WHEN DID THE ACTING BUG BITE?

Jon Bon Jovi's first appearance on motion picture screens occurred during the 1989 YOUNG GUNS II where he had a walk-on "blink and you miss it" dialogue-free cameo. However, his experience on the set, his friendship with Young Guns star Emilio Estevez and the success of Blaze of Glory, Jon's Golden Globe Award-winning soundtrack for the film all converged to spark an interest in acting.

Rather than dive headfirst into the uncharted waters of Hollywood however, Jon carefully went about learning the craft of acting. For the past six years, Jon has been studying under the tutelage of legendary New York drama coach, Harold Guskin.

"I had no intention of ever getting into the movies, but I was driven by the music I wrote for Young Guns. The next thing I know, I win a Golden Globe, I'm nominated for an Oscar and performing at the Academy Awards. I'm looking out at the audience and I go: 'This doesn't suck'. So I wanted to do it again. The bug had bitten me."

"My first taste of film acting was on the set of Young Guns II, and what I saw was guys doing a job that allowed them to learn other disciplines that can then become their hobbies. I have to confess, that was the way I saw acting initially. All I ever knew how to do was sing and play guitar. I never went skiing, or horse-riding. Acting looked like a good way of finding some hobbies. But in the event, I realized this was something in itself that I really wanted to do, and wanted to do really well."

"It was the experience of working on the Young Guns II soundtrack that got me interest in acting. I saw having to learn things that have since become his hobbies - horseback riding, shooting, car racing, all kinds of stuff. And I realized that the only things I knew how to do in life were make records, tour and pack and unpack a suitcase. If I wasn't in a room with other musicians, I have no conversation to offer. I thought just maybe it was time to try and broaden my personality a little, and that acting might be a way to do it."

"I'd written the music for the film Young Guns II, and it turned out to be a surprising success. I won a Golden Globe and was nominated for an Academy Award. And I wanted to do it again. That was going to be my outlet. So I was getting scripts with the idea that I would be writing the songs. But eventually the scripts stopped coming, and I thought that if I took acting lessons, maybe I'd meet more movie people. So I took some lessons, and then a couple of years into that, I went on an audition. And eventually I got a role."

"I had no desire to act. I had too much respect for the medium. Just because I could sing in a rock band, I never thought I could act - you know, you have to learn the craft."
"I didn't want to think I could ever be an actor without knowing what the f*!#k I was doing, so I went to lessons and started reading the classic plays. You know, doing it properly."

"I thought maybe if I take an acting lesson, they'll show me some of the classic plays. I'd learn about Arthur Miller, Tennessee Williams, Sam Shepard plays, Beckett plays and I did."

"I was doing it for me, to try and make myself into a more rounded person. Because you wouldn't believe how little time I've spend alone in my life. Working with Harold, I felt like I was achieving something independently, just for myself. And what I've learnt as a result has influenced all other aspects of my life -- my personality, the songs that I write. That it's also brought me the possibility of a film career is just a lucky bonus."

"I look for things that are dialogue-driven and not just more bang for the buck. I'm much more interested in a hip script than a hit script."

On Shakespeare: "I won't say I won't because 10 years ago, I would have told you I've never do a movie. I've been offered Broadway plays. I've turned them down, but that doesn't mean I'll never do one."

"I like it a lot. You know, I never had any aspirations to be an actor. I'm a songwriter; this is what I do. The great difference is that you create the song so it's something I'll always do. But because 'Moonlight and Valentino' was such a good experience. I mean leave me on a set for four weeks with four women like that it was a lot of fun. All of them made it a great experience. I wanna do more."

On what kind of roles he's offered: "I get a bunch of stuff; I get offered some, I have to fight for some, and of course there are some I want that I have no shot at getting."

"That's the tough thing about indie films: there's no guarantee they'll get distribution. It's heartbreaking, but you move on. I was fortunate that my first job was 'Moonlight and Valentino' because it was a good experience. Perhaps, if it had been bad, I would have been like, 'F*** this, I have a good day job, I'm outta here.' I've had disappointments - 'The Man' not opening was one of them - and I've had bad as well as good experiences on set, but now I know acting's just like the music business: there's going to be ups and downs."

"Sleeping and eating have become hobbies. But I'm enjoying the idea of making movies immensely. It's an outlet for me that still gives me the opportunity to collaborate. Each take and every scene, all day, every day is, in fact, a collaboration very similar to that of a band. But the great difference is that I don't create it, I'm just a part of it.

"Making movies for me is a way of being artistic and creative, but not having all the responsibilities. Also, I'm still learning it. It's something new, yet it's in the arts and I feel I can be productive with it. I'm very open to trying it."
"I'm really learning as I go along"

HAS BEING "JON BON JOVI" HELPED OR HURT IN HOLLYWOOD?

With video rental shelves full of movies starring rock 'n' rollers and movie stars picking up the guitar to jam, the question arises: Can you do both? Jon Bon Jovi has been able to merge the two disciplines and with critical acclaim. But it wasn't easy.

"People think that you're doing it as something to keep you busy between touring, or that you won't take it seriously. There are too may talented actors out there who'd rather be in your shoes and every day I have to try to convince somebody that I'm not just fooling around, that I really do want to do this, and it's a long, slow road."

"Yes, there's a stigma attached to being a pop star who wants to act, and I understand why. But when there are so many positive examples to counterbalance the negative ones, I find it a disappointing response. People tend to forget that Sinatra did a pretty good job in movies, for a start."

"Being famous hurts the fact that I want to act People have the preconceived notion that a rock 'n' roll star will be difficult. There's no 'Isn't that nice, Jon wants to get into acting' because Christian Slater would have wanted this part. So you'd better be good."

"People are a little more leery because they don't know if you're just doing this between projects. Or your recognizability is too big - I've had to work against a lot of things."

"You take what you're comfortable with and what you know you can do. It's a hindrance to me, to tell you the truth. I've said to directors, 'You've got to understand I'd come in here and shave my head for you. I'd gain 20 lbs.' But I've been in situations where they say, 'We can't cast him because of course the girl would fall for Jon Bon Jovi', and I go, 'F*** Jon Bon Jovi - give me a shot here.'"

"Being in the film business feels like starting over. Maybe no one's ever gonna see some of my films. That's cool. I'm learning about it, trying to figure out where I'm going and who I am. If it was anything to do with music there'd be a different set of rules. Don't think that every day I'm not grateful for the opportunities that I've had and continue to have because I make 'em happen - I like workin'."

"I don't need to be a movie star. I am already a marquee name. I don't need car chases. I need a cool script and a hip director. I don't think I would tell Coppola no, or Martin Scorcese no, but what appeals to me is Danny Boyle."

"The only thing that drives me is the thrill of the chase. It's the thrill of showing up on the movie set and knowing nothing about it. Accepting the challenge. Success is nowhere near as rewarding and fun as the thrill of getting to it."

"I wouldn't be afraid of gaining 50 pounds or cutting my hair off or dyeing it blond or blue."
"There have been bummer f**king days when I've kissed every ring in Hollywood trying to get a shot. And I'm still not getting the shots. But it's exciting when you can smell that something's gonna happen."