, like I'm alt, I'm Indie,
And it was like a huge part of my growing up.
So maybe those two I like those they're both like depressing.
Speaker 1 (25:13):
So you know what, they're good songs. Yes, they're good,
good artists, good songs. I love that.
Speaker 2 (25:18):
Do you have an answer?
Speaker 1 (25:19):
Do I have an answer? Oh? Got a song anthem?
An anthem for this moment in my life right now?
Oh god, it is a hard one. It is because
there are songs I love, right, I mean, okay, wow,
there are songs I love. But it doesn't mean they
would define me right now? You know what I mean?
And I think about that.
Speaker 2 (25:38):
Yeah, I'll think about it. I'll send you a real
answer later because those are both like not fun or
uplifting songs.
Speaker 1 (25:47):
So well, you got me thinking. You send me the
CVS video, I'll send you my answer later. It's a deal.
We're going to make it happen. But you're right. Music
is a big part of the show, and I love
the music in the show so much.
Speaker 2 (25:59):
When I saw it, I'm like, they spent some money
on these songs. It is like very good, very good
music sort of like becomes a character in the show. Again,
there's so many moments that while we were filming, they
truly felt like so intense and hard and it felt
(26:19):
so serious. And then watching the show. I'm like, oh,
that was like it's a joke. Like they're super light
and funny, and a lot of that is sort of
music bass, like they play these songs and it adds
this sort of comedic layer to the whole thing that
unfortunately we didn't know what's happening when we were filming.
(26:43):
I think all of us collectively, when we saw the show,
we're like, whoa. It's like the tone is so different
than what we thought we were making mm hm, which
is really fun for us. Like, I think you have
these expectations of what you're working on, and when you
see it and it's so different, it's like there's some
(27:03):
sort of relief to that. You're like, oh my god,
this is like a totally different show, and it's like
so fun and easy to watch and not what we
thought we were making.
Speaker 1 (27:13):
Yeah. Yeah, Yeah, there's a lot of pleasant surprises throughout
the entire show. You you have so many scenes that
are funny and light and gross at some point right
I'm not going to reveal what that is, but there's
some interesting things going on. But there's also a lot
of powerful and you know, raw in these moments that's
(27:35):
just like, oh, they just like strike something inside of you.
Was there a moment during the filming of this show
where even you got emotional, like it's just kind of
something hit you hard?
Speaker 2 (27:44):
Or oh yeah, I mean unfortunately, I guess they can't
give spoilers, but there are definitely moments in the show
where reading the scene, I'm like, I didn't it doesn't
necessarily play out in the show the way that's it's written,
just because for whatever reason, in that moment, you get
sort of like carried away, or it's it's yeah, strike
(28:06):
some sort of cord for you. I had a lot
of those moments, actually, yeah, And when we finished, I
was I remember when we wrapped, it was our last day,
and again, we just worked so hard, and the show
took like almost two years to finish because there was
a writers strike and we're in New Orleans and it's
(28:27):
like it's hot, and we all work every day, and
I think we're sort of like seeing that finish line,
it seemed like, oh, this is going to be such
a relief. And I remember when they they started wrapping
people on the last day and I was the only one.
I just started like hysterically crying. I never cry, like
it's just once I feel myself starting to cry, It's
(28:51):
like I shut off. I'm like, wow, I'm this is
so embarrassing. I'm crying. And then I just stopped crying,
but I was, I was weeping. That was probably the
most intense, It's like emotional reaction I had because like
such a such a huge experience for all of us,
and for it to be finishing was like it really
hit home for me.
Speaker 1 (29:11):
How badly do you want a season two?
Speaker 2 (29:13):
I will do anything, I'm telling you I will. I'll
do what needs to be done. Yeah, I'm hoping it's
gonna happen. That's what I'm telling myself.
Speaker 1 (29:23):
It's gonna happen. For sure. Are there things you're thinking
about that you want to see for yourself in season two?
Speaker 2 (29:28):
I mean sure there are like things I'm like, oh
that would be fun.
Speaker 1 (29:31):
Yeah, but it's one of them.
Speaker 2 (29:33):
Well see, it's gonna it's gonna be spoilers.
Speaker 1 (29:35):
Oh okay, okay.
Speaker 2 (29:36):
My dream. What I think would be like super cool
would be if they just did a full one eighty
and made it like zombies and they're like, now that
you've gone through boot camp, like you're prepared, and there's
like a zombie outbreak and we need the Marines to
like help us with the zombies.
Speaker 1 (29:56):
Oh going supernatural?
Speaker 2 (29:58):
Yes, okay, but it's never gonna happen.
Speaker 1 (30:01):
I'm here for it. I'm here for it all. Who
would be a dream guest star for you? You know what?
Speaker 2 (30:06):
Someone asked me this and I never answered.
Speaker 1 (30:10):
Like anyone that could pop in for an episode?
Speaker 2 (30:13):
Yeah, I was told I can't say Meryl Streep, and
I'm like, that would.
Speaker 1 (30:16):
Be why can't you say Meryl Streep?
Speaker 2 (30:18):
Well, they told me I could, and obviously that would
be incredible. Yeah, you know May Whitman my best friend.
I'd love to see her hop on there.
Speaker 1 (30:26):
M h from Parenthood. Yes, yes, that would be pretty epic.
That'd be a fun reunion.
Speaker 2 (30:30):
You know, I need to think. Let me think about that.
Okaybe I'll send that along with the CBS video.
Speaker 1 (30:35):
Okay, So you have a lot of sund man, I know.
Speaker 2 (30:37):
So there's too many people I can't I can't choose.
Speaker 1 (30:40):
Okay, fair enough, fair enough you. I mean you've done
so much already in your career between Parenthood I just
mentioned and thirteen reasons why in this and uh you
know other amazing credits. Did you ever think you'd be
right here where you are at this point in your life,
like you've had what people would consider a dream career.
Speaker 2 (30:58):
Yeah, I will say I am. I'm extremely lucky. I
think that I felt very comfortable sort of playing smaller
parts and things, and that is what I've always done.
And I think to be like the lead of a
show like this was something that I never saw for myself,
(31:19):
and I was very comfortable with that. I'm like, it
just doesn't you know, I've done it long enough, it's
never happened, and I'm like it seems nerve wracking and
stressful and I'm like, I'm sort of at peace with
with where I'm at. But when this happened again major
imposters syndrome, but was like a huge learning experience for me.
