Ryan Cooley
Ryan Cooley captured our hearts for years as James Tiberius Yorke, a.k.a. J.T. on Degrassi: The Next Generation. When his character was killed in a disturbing episode of the show, fans everywhere were devastated. However, with every end comes a new beginning, and Ryan Cooley is ready for a new chapter in his life.
Photo Credit: Epitome Pictures, Inc.
The Star Scoop:
Even we can't believe it! J.T. is really gone. Why has there been such a massive reaction to your character's final episodes?
Ryan Cooley:
It's a really amazing response that we've been getting. I think this is because this is the first time that Degrassi has actually killed off a major character. Other characters that have been killed off on the show usually were just guest stars, were on for one or two or three episodes. But, my character, J.T., has been on ever since day one, six seasons I've done on the show. So my departure has been sort of a big deal. So I think that's why I'm getting the response, and it's really quite amazing.
The Star Scoop:
You knew it was coming for quite a while?
Cooley:
Yeah, I knew it was coming, because we started shooting in the summer of 2006, so they sort of told me just before then, that it was going to be happening before the season started shooting, just to sort of see how I felt about it. They wanted me to know the story line and how it was gonna happen. They wanted to know if I was cool with doing the story line. So I knew ahead of time, yeah.
The Star Scoop:
How would you describe the last season that you were on? What was the full experience like for you?
Cooley:
It was a really, really good season. I really enjoyed doing the final episodes. I really felt that I made a really strong connection with Sarah Barable-Tishauer. She plays Liberty on the show. We've been really close over the six years. These finals episodes were really, really important to us. So, I really felt a strong connection with her, and also with the whole of the cast. On my last day, they all came to set, and watched me sort of do my last scene. It was a really amazing experience. The final season was one that I'm definitely not ever going to forget.
The Star Scoop:
You've had the benefit of knowing the full story of your character, to his end. What have you been able to learn from his life that will help you in your life as you move forward?
Cooley:
Well, I always said that as we shot Degrassi, kids watching the show are learning a lot. We deal with some really heavy issues, very realistic issues, you know? We try and teach kids lessons, sort of, of life. I feel like acting on the show has also taught me a lot of things. I've grown up on the show, much like the kids watching have grown up with the show. I mean, I've been doing this show since I was twelve years old. I've learned a lot of things as well. Playing the character J.T. has really been an amazing experience. The character has gone through some more heavy things, that personally I haven't gone through in my life [laughs]...I mean, I haven't gotten a girl pregnant. But, you know, there are things that I've taken from the character, yeah.
The Star Scoop:
It was a big shocker, with the whole story line of J.T. What can you say to your fans, who are pretty bummed out about it, so they can feel better about how the story line of the show went?
Cooley:
Well, [laughs], everything is fine with me. I'm fine. I'm doing well, so they don't have to worry about that. You know, it's really nice that they feel for the character. It's a really nice thing, but I would say, you know, just remember, it's just the story line. It's actually the story line that's important, the message. These kind of things happen, and as long as they understand that and learn from that, we've achieved our goal. And you know, not to stop watching Degrassi. I've seen a couple of things, like, oh, we're going to boycott Degrassi, all this stuff. It's just the story line and there are lots more great story lines coming up. This is only just the middle of the season. We've got a lot of big story lines coming up for this season...[it's] a big year. Don't take it too seriously, it's still just a T.V. show. It's really nice that they care about it this much. It makes me feel really good that the fan base is there. I really appreciate it. I appreciate everybody posting their comments. I've seen message boards, and I've seen all these sorts of things, watching the video that they made of me for the last day on set, and that was really nice. So, I really appreciate everybody's support.
The Star Scoop:
Over the years, you've had the opportunity to do the mall tours, to meet all the fans. Do you have any certain fan encounters that stick out in your mind, as you reflect on your experience with the show?
Cooley:
I've had some really interesting fan encounters, especially on the mall tours, of course. Adam Rugerio and I, he plays Marco on the show. We went to Los Angeles a few years back, for a mall tour. That three thousand or four thousand, or however many kids showed up at this mall to meet me and Adamo was really unbelievale. I'm just a teenager from Canada, you know? Who am I? I'm nobody, you know? So, it was really an incredible experience, just having all these kids. People were coming up to me, people were crying or freaking out, or like, wanting to faint. It was really an incredible experience. I remember on that particular mall tour, we were there for probably five or six hours, and we couldn't get through everybody. We had to leave; a thousand people didn't get to actually see us, and that was really unfortunate, but we just couldn't stay anymore, and when they sort of found out that we were leaving, everybody sort of got really panicked and the mall security had to make this sort of human barrier chain, because everybody was trying to chase after us. We got out of there, and we were going through J.C. Penny, and there were people chasing us through the store. It was unbelievable. It makes me feel like a rock star, something that I'm not going to forget soon. It was a really awesome experience. Just stuff like that, people coming up to you in the mall or in the movie theater, asking for an autograph, just things like that, it's mind-blowing.
The Star Scoop:
Do you think fans will always remember you from Degrassi or do you'll be able to carve another image for yourself as well?
