Jason Felt Like an Alien in High School

Thanks to Stacy for sending this in!

From J14, April 2000

Roswell’s Jason Behr reveals why he felt like an alien in high school

Our favorite martian gives us the inside scoop on his life, his career and
his hopes for the future…

Who said that men from outer space had to be bug-eyed, big-headed, green
creatures? Hey, if all aliens were as cute as Roswell’s Max, we’d shout out,
“Come on down!” J-14 hooked up with Max himself, Jason Behr, on the set of
the show’s retro-chic Crashdown Cafe. We sat down with this exciting hottie
to get the scoop on what it’s like to play TV’s hunkiest alien.

Trying to fit in
Like Max, Jason says he’s felt like and alien at times. “I think everybody
has” he laughs. “I remember the moment I walked into high school. I was
probably a good two feet smaller than every other guy in there. And I felt
like this little boy walking amongst men. They all either had beards or five
o’ clock shadows. They were all big football players and I felt immediately
out of place.”

Those may have been difficult times for this cutie, but he knows how to find
the good in any situation! “Some people wish they could go back and change
things, but if you’re comfortable with who you are and if you’re happy with
your life, then I think the struggles and the problems that we face make us
who we are. I wouldn’t go back and change anything.”

The Minneapolis native obviously learned a lot about himself in high school.
But, he says, the lesson isn’t over. “I think just the idea of trying to
find out who you truly are is what everybody is trying to do. I don’t know
if anybody really knows themselves the way they pretend to. And I don’t
pretend to know myself that well. I know who I am, but I’m still learning a
lot about myself with every experience that comes along. “So I think Max is
doing that, too.”

In recent episodes, Max learned that he can’t hold his liquor–he gets drunk
after one sip of alcohol–and an intimate encounter between Max and Liz
proved that Liz, like aliens, can have flashbacks when with a charmer like
Max.

Jason, who has been acting since he was five years old, says that just
playing Max is teaching him a thing or two. “I’m learning a lot about other
people. Because you realize, ‘Oh, that might be why this person said this or
did that.’ This whole experience has been one big classroom. I’ve learned
so much–not just about character development, not just about acting, and not
just about the business. But just about human relationship.”

Now Jason has a whole new set of emotions to learn about and explore as his
character recently became involved in a love triangle. “I’m sure he still
feels or is very much in love with Liz,” Jason says, trying to make sense of
the shocking twist. “I don’t know how it’s going to play out. I think
there’s still a lot of exploration of that relationship. There are still a
lot of things about Max and Liz that we haven’t touched on yet.”

What’s ahead
As production of Roswell wraps up for the season, Jason is faced with what to
do over the summer. Will he follow in the footsteps of Joshua Jackson,
Jennifer Love Hewitt, Sarah Michelle Gellar and other hot teen stars by using
his time off to star in a feature film? Maybe. “I’m just trying to make the
right choice,” he says. “Part of me wants to play something that isn’t in
this sort of (teen)genre,” he says. “But if there’s a great script out
there, then it’s gonna change my mind. For me, it’s just about telling a
good story. When I first read the script for Roswell, it was such a great
story. There’s just so much potential in telling this story and so many
different things that we can do with all of the characters. The
possibilities are infinite.”