(31:40):
And ultimately, no, I cannot believe that I'm here, like
doing any of the doing an interview about this show,
like it's it's pretty it's pretty wild, like I'm some
random gay kid from Kentucky. Literally, so yeah, I oh
my god. Yeah, extremely there's like I'm any other person
(32:03):
sitting there in Kentucky. So yeah, to be here is
pretty pretty crazy.
Speaker 1 (32:07):
So is there something when you think about the next
ten years of your career A genre, a project, a
franchise that you would be like, God, I'd be so
cool to be a part of.
Speaker 2 (32:17):
Yeah. I mean I think my well one thing was
like to be on drag Race, which I did a
while ago. That was like the sort of my pinnacle
career aspiration. Outside of that, I have this desire to
be in like a cool, good horror movie. Like for me,
nothing like hits as hard as just like a good,
(32:41):
suspenseful horror movie.
Speaker 1 (32:43):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (32:44):
And it's like I feel like there's like one or
two a year that are like really good, and I
would love to be in one just for fun.
Speaker 1 (32:51):
Are you a huge horror fan?
Speaker 2 (32:53):
I am, Yeah, but I also acknowledge like the majority
of it is is unwatchable. Yeah, but like when it's
when there's a really good one, like nothing gets to
be more excited.
Speaker 1 (33:03):
I feel like you need to be in a Scream.
Speaker 2 (33:07):
Listen your your lips, what do they say to God's Ears?
I'll do it because.
Speaker 1 (33:12):
They take all of these really relevant pop culture people
and the show is going to be huge, and I
feel like once that comes out, especially, you got to
be in Scream. What do we on eight, Scream make
coming No Scream seven is coming out. Yeah, you gotta
be in screaming, so make it happen there.
Speaker 2 (33:26):
Thank you, thank you so much. One of my co
stars from thirteen Reasons why he did that. He'd went
from our show and did a scream movie. Who remind
me his name is Dylan Minnette. He's now a rock star.
Speaker 1 (33:37):
Yep, so yep, Yeah, it can happen. Even if it's
the opening kill. That's pretty iconic.
Speaker 2 (33:41):
That's even that's like the ultimate gift.
Speaker 1 (33:44):
I mean, you could be the next three burying more
opening kill.
Speaker 2 (33:46):
Listen. I'll once again, I'll take it.
Speaker 1 (33:50):
We're making a lot happen to that.
Speaker 2 (33:51):
I know it's true.
Speaker 1 (33:52):
I feel really good about it. I feel really good
about it, Miles. I know what I got out of
the show, but being so close to it, like, what
is one message you hope people walk away from, you
know after watching Boots?
Speaker 2 (34:11):
Yeah, I mean I sort of touched on this already,
but I think the core of the show is sort
of about people coming together from different places and sort
of letting their walls down and finding a middle ground
where they can connect as people. And again I already
kind of said this but I think that the show
(34:32):
is like it's sort of viewed through a queer lens,
but ultimately, like the story's really not about Cameron's sexuality
or him being gay. It's like really about self discovery.
And there's a part in the first episode sort of
a spoiler but where there's a line about Cameron's like,
(34:53):
I'm the only one who has to hide, and the
response is like, you think you're the only person here
who's hiding something. I think that everyone there has something
that they're scared of people finding out about them, and
scared of how they'll be perceived or if they'll be
sort of put in some sort of box or othered.
And I think that that's like a really powerful message
(35:17):
that the show sort of touches on, is like we
all have something like that, and when that's taken away,
especially in a place like boot camp where you're being
taught like you only have each other, it's literally life
or death at a certain point, sort of putting all
those things aside and being like, all right, we're people.
(35:38):
We all want the same thing, which is like to
be okay and to sit at home and watch TV
or whatever and just have a nice life and I
think the show does a really good job of sort
of portraying that, like people just coming together and seeing
each other as people as opposed to any of our
our beliefs or our actuality or any of these other things.
Speaker 1 (36:02):
Yeah. Yeah, I think that's one really powerful message for sure,
and there's there's so many more. And that's one of
the many reasons why I love this show. I think
people can get so much out of it no matter
what walk of life you come from, which is a
really powerful thing when you can relate to what you're
watching in some sort of way. So I couldn't love
that more, all right, Miles, as we wrap up, the
(36:23):
name of the show, right, it's called I've never said
this before, so you can see here on the copy.
And I started this show and that question because I
do a lot of red carpets and sit downs with
people in junkets, which you know you're no stranger too,
and they're so quick. So I like bringing people on
and having more of a real conversation where we can
(36:46):
learn more about you and where artists have the chance
to say something that's different or special to them or
personal or whatever that question means to them. So is
there anything today that you can think of that you've
never said before that you want to share.
Speaker 2 (37:02):
All right, well, I thought about this. Mine is like
not meaningful or anything whatsoever. I'll start was something that
I have said before, which is that this happened like
what five days ago. I woke up at like seven
thirty in the morning to banging on my front door.
My dogs are screaming, and I like, go to the
(37:23):
front door, and there's a cop at my door and
I open it and he's like, I'm a detective from
the LAPD. I'm assuming my sister's been murdered or my mom.
I'm like, I don't know why they would be here.
And he's like, oh, are you the owner of this
type of car. I'm like yeah, and he's like we
(37:43):
found it like at an abandoned house. And I look
on the street. I'm like, yeah, the car, it's not there,
and he's like, yeah, we someone robbed a store and
we tracked them on ring cameras to this house and
this car was in the driveway and we ran the
place and it came back to you. And I'm like, yeah,
that's that is my car. Like, I what do we do?
(38:07):
And they're like well, we can just take you over
to get the car, like if you have the key.
So I'm I'm truly frazzled. I like, I'm like, I
need a moment. The cop tells me to wash my face.
He was like, you take you can wash your face.
Do what you need to do. Like all right, So
I go inside, put like clothes on, and go over
(38:28):
and pick up my car. And sure enough, it was
just sitting in this this driveway and it was empty,
like they had stolen everything out of the car. But
I had the car, which is all I cared about.
And I guess the thing that I've never said before
is that I some part of me is grateful because
the car has truly never been so clean. It's like immaculate,
(38:53):
like they took everything, and it's like I thought I
would feel like scared knowing someone had been in it,
and I'm like, I couldn't be happier. It's spotless in there.
Speaker 1 (39:05):
So are you inviting people to steal more of your things?