Cooley:
I sure hope so, but, like I said, I'm very grateful for Degrassi, and if that's the end of the line for me as far as acting goes, then I think that's a pretty successful career for me. Of course, I am hoping to expand on it. I want fans always to remember my time on Degrassi. It was a wonderful thing, and I'm not going to forget it, so I don't want them to either.
The Star Scoop:
What do you do from here now?
Cooley:
Well, right now I'm actually at University. I'm studying theater at the University of Toronto, so that's what I'm concentrating on right now, and when my school year finishes in April, I'm going to concentrate on doing more auditions and trying to see if I can get any other work. I'm looking forward to just starting that up, and just seeing what's out there, you know? Just maybe looking for some feature films to audition for. I've got a couple things on the go, I think. Anything that comes my way really. I'm just going to keep acting, I've got my theater in school, and that's something that I'm very interested in right now, is working on stage. I've been doing movies and television since I was eight years old, so I'm really interested in working on stage and exploring that side of acting.
The Star Scoop:
How are you different from the character that everyone saw? What is the real Ryan like. Fans want to get to know you a little bit more as you're branching away from the show.
Cooley:
I'm probably not as much of a class clown as J.T. was. I'm a better student, I suppose. I'm a good boy. I don't get in much trouble. Like I said, I've never had the experience of getting somebody pregnant or anything like that. It's kind of a weird situation, because I'll tell you what happened. When I first auditioned for the show, I actually auditioned for the character of Toby. Not many people know that. J.T.'s character didn't exist at all when I first auditioned. Based on my auditioned, and my personality, they actually created the character of J.T. So perhaps I have a lot in common [with him], because they saw my audition tape and sort of created a character out of what they saw. There's a lot in common, too, but it's hard to say. It's hard to say. It's kind a weird situation, because the character was created out of sort of, my personality. It's developed in its own way throughout the years. It sometimes a hard distinction to make. I am Ryan, I'm not J.T. That's a challenge for me, with future work and auditions.
The Star Scoop:
If you're not busy with school or trying to perfect your craft, what would we find you doing?
Cooley:
You would probably find me hanging out with my friends. I've made a lot of new friends at university, so we go out a lot, go to movies. I love going to the movies. I like to see theater shows. I'm really into that. You'd probably find me listening to some Frank Sinatra, because I love Frank Sinatra, he's my favorite. I'm really into that kind of music, sort of the whole crooner scene. I really like Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Bing Crosby, all those kind of singers. You'd probably see me listening to them on my i-Pod. Or, I don't know, what else? I love to travel, I do a lot of traveling. I was in Europe this past summer. I went on a European cruise. Stuff like that, yeah. I was just at the Justin Timberlake concert in Toronto. Yeah, Justin Timberlake came to Toronto, so I went to see him, which was an interesting experience.
The Star Scoop:
You said you're doing university now. Why was that important to you?
Cooley:
I've always wanted to go on to university, that was always a goal of mine. School is very, very important to me. I like to keep good marks, and all throughout Degrassi, I've really concentrated on my tutoring on set, which is something that they do for us, because we shoot sometimes during the school year, from September usually until November, we're shooting. So, I really concentrated on that because school is very, very important to me. I always wanted to go to university. I have the opportunity now, and I took it. It worked out really well because the last episode that I shot for Degrassi, was shot in the end of August, and just right after that I went into school in September. Getting my Bachelor of Arts is very important to me, and I'm really going to do my best to try and get it.
The Star Scoop:
Do you think it's possible for kids who want to get into this business to go to school first and then have a chance to make it?
Cooley:
Yeah, I think that it's possible. It's very hard, this is a really difficult business. The entertainment business in general is really hard, the failure rate is really high. There's an element of luck that goes along with it, and I have been very lucky, and I'm very grateful for my experiences. It is possible, yeah. You just have to have the drive to do it. It can be a very tough business because of the fact that failure rate is so high, and you have to be able to take that, and understand that it's nothing personal, it's just the way it is. It's always been like that, so I consider myself very lucky, and I'm very grateful.
The Star Scoop:
What kind of characters do you want to play next?
Cooley:
I would like to get away from the whole class clown character J.T. I have been playing him for an awfully long time. I am looking to expand a little but, and that's why I've been taking a lot of acting lessons and classes to try and improve my craft. I would like to look into some more serious roles, because I think that I'm capable of doing it, and I want to try, so, yeah. But you know what, if, I'll take whatever comes my way. If something comes along, and I have to be the class clown again, or whatever, of course I would take that role.
The Star Scoop:
You are finishing sort of one chapter of your life, and moving on to another. The fans are starting to get to know you and hopefully still follow your career. Is there any kind of last word or message that you want to get out to them as you move on to this next phase?
Cooley:
I just really want to make sure that everybody knows that I'm very thankful for the support that I've had over the years of doing Degrassi. It's really been a wonderful experience, and it's something that I'm never going to forget. I'm just going to keep trying to get my face out there, and keep doing more, another a television show or another movie, or something. And if stage and theater is the way I'm going to go, then that's what I'll do. Just to say thank you, really, just to say thank you to everybody for supporting me, and hopefully they can continue to support. I'm going to probably set up a web page for myself so that they can visit that and see what I'm doing. Basically just to say thank you.