Exclusive: General Hospital Supercouple Nancy Lee Grahn, William deVry Answer Fan Questions

You ask, they deliver. TV Guide Magazine sat down with General Hospital stars William deVry and Nancy Lee Grahn — better known as the über-popular Julexis — for a sprawling chat too big for one installment. Part 1 posted last week. Now, in part 2 of the interview, deVry and Grahn answer Twitter questions from their devoted fan base, the Julexis Army.

TV Guide Magazine: Let's start out with a question that's sure to get one of you into trouble. Your fan @EdinaHotdish wants to know: "What's the best and worst thing about working with each other?"
William deVry: Nancy's constant need to protect me on the set.
Nancy Lee Grahn: I have to show him the ins and outs at the studio. He needs help understanding the vibe. He doesn't know how things work. William is like an innocent little puppy.

TV Guide Magazine: So, then, is that the best or the worst thing about Nancy?
deVry: Actually, both. It's endearing and annoying.
Grahn: That makes me sound so bossy. That's how this is gonna come across.
deVry: It's a motherly instinct. She means well. It's sweet.
Grahn: I protect him because he needs it. He's always getting into trouble. Seriously, that's what you picked? Couldn't you say I'm a good kisser, or something like that?
deVry: [Silence]
Grahn: Why is that so damn hard for you to say? It's not just a one-way street, pal. I am constantly promoting you! I have been your best publicist!
deVry: Okay, then, the best thing about Nancy is [long, thoughtful pause]... her sense of humor.
Grahn: The best thing about Will is that he listens to me when I tell him what to do. By the way, I know I'm a good kisser. I've been told that. So it's okay for you to say it. Say something.
deVry: This is soap kissing we're talking about. It's not the real thing. Okay, I will say that your lips move well.
Grahn: I'm not ever again going to talk about you being a good kisser! Not ever again!
deVry: Here's something I really respect about Nancy: She will never tell me to change one of my acting choices. It can be really aggravating when that happens.
Grahn: Nobody should do that.
deVry: But some actors do and you don't. And I love that.
Grahn: Who does that to you at GH? [Laughs] See, I protect him!
deVry: We'll talk later.
Grahn: The thing about Will is that he comes very eager to play. He's very willing to go wherever the writers ask him to go. And I have worked with actors who can be very resistant to that. Can you at least say I'm funny? Because I know I'm funny.
deVry: "I'm really funny. Just ask me!"

TV Guide Magazine: @cyncobb wants to know: "Is Julian the love of Alexis's life?"
Grahn: How do I answer that? What do they want me to say?

TV Guide Magazine: You know damn well what they want you to say. Yes!
Grahn: Okay, yes!
deVry: But why, why, why?
Grahn: Here's a better answer: It depends on whether or not Julian thinks Alexis is the love of his life. If he says yes, then she says yes, too.
deVry: Well, I'm not going to answer that question because it wasn't posed to me. Anyway, who's speaking right now — Nancy or Alexis? Are you strictly speaking from Alexis's heart?
Grahn: It depends on your answer.
deVry: That's such a cop out! That's Alexis being afraid to put her heart out there. Unless this is Nancy talking...?

TV Guide Magazine: Did this interview just turn existential?
Grahn: I am speaking for Alexis! You want my character to be in love with yours, but you don't want yours to be in love with mine. That's it, isn't it? Ask any actor on a soap opera if he is truly in love and — with the exception of maybe Dominic Zamprogna — he will go, "Yes...but..." Now, ask any woman and she will readily and happily say, "Yes, I am in love." Men think they're more sexy when they're available and less sexy when they're in love. Women don't like that. They want to hear you say it.
deVry: This is Nancy talking!
Grahn: And I speak for the fans. Trust me, the Julexis Army does not want to see Julian messing around. A few weeks back, he was in a scene with Jordan and the Army was about to take her out. It was just a harmless scene! Nothing happened between them. But the fans wanted her dead. See, here's the problem: There are so many other women Julian could have on this show. But, if Julian wasn't around, what other choice would Alexis have? The Yellow Pages? Christian Mingle? Oh, what the hell, I'll just say it. Alexis is in love with Julian right now. Big time. Is he the love of her life? I don't know. But I do know she really, really likes to have sex with him.

TV Guide Magazine: @jenjordan6 wants to know: "How did it feel the first time Julexis trended on Twitter?"
deVry: It felt so good! Ava and Morgan had sex and they were trending, and I remember feeling a little jealous about that.
Grahn: They did? Dammit, I didn't know that. I would have been really upset.
deVry: I'm breaking news
Grahn: Yes, and I don't like it. I want us to be the only trenders.
deVry: I'm not sure how this stuff works. How do you know when we've trended?
Grahn: Alarms go off in my house. I think when Julexis trends it proves that nobody gives a s--t about our ages. It's irrelevant. I have so many young people following me on Twitter
deVry: When I was young, I didn't want to watch kids my age on TV. I wanted to watch grownups. I couldn't have gotten luckier than to be paired up with such a giving, honest person as Nancy.
Grahn: Now he's trying to make up for refusing to say I'm a good kisser.

