Memories from the Set: Eric Mabius Talks Past Gigs on The O.C., CSI: Miami, Ugly Betty & More
A recurring feature in which we ask your favorite stars to reminisce about past gigs
Eric Mabius‘ first experience acting on a major TV show – a 1997 episode of Chicago Hope — was a moving one.
Though his stint as a sick kid is notable because it marked his entrée into series television, one of the most memorable moments came when the cameras weren’t rolling.
While Mabius was chilling in his trailer, he realized the adjacent unit, which belonged to one of his co-stars in the episode, was rocking – as in, don’t come knocking.
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“There was a lot of movement, shall we say,” he recalls, laughing. “I remember being on the other end, thinking we were on a boat.”
Mabius’ latest venture, the Hallmark Channel original series Signed, Sealed, Delivered, premieres tonight at 8/7c. At TVLine’s request, the Ugly Betty vet gave us scoop on a selection of his TV roles, including serving as The L Word‘s token straight guy and treating a future Oscar winner very badly on Get Real.
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I miss Ugly Betty.
Haha, I was just about to comment the same thing. It was such a good show!
He was run out of town by Sandy, Seth and Summer. Sandy did the talking
Why do I have the feeling the person he was referring to was Caruso for Miami
I had the same feeling. He seems like that kind of guy.
Great stories!
I miss UB….it’s nice to know that the cast still keep in touch since the show has been off the air for several years. U don’t hear that too often. I had read that Eric had to miss the reunion due to other commitments.
Ugly betty had the last laugh. It was the last show to really work in that timeslot for ABC.
I wish Tim took Jenny with him when he left!
The Dean of Discipline and Taylor Townsend. I miss The OC. I even miss Marissa.
This is a really cool feature. I hope you post these more often.
I could be high on bunny chocolate but Ausiello’s tweet said it was a CSI Miami co-star while the article says Chicago Hope co-star, which is it?
If you go through the picture slideshow there’s a note about his experience on CSI: Miami, where he says called his representative and told him to do whatever he needed to do to get him off the show.
thanks I see it now, and concur with others that it sounds like Caruso
I really think had they left ugly Betty in the Thursday 8/7 times lot it could have last two more seasons
Loved Ugly Betty. Still miss it.
He lost the role to Milo because the creator at Heroes made the character of Peter a younger brother instead of a twin as Nathan and Peter were supposed to be twins. Milo has been quoted as saying that he was the “last actor” to be tested and cast. It’s not like EM chose Ugly Betty over Heroes.
Well you don’t know that. How do you know they didn’t make Peter the younger brother to accommodate Milo’s age instead of choosing Milo because they made Peter the younger brother? Chicken v. Egg, your honor. Maybe EM was in first position on Ugly Betty. Doesn’t matter that Milo said that. It doesn’t negate what EM said. Milo could’ve been the last person tested and cast while he and EM were being considered and EM passes for UB. They’re not gonna tell Milo he was second choice if he was. Ego, etc.
I’ve seen all the versions of Ugly Betty and the US one is my favorite, mostly because I think it’s the only one that always treated Betty with some respect and basic dignity (the mexican version was particularly bad at this); and I loved that for most of the seasons Daniel and Betty were just friends. I hated when they cancelled the show.
But I love, love Eric, he’s such a lovely actor, and I actually saw the movie Signed, Sealed, Delivered and it was fun, also recommend How to Fall in Love (which he did 2 years ago, I think) one of the best TV movies ever. :)
(I guess an Ugly Betty spoiler alert of sorts). I enjoyed the fact that you saw signs of more, esp. at the end, and you get the distinct impression that he’s into her and something could develop but only now that they’re peers. Betty’s a strong, independent woman with a great job, and they’re ready for something which you get to imagine offscreen in the future. She got where she needed to be through hard work, and it’s not some situation where her relationship got her ahead. Nobody could accuse her of anything untoward.
I agree, in the latin american versions, Betty does get ahed through hard work and because she’s very smart; but the romance is played from the start and the would-be-Daniel character often manipulated her with their romantic relationship so she would help him out, it was very disturbing.
I loved that in the US version, they were friends for a lot of time, and then only when – as you say – they are peers, you can see the hint of something more
Great interview! I hope his new show works out. Would love to see him back on tv regularly. And, yeah, I miss UB too.
Enjoy these posts!
I miss The L Word so much, for so many reasons. It was not perfect but in comparison today tv shows don’t focus on women, let alone gay ones. It was 2004 when it started and sometimes it feels like the more time passes, the lower the chances to see that kind of tv again are. OITNB is the only one that can claim some sort of legacy.
Lucky bitch doesn’t really age does he?
Oh, Eric, I love Judith Light too! All the way from OLTL to now!
Love this feature. Especially with actors seen for years but mostly under the radar.
long live The OC! Down with the Dean!