Speaker 2 (39:09):
Sure? Yeah, the classic thing where I'm like, wow, I
didn't care about anything in the car, Like I literally
don't care that any of it's gone, and that I
guess that's the thing I've never said before is I'm
grateful that it was taken and returned.
Speaker 1 (39:25):
Okay, yes, you know you could clean up from a
car wash.
Speaker 2 (39:29):
It's true. I've now learned. I'm like, I will never
put anything in this car because it feels so much
better being empty.
Speaker 1 (39:35):
Good for you. What an eye opening, life changing experience.
Speaker 2 (39:40):
Wait, the final detail I will say is that it
actually wasn't empty, because like a few hours later, I
was parked and I sort of leaned over and I
saw like something glinting from the passenger seat, and I
looked down and the robber had left their cell phone
and a receipt from Smart and Final where they bought beer.
(40:03):
And so yeah, I've literally I've been like calling the
police being trying to tell them that I have evidence,
but they won't answer. But I have their phone and
a receipt and a clean car and a very clean car.
Speaker 1 (40:14):
Yes, it is your year. Good for you, Thank you,
good for you. Oh my god, Myles, I cannot have
enjoyed this conversation more same.
Speaker 2 (40:22):
Thank you for having me.
Speaker 1 (40:24):
Thank you for hanging out, Thank you for the show.
Everybody watch it.
Speaker 2 (40:28):
October ninth, Yes, October ninth, on Netflix boots.
Speaker 1 (40:35):
Here we go, watch it. Let's go, all right, my man?
Until next time?
Speaker 2 (40:38):
All right, well, thank you.
Speaker 1 (40:40):
I've Never Said This Before is hosted by Me, Tommy Didario.
This podcast is executive produced by Andrew Publisi at iHeartRadio
and by me Tommy, with editing by Joshua Colaudney. I've
Never Said This Before is part of the Elvis Duran
podcast Network on iHeart Podcasts. For more, rate review and
subscribe to our show and if you liked this episode,
(41:03):
tell your friends. Until next time, I'm Tommy Diderio
Hey guys, welcome to I've never said this before with
me Tommy di Dario. There are so many great shows
to watch at any given time, right, but sometimes a
really special one comes along that you can't stop thinking about.
Today's guest he is in what I am calling one
of the best shows of the year, and his performance
will make you laugh and cry and all of the
(00:23):
amazing things in between. The brilliant Miles Heiser joins my
show today who You Know and Love from Parenthood, Thirteen
Reasons Why I Love Simon and now the very bingeworthy
series Boots, which is coming out on Netflix on October ninth. So.
In Boots, Miles plays Cameron Cope. He is a bully
gay high school student who, with his best friend kind
of on a whim, joins the Marines to find some
(00:45):
direction in his life. The problem is he joined the
Marines in the nineties when it was illegal to be
gay in the Marines. So the series is based off
a very powerful true story and it explores so many themes.
I mean, friendship is finding your place in a very
difficult world. I am calling it now. Boots is going
to soar to number one within twenty four hours of
(01:07):
it being released. I'm even surprised words are coming out
of my mouth, to be honest, because I don't know.
I feel quite speechless when I think of how powerful
Miles performance was in this incredible story. So let's let
him find the words for me, and let's see if
today we can get Miles to say something that he
has never said before. Miles, how you doing today?
Speaker 2 (01:32):
I am good. I'm a little nervous, but I'm doing well.
Speaker 1 (01:35):
Don't be nervous. Although you did tell me it's your
first podcast, it is.
Speaker 2 (01:38):
Yes, I'm worried I'll say something unforgivable, but I'm curious
to find out what it is that he is say.
Speaker 1 (01:47):
Yeah, me too. To podcasts freak you out? Like does
long form generally freak you out?
Speaker 2 (01:51):
Yeah, I think it's the long form. Yeah, of it
not being said, I love podcasts. It's like all I
listen to, so there's a thrill to being on one
as well.
Speaker 1 (02:01):
Well. I am very honored you chose this one.
Speaker 2 (02:04):
Yes, thank you for having that.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
I am so psyched to have you. I was telling you,
I'm such a fan of Boots. I got to see it,
I guess now. Six weeks ago I watched it. So
it's been terrible because I haven't been able to talk
about it with that.
Speaker 2 (02:15):
Right, honestly, same. I think I saw it for the
first time like six weeks ago, and yeah, I have
no one to tell. I'm like it exists. I swear
it's coming out soon.
Speaker 1 (02:26):
It's unbelievable. It is such a special project. I've been
telling everybody, like, when you see it, it's it's going
to be one of your favorite shows of the year.
Speaker 2 (02:34):
Oh my gosh, Well I hope that's true. I'm we're
all so excited we started, Like it's been almost three
years now since we started, so it's it's very surreal
that it's like it's actually coming out. Like, I'm so
so excited, and I've seen it too, and it's I'm
just so proud of it and excited to see what
the reaction is.
Speaker 1 (02:55):
In your character. Man, he's he's so much fun to
watch his evolution. Right. So you play Cameron aka Cope, Yes,
and he enlists in the Marines with his best friend.
Speaker 2 (03:06):
That's true.
Speaker 1 (03:07):
He has a secret, right, he's gay, yes, And you
can't be gay in the nineties in the Marines, it's illegal.
Speaker 2 (03:16):
Right, That is true.
Speaker 1 (03:17):
So it's a very interesting story and you are, I mean,
you are the face of this series. Like, how does
it all feel. We're a few days a head of
the release and it's your baby, I mean, is it
a wild feeling?
Speaker 2 (03:31):
Yeah, it's it's very very crazy. I've been acting since
i was ten, you know, twenty years now, and I'm
very comfortable in all the roles I've played before. I'm
usually like a smaller character. There's this sort of disconnection
where you're like, there's not as much pressure on you
because I'm like, if people like it or they don't, like,
(03:53):
I'm such a small part of this thing that it's
I don't feel that that stress about the reaction into it.
And this is definitely a very different experience. I'm like
praying that someone will like it. I'm like, it feels
very very precious to me, but to all of us.
It's sort of a weird, weird show where typically everyone
(04:17):
has scenes separate from each other, and so you have
days where you're not working, you're not there all the time,
and the show is like, if you don't see us,
you can guarantee we were still there. It was like
every scene, we were all there, no matter what. So
we just spent so much time on it and so
much time together, so I think it just feels very
(04:38):
close to all of us and we hope people enjoy it.