TV Guide Magazine: Give the guy a break. Maybe he'll catch hell at home.
Grahn: But that's the thing — he won't! His girlfriend, Rebecca Staab, is a huge Julexis fan and extremely supportive. And she has given me carte blanche to enjoy this to whatever extent.

TV Guide Magazine: On that topic, we have a comment from @Julexis4ever. "Thanx for moaning every time Julian kisses Alexis. It's HOTT." Which one of you is this referring to?
Grahn: I do a lot of moaning. I don't know why.
deVry: It's been mentioned to me that I'm really into those scenes and that I make...noises.
Grahn: It's a tie. We're both very noisy
deVry: Nancy has the greatest fans — extremely opinionated and extremely loyal and they make a lot of money! She appeals to smart, high earners. They see her intellect when she's on camera, and on Twitter. If Soap Opera Digest asked me the question, "Who on your show is the most likely to fall on a sword for you?" my answer would be Nancy.
Grahn: Aww, that's sweet. All right, you're forgiven. You know what the reality is? He is the sexy part of this relationship. I am just not willing to spend that kind of time at the gym.
deVry: Hey, people think I spend a lot of time sculpting in the gym when I don't! I'm 46 years old. I can't spend hours and hours there. I go four days a week for a maximum of 40 minutes a day. At my age, rest and sleep are more important. I'm like a dog. I could sleep all day.

TV Guide Magazine: We have another from @cyncobb who says Julexis is bringing in male viewers. She tweets: "Husbands are tuning into GH now. Mine says, 'Were they on today?'"
deVry: I hear that a lot. I'll be out somewhere and a gentleman will say, "My wife is too embarrassed to come up and meet you, but we watch you all the time." I had a CEO of Deutsche Bank ask me, "How is Alexis?" I'm, like, "Whaat? You watch GH?" And he said, "My wife and I love the show!" I had one lady tell me her husband watches from the kitchen doorway because he doesn't want to admit he's into GH. He's lurking! I also have a lot of male friends who say, "I hate you! Now I'm hooked on your show!"

TV Guide Magazine: Next, we have @brianalope asking: "Will Alexis forgive Julian for lying to her to save their families?"
deVry: I certainly hope so.
Grahn: Of course! She's been with far worse men. [Laughs] And she probably will again.
deVry: People lie for much worse reasons.
Grahn: When Alexis was with Sonny, he didn't even give a crap. He was always, like, "I'm gonna do what I damn well please and too bad for you." But this Alexis-Julian thing is a relationship built on mutual respect, even if he is lying. Some people have complained that Alexis didn't question it when Julian threw Ric under the bus, but I think the audience forgets how bad Ric used to be. [Former GH head writer] Bob Guza made him so evil. Now Ric seems to be a nice guy again, but it's not that far of a stretch in Alexis's mind for her to believe he's still doing bad things. So get off her ass!

TV Guide Magazine: But, if Julian truly cares about Alexis, why would he endanger her by being in this potentially deadly romance?
deVry: Well, maybe that's a decision Julian will need to make in the near future. There's some very intriguing stuff coming up.

TV Guide Magazine: @quit5000 wants to know: "Where does Julian live?"
Grahn: That's right, he doesn't have a house of his own. The rich, big-shot mobster!
deVry: [Laughs] He lives at his sister's place.
Grahn: That is so...hot.
deVry: Even Carlos had his own place, for God's sake! The audience notices when your character doesn't have his own set and they think that's a tip-off. "He's not important enough to spend money on!" There was a point where a lot of fans were asking if I was getting fired. They also noticed that [GH executive producer] Frank Valentini follows Carlos on Twitter and he follows Ryan Carnes but he doesn't follow me. Then there was, "Julian isn't in the opening credits! He must be on his way out!" [Laughs] I think maybe the Julexis Army saved me.

TV Guide Magazine: @quit5000 has another question: "Will Alexis and Julian finally admit they were in love when they first met?"
Grahn: I don't think they were in love back then, do you?
deVry: Nope. In lust, maybe.
Grahn: It was just a hot experience in the back of a Camaro. It was like the time Sam Behrens took me up in his airplane — he had just gotten his pilot's license that day — and afterward we did it in the back seat of his T-Bird.
deVry: None of that s--t ever happens to me.

TV Guide Magazine: Here's a question from @PamPetrakos: "Any special message for the devoted Julexis army?"
Grahn: Yes, how would you like your checks made out? We owe you everything.

TV Guide Magazine: Last question. The annual GH Fan Club Weekend is coming up and @TrishMcKelvey wants to know: "Are you going to crash each other's events?"
Grahn: Yes!
deVry: I am definitely planning on it.
Grahn: But, if you have to choose between them, come to mine. At my event, Julian and Alexis are going to have live sex. Bring your camera!

 

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