RM: You started out in commercials and then you were signed to Ford Models, what made you decide to pursue acting instead?
TD: I never really had the mindset or the height to be a model. It just wasn’t for me. I started taking acting class to try and open me up in front of the camera while modeling and fell in love with it. That’s when I decided to make the switch.
RM: What your fans may not know about you is that you love music and in fact, you love to sing. Can we expect any musical projects from you in the future?
TD: I LOVE to sing! I would go through the whole day singing if I could. If I had the voice for it I would have gone straight to Broadway! But sadly, I don’t have Idina Menzel’s pipes! What I wouldn’t give to play Eponine in Les Miserable, that would be a dream.
RM: You did a campaign with PETA recently, can you tell us about it?
TD: It is for anti-dissection. The campaign is reaching out to kids in school trying to let them know that they don’t have to be forced into doing real dissection on animals; they can choose virtual dissection instead. I think it is an important campaign because I wish I had known I had this choice while I was in school. There are so many ways to go around and avoid animal cruelty these days, you just have to ask!
RM: You played psycho Nanny Carrie on One Tree Hill, one of our favorite TV characters, what drew you to Carrie and what was your approach with this character?
TD: It’s funny because when I first got cast as Carrie, she was not the crazy we all know and love to hate so much. After doing the first 8 episodes, I didn’t even think they would have me back and I got a call from Mark Schwahn that said “So what do you think of taking Carrie in a ‘Kathy Bates Misery’ type of direction?” That’s when I really got to have some fun. Playing crazy nanny Carrie was a good stress reliever for me. I feel like I got to release a lot of negative energy from my life and transfer it into her. It was great.
RM: Fast forward a bit and you’ve been on one hit series after another from Pretty Little Liars to The Vampire Diaries, now your set to play Maggie Hall on Army Wives. What can we expect from Maggie Hall?
TD: Maggie is by far the most relatable character I have ever played on TV. I feel like there is a piece of her that in one way or another every woman watching will be able to relate to. She is a strong, bad-ass female juggling a lot of the same day-to-day challenges that we all deal with.
Photo by Fred Norris courtesy of Lifetime
RM: What are your favorite red carpet designers and what could we expect to see in your personal every day wardrobe?
TD: I love wearing Ted Baker. I feel like his dresses always without fail, fit me like a glove. And he has a lot of pieces that look a bit like they are from the 50s which I love. In my own personal wardrobe I love to wear a lot of vintage pieces. My style is very eclectic. I love timeless items.
RM: What is your guilty pleasure?
TD: Pizza.
RM: Top 5 songs on your playlist right now?
TD: Flaming heart – M. Ward, Every Night My Teeth are Falling Out – The Antlers, If I Had a Boat – James Vincent McMorrow, Bunni Groove – Chinese Man, Thinkin Bout You – Frank Ocean.
RM: Quote or phrase you try to live by?
TD: My makeup artist on set told me a quote that Catherine Bell said the other day and I loved it. “It’s not my business what other people say about me” I think that’s a good one to live by.
RM: Social media has bridged the gap between Hollywood and fans, how important is it to you to stay connected?
TD: I don’t know. I go back and forth on my opinion on social media. I think it’s great to stay connected and I think it’s great to have a way to share things with fans and see their reactions to things first hand, but then I’ll sometimes get fed up and think it is more detrimental than good. More often than not I crave the good ole days when people had face-to-face conversations and weren’t always looking down at their iPhones and using emoticons.
Featured image by Marc Cartwright