Speaker 1 (04:43):
Do you spiral ahead of something like this, like are
you up at night? Do you have anxiety? Are you
able to be like? It will be what it will be?
I am not mistay and calm.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
You know, I'll be honest. Typically I'm like super calm
and not anxious, And this is definitely the first time
for me where I'm like genuinely anxious about it, but
sort of in a fun way. Since I saw the show,
I'm like, I love it so much and I think
that people will really like it if they watch it,
(05:13):
and so there's like a sense of calm there. It's
more excitement where I'm like, I'm so excited for people
to see it because I think that it's the show
when you watch it is very different than it reads
on paper, like it's it's very light and fun and heartwarming,
and I think that's sort of a different take on
(05:33):
the classic like boot camp or military story. So I
hope that people give it a chance and will end
up really liking it and feeling uplifted by the end,
and yeah.
Speaker 1 (05:46):
It's a really different kind of coming of age story, right,
and all the different characters in it are going through
their own journeys of trying to figure out who they
are in a really difficult world. And I think that's
something we all want. And sure, I imagine doing a
role like this and playing this character as someone who
went through your own journey and is sitting here as
(06:06):
an out gay man today maybe was cathartic or healing
in a way, Like did it feel like that?
Speaker 2 (06:14):
Yeah? I mean I feel like for queer people, it's
growing up. For a lot of us, at least myself included,
it's like your entire youth is spent like obsessing over
this thing and this fear of people finding out and
how people are going to react, and it's such a
part of our lives and our psychees that it's like
(06:36):
it's very easy to go back to that as someone
that's sort of passed that phase because it's just drilled
into my brain. So there is something very cathartic about
going back and sort of reportraying that because it is
still such a huge part of me. I think the
thing that I love about Cameron and this show is
(06:57):
that his journey is not really about discovering his sexuality.
I think that's something that he knows and is comfortable
with and has his best friend who supports him. And
ultimately his arc is really about sort of growing and
discovering new things about himself. But obviously there's this conundrum
(07:18):
of the price of that is sort of hiding this
other part of himself, which I think is really interesting
and not something we see too often.
Speaker 1 (07:27):
And I think there's something really interesting about your character
and worrying about feeling exposed in a group of these
like macho dudes right in Marine boot Camp. Like, that's
something that I think a lot of people who go
through their own journey discovering who the arc and experience.
I remember being in high school and I did all
the plays, and I was in theater and also in athletes.
(07:49):
It was a really weird balance to strike between the
two groups. But I remember in our theater like I
would be rehearsing and I used to do hip hop
and dance and teaching my co stars or my castmates
how to dance. And the football team will come in
and start training and doing runs up and down the
steps of our theater gym, and I'm like, there, I
am like teaching a dance to people, Like I feel
(08:12):
so exposed. Yes, I wasn't even out then, you know,
like it's just sure. I felt a lot of those
moments in this Yeah.
Speaker 2 (08:18):
I think that's something I really connect with. Growing up,
I was like raised by women. I had a single mother,
a sister, my grandmother was I was sort of surrounded
by women, and I think I developed this sort of
anxiety around boys because I was afraid that they were
gonna make fun of me or see something in me
(08:39):
that was different and therefore sort of other me. And
I think that I really avoided a lot of like
male friendships growing up because of that, And I think
a lot of a lot of queer people have that
same experience. I think that's what's so interesting sort of
about this show is that Cameron is put in this
(09:01):
place where he suddenly that has to go away because
all these barriers and walls he's built up to protect
himself are just out the window. It's like, you're here,
you have to do these things, you have to fail,
And I think that in the process of that, he
ends up actually discovering all these things about himself and
things that he didn't know he was capable of, And
(09:23):
in some weird way, I like sort of had that
while we were filming with this group of boys, Like
we all come from literally like different parts of the country,
very different backgrounds and people that I think maybe I
wouldn't have thought that I would connect with necessarily. And
it was like such a beautiful experience the way we
(09:44):
all came together and bonded so closely and sort of
put aside all these preconceived notions about each other and
our backgrounds and sort of just connected on a human level.
And I feel like that's really the message of the
show as well.
Speaker 1 (10:00):
And you have now an entire fraternity of brothers that's
a big group of guys.
Speaker 2 (10:05):
And one sister, Angus O'Brien my my bestie.
Speaker 1 (10:10):
Everybody is so good in this. I mean, there's so
much I want to say, but I'm not saying.
Speaker 2 (10:15):
Oh right, we can't.
Speaker 1 (10:16):
But here's something for you. What was the scariest part
of doing a show like this?
Speaker 2 (10:21):
You know this is this is easy for me to
answer sort of a spoiler, but there's like an element
of boot camp that involves being high up in the air,
and I have like an extreme fear of heights, not
like acute, like I can't do it like a full
(10:41):
like Maury Povich running through the hallway. Yes, like very scared.
And so we had to do this and I talked
to someone ahead of time and they're like, well, we'll
build like a miniature. We can like fake it with
the angles, like do not worry about it. And of course,
worse I get there, there's no miniature. It's a full size.
(11:03):
Like I actually have a bone to pick with production
because on camera it looks like, oh, it's yeah, it's
kind of high up, like in person, it was so
tall it was very scary. Unfortunately, we had a stunt coordinator, Jade,
who did like circ Disolay, was a tightrope walker, and
(11:24):
he like seriously walked me through it. We had a
rehearsal day where I was like, I literally can't do it,
and he was like, we're gonna do it, and we's
sure enough. Like he got me there and I was
able to do it on the day. That was definitely
the scariest part for me, but I knew in advance.
I was dreading that the whole time. I'm like I
(11:45):
can't believe I have to climb this this.
Speaker 1 (11:48):
Thing, but you did it.
Speaker 2 (11:49):
I did it. Yeah, it was very sweet. The boys
were like they were all there at the rehearsal and
cheering me on. It was very very much mirrored the show.
Speaker 1 (11:59):
That's really yeah, and good on you. Not only do
you have to like act to make it look really believable,
but you're doing things that genuinely freak you the hell out.
Speaker 2 (12:07):
Yeah, that's like my number one off limits. Cannot do it,
but I did it.
Speaker 1 (12:13):
So you're ready in your next role to skydive.
Speaker 2 (12:15):
I'm not okay, Yeah, I'm not gonna do it, but
you know I'm I'm at peace with where what I
did and where I'm at now.
Speaker 1 (12:23):
Good for you. What surprised you the most about playing
this role and doing the show? Like, was there any
point during filming where you were just like, wow, that
was not what I expected, or I feel a certain
way I didn't expect to feel, or anything like that.
Speaker 2 (12:37):
Yeah, I mean there's so many aspects of it, honestly
getting there. When we first arrived in New Orleans where
we filmed, I had like pretty extreme imposter syndrome. I'm like,
I don't belong here. I'm scared like Vera Farmiga is
probably somewhere nearby. I should not be anywhere near her.
(13:01):
And I think through the process, I think we all
had this again because we were all there all day
every day. I didn't think I would be able to
work that much and to be to not have a
complete breakdown, and it was like that was something I learned,
was like, wow, I can actually do this thing that
I've never done before and never thought that I could do.
(13:25):
And another thing that was was really cool for me
is we had three military advisors on set with us
the whole time, and they were sort of they helped
us train a little bit before we started, and then
each week, like or not week, but each episode, whatever
we were doing in the forthcoming episode, we like have
a day with them where they walked us through it
(13:47):
and trained us, and then they were there on set
every single day to like to watch and make sure
that every there's it's the Marines are so meticulous. There's
like the belt has to be in a certain place,
and there are all these things that they were like
they were there to monitor. But that being said, I
(14:08):
think especially for like a gay kid, I have these
perceptions about sort of masculine worlds. I think for me,
when I think of the military, it feels sort of
hyper masculine in some type of way, and I think
you just, without knowing, sort of develop a perception of
that world. And it was so enlightening to have spent
(14:31):
so much time with them and to really connect with
them and see like all these things that I might
have thought about marines was so not true. And I
think we both sort of had this learning experience from
each other where like we come from such different worlds
and were able to come together and learn a lot
from each other and about each other. And it was
(14:53):
really a very powerful experience for me.
Speaker 1 (14:57):
And you got yelled at quite a bit in the show.
Speaker 2 (15:00):
It's funny watching it. I'm like, oh, it's funny, like
hearing them scream at us. But yeah, when we were
there pretty quickly it was like, oh boy, there's yeah
more screaming.
Speaker 1 (15:11):
Did you go home and like heard that in your dreams?
Just being yelled at.
Speaker 2 (15:15):
I'm sure I was checking out when I went home.
We would have like two hours before you had to
be asleep. I was watching Rock of Love. That's how
checked out. I was, right, I don't know what that
is that's on you?
Speaker 1 (15:29):
Oh man, do I need to google it?
Speaker 2 (15:31):
Yeah? Okay, yeah, it's like an early I guess early
two thousands MTV dating show with Brett Michaels, and it's
it's just it's a disaster.
Speaker 1 (15:42):
Okay, yeah, but one that you go back to over
and over.
Speaker 2 (15:45):
I was just watching it. I'm like, I don't know
what I'm doing. I would order pizza, watch go to sleep.
Speaker 1 (15:52):
Why not something maybe a little more current, like Love
Island or.
Speaker 2 (15:56):
You know, that's a good question. I'm a huge reality
TV like I watch. I watch a lot of them.
I did just watch Love Island, but I don't know.
For some reason, I had started Rock of Love before
getting to New Orleans, and so I just I kept
kept kicking on that.
Speaker 1 (16:14):
Okay, so you're a big Like Housewives fan.
Speaker 2 (16:17):
I'm not believe it or not. I love like the
competition reality shows specifically. I never watched Real Housewives, but
I did watch Love Island.
Speaker 1 (16:26):
But did you like the competition shows before you did
a show about being in the Marines? Oh yeah, okay, Oh.
Speaker 2 (16:32):
My gosh, yeah, this is this is deep deep in
my history. I started watching Big Brother when I was
like ten or something, and yeah, I've always been very
into reality competition shows.
Speaker 1 (16:45):
I like that. Yeah, I like that. Well, maybe one
day you'll be on one.
Speaker 2 (16:48):
Trust me, I have this this horrible little fantasy of
being on Big Brother one day. But I'm like, I can't.
I can't do it, Like, nope, No, three what is it?
Is it? Three months? Yeah?
Speaker 1 (17:00):
And you're leading a show on Netflix. You're right, You're
okay right now, you're a little busy, Like, let's settle down.
Speaker 2 (17:05):
I can't lead three months.
Speaker 1 (17:07):
We're good, we'll work that out later. What I love
about this show too, is and so many shows right now,
there's like a rise in inclusive content right like Heartstopper
and overcompensating in this and you're just seeing more and
more of it, which I think is so great because
(17:28):
the stories are great, Like it all begins with a
great story for sure, and I love that we're getting
quality content more and more and more. Do you feel
like as an actor, as an artist that the industry
is kinder to you in this day and age being
an outgay man and being a person who deserves and
wants to seat at the table. Do you feel like
(17:49):
the change.
Speaker 2 (17:50):
I mean I feel it's sort of night and day.
I mean, I started acting when I was ten, and
you know, as I was aware I was gay, like
so early, and I think growing up, I seeing the
industry and seeing how the landscape of it was sort
of like if you're gay, like you need to move
(18:12):
somewhere else, You're never gonna work again, et cetera. So
growing up, I had such fear surrounding this where I'm like,
it's gonna hit a point where it's like I'm very
clockable as a gay person and they're gonna start being like,
we can't hire him. And I remember having conversations of
like even playing gay characters, there was this sort of
(18:34):
trope of like once you do it, like that's it.
Like you're sort of in this box where like you
can only play gay characters. And there aren't a lot
of gay projects or a lot of times there's like
not funding behind them, and it's like, it's so crazy
to be in a time where there's like high quality,
good content about gay people, Like for me to be
(18:58):
on this show is just so crazy. Thinking back, like
I was so afraid of being like an out gay
person in the entertainment industry and to have an opportunity
like this is like really not wasted on me. I
know how wild it is and what a special opportunity
it is. I'm just very grateful obviously, like there's still
(19:21):
plenty of progress to be made, but yeah, as of now,
I'm like it is. It's exciting that there there seemed
to be more and more opportunities for people.
Speaker 1 (19:32):
I think that's really cool. I don't know about you,
but over the course of my career, I sometimes felt
like I had to work harder than some of my
peers to prove myself because I'm a gay man, and
like I needed to be looked at in the same way,
and I didn't want to be overlooked or not looked
at because of that. Did you feel that coming up?
Speaker 2 (19:50):
You know it's in a way yes, in a way no,
I think like a big part of it was like
trying to be person received as straight or someone that
they could buy as a straight person on a TV
show or in a movie or something. But I think
(20:11):
deep down, I like, whether it was right or wrong,
I sort of never felt like that was an option
for me. I'm like, at a certain point, it's like
everyone is gonna know and they're not I'm not gonna
be right for those types of parts and stuff. So
I feel like I had a good disconnection from that
where I'm like I was a little at peace just
(20:31):
knowing like I'm not gonna be Jennifer Lawrence's husband and
something like it's no one's buying it. It's not gonna happen,
and more developed like peace with that, but again, like
to be in a world now where there there's a
show like Boots for that I could be on. That's
that's just insane.
Speaker 1 (20:51):
Yeah, but so so needed, right, Like so needed.
Speaker 2 (20:55):
I was when I got the audition for it. I
read the pilot and I was like, I can't believe
this show is being made, let alone by Netflix. It
was like I connected with it so so intensely, and
it was one where when I read it, I'm like,
all right, I'm gonna really give it my all, Like
(21:17):
I'm gonna try as hard as I possibly can on
this one. And here we are.
Speaker 1 (21:24):
And opportunities like this don't come up a lot. They
just don't. So did that do that make you just
hold on to it extra tight? Like did it consume you?
Like I have to book this role? Like how do
you even go into something like this one. It's i mean,
such an epic moment in your career that could happen.
Speaker 2 (21:42):
Yeah, I mean, honestly, I did my first audition and
I didn't hear anything back for truly, like three months,
so I just sort of like letting go. I'm like,
I mean I felt the connection, but it's like for
a first audition, I've learned at this point, like just
do your best and just forget about it afterward, because truly,
(22:02):
like ninety nine percent of the time you don't hear
a word back and that just is what it is.
And when I got the callback, I was like, oh
my god, this is wow. Yes, like I'm I assumed
I had no shot at that because it's been three months.
But then yeah, it was a pretty quick but intense
audition experience after that callback, and I was getting very
(22:26):
attached to the whole thing. I'm like, after doing you know,
forty pages of auditions and stuff, Yeah, I was like
really really attached to it. It's also funny there's a
and I sent this to like our producers after I
booked the job, but there's a song hold On by
Wilson Phillips that sort of plays a part in the show.
(22:48):
And I've like have this very long history of like
loving that song. This is obviously humiliating, but I have
like a video of myself singing it in a CVS
when I'm like eighteen, I think, and it's like very strange.
I don't know why, but like once a year basically
(23:10):
my agent will like send me that and be like,
I still love this video of you.
Speaker 1 (23:15):
Haha.
Speaker 2 (23:16):
It's like been this recurring thing in my life and
when this happened, I'm like, there's some some weird universe
thing happening where I'm like I need to be a
part of this. So yeah, it was. It was. It
was tough not to get attached, but it worked out.
Speaker 1 (23:32):
So I will one hundred percent have to see that video.
Speaker 2 (23:34):
I'll show you. I'm wearing a really sad like shirt
with flowers on it, like I look on well, I
have blonde hair. Yeah it's a bad look.
Speaker 1 (23:45):
Oh my god, that's amazing. It was meant to be.
I mean, I don't believe in coincidence. I just don't.
I think that was somehow things aligning And you know,
what are the chances of that song that you sang
in CVS is suddenly a big part of this show.
Come on.
Speaker 2 (23:59):
It does make make you wonder, It definitely does.
Speaker 1 (24:03):
If there were to be a theme song to your life,
what would it be? Oh my god, we're in this
era of your life right now, what would you say
that is?
Speaker 2 (24:14):
That's like the hardest question I've ever heard. I have
some like classics that sort of stick with me that
are like very important to me. There's a song called
zurich Is Staying by Pavement that I like. For whatever reason,
I'm like, this is like just my song. I just
connect with it. I feel like it's like it's something
(24:35):
that I'm like, this sort of sounds like my personality
or something. And I have some Teagan and Sarah's songs
that are like core core, you know, me discovering my identity.
Like there's a song called nineteen by Teagan and Sarah
that's like my forever song. It was sort of like
the first thing that I heard and latched onto in
(24:58):
a very toxic way where I was like, this is
my personality. I have asymmetrical hair, like I'm alt, I'm Indie,
And it was like a huge part of my growing up.
So maybe those two I like those they're both like depressing.
Speaker 1 (25:13):
So you know what, they're good songs. Yes, they're good,
good artists, good songs. I love that.
Speaker 2 (25:18):
Do you have an answer?
Speaker 1 (25:19):
Do I have an answer? Oh? Got a song anthem?
An anthem for this moment in my life right now?
Oh god, it is a hard one. It is because
there are songs I love, right, I mean, okay, wow,
there are songs I love. But it doesn't mean they
would define me right now? You know what I mean?
And I think about that.
Speaker 2 (25:38):
Yeah, I'll think about it. I'll send you a real
answer later because those are both like not fun or
uplifting songs.
Speaker 1 (25:47):
So well, you got me thinking. You send me the
CVS video, I'll send you my answer later. It's a deal.
We're going to make it happen. But you're right. Music
is a big part of the show, and I love
the music in the show so much.
Speaker 2 (25:59):
When I saw it, I'm like, they spent some money
on these songs. It is like very good, very good
music sort of like becomes a character in the show. Again,
there's so many moments that while we were filming, they
truly felt like so intense and hard and it felt
(26:19):
so serious. And then watching the show. I'm like, oh,
that was like it's a joke. Like they're super light
and funny, and a lot of that is sort of
music bass, like they play these songs and it adds
this sort of comedic layer to the whole thing that
unfortunately we didn't know what's happening when we were filming.
(26:43):
I think all of us collectively, when we saw the show,
we're like, whoa. It's like the tone is so different
than what we thought we were making mm hm, which
is really fun for us. Like, I think you have
these expectations of what you're working on, and when you
see it and it's so different, it's like there's some
(27:03):
sort of relief to that. You're like, oh my god,
this is like a totally different show, and it's like
so fun and easy to watch and not what we
thought we were making.
Speaker 1 (27:13):
Yeah. Yeah, Yeah, there's a lot of pleasant surprises throughout
the entire show. You you have so many scenes that
are funny and light and gross at some point right
I'm not going to reveal what that is, but there's
some interesting things going on. But there's also a lot
of powerful and you know, raw in these moments that's
(27:35):
just like, oh, they just like strike something inside of you.
Was there a moment during the filming of this show
where even you got emotional, like it's just kind of
something hit you hard?
Speaker 2 (27:44):
Or oh yeah, I mean unfortunately, I guess they can't
give spoilers, but there are definitely moments in the show
where reading the scene, I'm like, I didn't it doesn't
necessarily play out in the show the way that's it's written,
just because for whatever reason, in that moment, you get
sort of like carried away, or it's it's yeah, strike
(28:06):
some sort of cord for you. I had a lot
of those moments, actually, yeah, And when we finished, I
was I remember when we wrapped, it was our last day,
and again, we just worked so hard, and the show
took like almost two years to finish because there was
a writers strike and we're in New Orleans and it's
(28:27):
like it's hot, and we all work every day, and
I think we're sort of like seeing that finish line,
it seemed like, oh, this is going to be such
a relief. And I remember when they they started wrapping
people on the last day and I was the only one.
I just started like hysterically crying. I never cry, like
it's just once I feel myself starting to cry, It's
(28:51):
like I shut off. I'm like, wow, I'm this is
so embarrassing. I'm crying. And then I just stopped crying,
but I was, I was weeping. That was probably the
most intense, It's like emotional reaction I had because like
such a such a huge experience for all of us,
and for it to be finishing was like it really
hit home for me.
Speaker 1 (29:11):
How badly do you want a season two?
Speaker 2 (29:13):
I will do anything, I'm telling you I will. I'll
do what needs to be done. Yeah, I'm hoping it's
gonna happen. That's what I'm telling myself.
Speaker 1 (29:23):
It's gonna happen. For sure. Are there things you're thinking
about that you want to see for yourself in season two?
Speaker 2 (29:28):
I mean sure there are like things I'm like, oh
that would be fun.
Speaker 1 (29:31):
Yeah, but it's one of them.
Speaker 2 (29:33):
Well see, it's gonna it's gonna be spoilers.
Speaker 1 (29:35):
Oh okay, okay.
Speaker 2 (29:36):
My dream. What I think would be like super cool
would be if they just did a full one eighty
and made it like zombies and they're like, now that
you've gone through boot camp, like you're prepared, and there's
like a zombie outbreak and we need the Marines to
like help us with the zombies.
Speaker 1 (29:56):
Oh going supernatural?
Speaker 2 (29:58):
Yes, okay, but it's never gonna happen.
Speaker 1 (30:01):
I'm here for it. I'm here for it all. Who
would be a dream guest star for you? You know what?
Speaker 2 (30:06):
Someone asked me this and I never answered.
Speaker 1 (30:10):
Like anyone that could pop in for an episode?
Speaker 2 (30:13):
Yeah, I was told I can't say Meryl Streep, and
I'm like, that would.
Speaker 1 (30:16):
Be why can't you say Meryl Streep?
Speaker 2 (30:18):
Well, they told me I could, and obviously that would
be incredible. Yeah, you know May Whitman my best friend.
I'd love to see her hop on there.
Speaker 1 (30:26):
M h from Parenthood. Yes, yes, that would be pretty epic.
That'd be a fun reunion.
Speaker 2 (30:30):
You know, I need to think. Let me think about that.
Okaybe I'll send that along with the CBS video.
Speaker 1 (30:35):
Okay, So you have a lot of sund man, I know.
Speaker 2 (30:37):
So there's too many people I can't I can't choose.
Speaker 1 (30:40):
Okay, fair enough, fair enough you. I mean you've done
so much already in your career between Parenthood I just
mentioned and thirteen reasons why in this and uh you
know other amazing credits. Did you ever think you'd be
right here where you are at this point in your life,
like you've had what people would consider a dream career.
Speaker 2 (30:58):
Yeah, I will say I am. I'm extremely lucky. I
think that I felt very comfortable sort of playing smaller
parts and things, and that is what I've always done.
And I think to be like the lead of a
show like this was something that I never saw for myself,
(31:19):
and I was very comfortable with that. I'm like, it
just doesn't you know, I've done it long enough, it's
never happened, and I'm like it seems nerve wracking and
stressful and I'm like, I'm sort of at peace with
with where I'm at. But when this happened again major
imposters syndrome, but was like a huge learning experience for me.
(31:40):
And ultimately, no, I cannot believe that I'm here, like
doing any of the doing an interview about this show,
like it's it's pretty it's pretty wild, like I'm some
random gay kid from Kentucky. Literally, so yeah, I oh
my god. Yeah, extremely there's like I'm any other person
(32:03):
sitting there in Kentucky. So yeah, to be here is
pretty pretty crazy.
Speaker 1 (32:07):
So is there something when you think about the next
ten years of your career A genre, a project, a
franchise that you would be like, God, I'd be so
cool to be a part of.
Speaker 2 (32:17):
Yeah. I mean I think my well one thing was
like to be on drag Race, which I did a
while ago. That was like the sort of my pinnacle
career aspiration. Outside of that, I have this desire to
be in like a cool, good horror movie. Like for me,
nothing like hits as hard as just like a good,
(32:41):
suspenseful horror movie.
Speaker 1 (32:43):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (32:44):
And it's like I feel like there's like one or
two a year that are like really good, and I
would love to be in one just for fun.
Speaker 1 (32:51):
Are you a huge horror fan?
Speaker 2 (32:53):
I am, Yeah, but I also acknowledge like the majority
of it is is unwatchable. Yeah, but like when it's
when there's a really good one, like nothing gets to
be more excited.
Speaker 1 (33:03):
I feel like you need to be in a Scream.
Speaker 2 (33:07):
Listen your your lips, what do they say to God's Ears?
I'll do it because.
Speaker 1 (33:12):
They take all of these really relevant pop culture people
and the show is going to be huge, and I
feel like once that comes out, especially, you got to
be in Scream. What do we on eight, Scream make
coming No Scream seven is coming out. Yeah, you gotta
be in screaming, so make it happen there.
Speaker 2 (33:26):
Thank you, thank you so much. One of my co
stars from thirteen Reasons why he did that. He'd went
from our show and did a scream movie. Who remind
me his name is Dylan Minnette. He's now a rock star.
Speaker 1 (33:37):
Yep, so yep, Yeah, it can happen. Even if it's
the opening kill. That's pretty iconic.
Speaker 2 (33:41):
That's even that's like the ultimate gift.
Speaker 1 (33:44):
I mean, you could be the next three burying more
opening kill.
Speaker 2 (33:46):
Listen. I'll once again, I'll take it.
Speaker 1 (33:50):
We're making a lot happen to that.
Speaker 2 (33:51):
I know it's true.
Speaker 1 (33:52):
I feel really good about it. I feel really good
about it, Miles. I know what I got out of
the show, but being so close to it, like, what
is one message you hope people walk away from, you
know after watching Boots?
Speaker 2 (34:11):
Yeah, I mean I sort of touched on this already,
but I think the core of the show is sort
of about people coming together from different places and sort
of letting their walls down and finding a middle ground
where they can connect as people. And again I already
kind of said this but I think that the show
(34:32):
is like it's sort of viewed through a queer lens,
but ultimately, like the story's really not about Cameron's sexuality
or him being gay. It's like really about self discovery.
And there's a part in the first episode sort of
a spoiler but where there's a line about Cameron's like,
(34:53):
I'm the only one who has to hide, and the
response is like, you think you're the only person here
who's hiding something. I think that everyone there has something
that they're scared of people finding out about them, and
scared of how they'll be perceived or if they'll be
sort of put in some sort of box or othered.
And I think that that's like a really powerful message
(35:17):
that the show sort of touches on, is like we
all have something like that, and when that's taken away,
especially in a place like boot camp where you're being
taught like you only have each other, it's literally life
or death at a certain point, sort of putting all
those things aside and being like, all right, we're people.
(35:38):
We all want the same thing, which is like to
be okay and to sit at home and watch TV
or whatever and just have a nice life and I
think the show does a really good job of sort
of portraying that, like people just coming together and seeing
each other as people as opposed to any of our
our beliefs or our actuality or any of these other things.
Speaker 1 (36:02):
Yeah. Yeah, I think that's one really powerful message for sure,
and there's there's so many more. And that's one of
the many reasons why I love this show. I think
people can get so much out of it no matter
what walk of life you come from, which is a
really powerful thing when you can relate to what you're
watching in some sort of way. So I couldn't love
that more, all right, Miles, as we wrap up, the
(36:23):
name of the show, right, it's called I've never said
this before, so you can see here on the copy.
And I started this show and that question because I
do a lot of red carpets and sit downs with
people in junkets, which you know you're no stranger too,
and they're so quick. So I like bringing people on
and having more of a real conversation where we can
(36:46):
learn more about you and where artists have the chance
to say something that's different or special to them or
personal or whatever that question means to them. So is
there anything today that you can think of that you've
never said before that you want to share.
Speaker 2 (37:02):
All right, well, I thought about this. Mine is like
not meaningful or anything whatsoever. I'll start was something that
I have said before, which is that this happened like
what five days ago. I woke up at like seven
thirty in the morning to banging on my front door.
My dogs are screaming, and I like, go to the
(37:23):
front door, and there's a cop at my door and
I open it and he's like, I'm a detective from
the LAPD. I'm assuming my sister's been murdered or my mom.
I'm like, I don't know why they would be here.
And he's like, oh, are you the owner of this
type of car. I'm like yeah, and he's like we
(37:43):
found it like at an abandoned house. And I look
on the street. I'm like, yeah, the car, it's not there,
and he's like, yeah, we someone robbed a store and
we tracked them on ring cameras to this house and
this car was in the driveway and we ran the
place and it came back to you. And I'm like, yeah,
that's that is my car. Like, I what do we do?
(38:07):
And they're like well, we can just take you over
to get the car, like if you have the key.
So I'm I'm truly frazzled. I like, I'm like, I
need a moment. The cop tells me to wash my face.
He was like, you take you can wash your face.
Do what you need to do. Like all right, So
I go inside, put like clothes on, and go over
(38:28):
and pick up my car. And sure enough, it was
just sitting in this this driveway and it was empty,
like they had stolen everything out of the car. But
I had the car, which is all I cared about.
And I guess the thing that I've never said before
is that I some part of me is grateful because
the car has truly never been so clean. It's like immaculate,
(38:53):
like they took everything, and it's like I thought I
would feel like scared knowing someone had been in it,
and I'm like, I couldn't be happier. It's spotless in there.
Speaker 1 (39:05):
So are you inviting people to steal more of your things?
Speaker 2 (39:09):
Sure? Yeah, the classic thing where I'm like, wow, I
didn't care about anything in the car, Like I literally
don't care that any of it's gone, and that I
guess that's the thing I've never said before is I'm
grateful that it was taken and returned.
Speaker 1 (39:25):
Okay, yes, you know you could clean up from a
car wash.
Speaker 2 (39:29):
It's true. I've now learned. I'm like, I will never
put anything in this car because it feels so much
better being empty.
Speaker 1 (39:35):
Good for you. What an eye opening, life changing experience.
Speaker 2 (39:40):
Wait, the final detail I will say is that it
actually wasn't empty, because like a few hours later, I
was parked and I sort of leaned over and I
saw like something glinting from the passenger seat, and I
looked down and the robber had left their cell phone
and a receipt from Smart and Final where they bought beer.
(40:03):
And so yeah, I've literally I've been like calling the
police being trying to tell them that I have evidence,
but they won't answer. But I have their phone and
a receipt and a clean car and a very clean car.
Speaker 1 (40:14):
Yes, it is your year. Good for you, Thank you,
good for you. Oh my god, Myles, I cannot have
enjoyed this conversation more same.
Speaker 2 (40:22):
Thank you for having me.
Speaker 1 (40:24):
Thank you for hanging out, Thank you for the show.
Everybody watch it.
Speaker 2 (40:28):
October ninth, Yes, October ninth, on Netflix boots.
Speaker 1 (40:35):
Here we go, watch it. Let's go, all right, my man?
Until next time?
Speaker 2 (40:38):
All right, well, thank you.
Speaker 1 (40:40):
I've Never Said This Before is hosted by Me, Tommy Didario.
This podcast is executive produced by Andrew Publisi at iHeartRadio
and by me Tommy, with editing by Joshua Colaudney. I've
Never Said This Before is part of the Elvis Duran
podcast Network on iHeart Podcasts. For more, rate review and
subscribe to our show and if you liked this episode,
(41:03):
tell your friends. Until next time, I'm Tommy Diderio
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