Vinny Guadagnino is the self-touted family man of MTV's reality juggernaut Jersey Shore, the ever-pinchable voice of reason who declares the "GTL" lifestyle a little ridiculous and who tames JWOWW after she punches The Situation in the chest. He's a party guy whose fist-pimping prowess is second to none, though his vainglorious co-stars tend to dwarf him when it comes to rambunctious spectacle and occasional insanity. Luckily, with the premiere of season two less than a month away, Vinny's just as torqued as Snooki or DJ Pauly D for the debauchery to begin anew. But did he thrive away from Seaside Heights in the new ecosystem of Miami? Movieline wanted answers.
We phoned Vinny earlier this week to discuss season two, his artistic (and political!) ambitions, and the rumors that he won't be on board for season three.
Can you talk about the pressure of following up season one? Did you have to sacrifice your character or act crazier to make sure it lived up?
You know what, obviously just being on the show in general there are some butterflies that come with it. And I guess pressure, you know, knowing it's a huge TV show that's seen by the whole world, literally. But besides that, like, getting down to the minor details of it, like, "Do I have to act a certain way?" and stuff like that -- not really. What made the show so great in the first place was just being ourselves. People seem to just have positive reactions to who I am personally. I didn't really feel the need to change personally or anything like that. And once you get into that environment, you're kind of forced to forget that it's a TV show. You don't really think about that. You just kind of live the life.
Are you suspicious of the girls you meet now? And when you meet a girl, do you have to wonder if she makes for good TV?
I'm definitely suspicious of girls. I've been suspicious of girls my whole life though, so it's not anything new. But yeah, definitely now with the show, you don't know which ones -- right off the bat, sometimes you know which ones are just for the show, the little groupie girls. And that's cool, you know, I really appreciate them being fans and whatever. It's great. But then there are the girls that seem like they're not interested in the show, and those are the ones you have to be careful for. You don't know if they're putting on an act or not. It takes a little bit of figuring out. It comes with any celebrity. You have to figure out which girls are in it for what reasons.
Talk about Miami in comparison to the Jersey shore. Was it a comfortable fit for you? You've been dragged out of your natural habitat, so to speak.
It felt really, really, really comfortable. I don't speak for everybody but for me and for a couple of the guys on the show, it felt very comfortable. It felt more comfortable me than in Jersey. I just like that beach-y environment.
Did you ever miss the way things were before season one, when you didn't know what viewers would love about the show?
It was the same to me either way, I'm not gonna lie. Once you get there, you're stripped of your -- you don't have a phone, you don't have a TV, you don't have anything like that -- it king of forces you to be who you are. You're not a celebrity performing for a crowd. I definitely like this life. It's a blessing, I get to entertain people and have fans. Going into season two and having that at the back of my mind, it gives me more of a reason to do my job and give people something to laugh at.
Your Twitter indicates that DJ Pauly D is your closest associate in the house. Can you tell us something we don't know about him? Or the others, for that matter?
Pauly is the funniest person alive. He's going on 30 years old, and he's like a 2-year-old. He's hilarious, he's always joking around, he keeps it going whenever there's a dull moment. With his spiky hair and his muscles, you probably wouldn't expect that. You'd expect "Oh, a douchebag." He's the most humblest kid in the world. The same thing goes to Snooki -- Snooki's not a diva at all. She's a really sweet girl. Snooki would walk down the street right now without a security guard and just act like she's not a big star. But those two, you might think are a little standoffish, are actually the exact opposite of that.
You guys seem to be everywhere. Why do I feel like the cast of Jersey Shore gets to meet Barack Obama? Do you have outrageous encounters often?
[Laughs] Yeah, I feel like that too. It's really crazy. We've become those people that are crashing every Hollywood party and hanging out with everybody. Obama did actually mention our show at the Correspondents Dinner. I do want to meet him, but I haven't. It's just outrageous being at the MTV Movie Awards, being among the celebrities there. I've got celebrities coming up to me and basketball players literally giving me high fives during the game. But we know our place too, you know? We're know we're those kids who keep on crashing the scene. We're not acting like, "Oh, we've been here, and we're big celebrities, and we're all that." We just take it all and it's a blessing.
So far, you've assumed a brotherly role with most of the girls in the house. Did you expect that going in?
It's funny, because I would expect the opposite. Seeing the people in the house, the outrageous Snooki and Jenni, stuff like that -- I would never picture myself really friends with that. Beneath the surface, if they're good people, they're good people. I get along with all good people. It's not what I expected, but if you live with people for months you either hate each or love each other. So I did definitely recognize the realness in all of them.
SallyAnn Saldano, a producer on your show, made a comment in a Hollywood Reporter roundtable declaring the show a "herpes nest," but it was kind of taken out of context. She was talking about passing out Valtrex as a precautionary measure. When that comment came out, did it make you anxious because some people perceive you guys as the STD-carrying types?
I feel like with what any producers say, they're always looking out for our best interest. I don't know if that was taken out of context. There's a million things that come out about us every day, so I don't care.
We do hear a lot about you guys. Has anything ever been revealed about you or the cast that you found hard to deal with?
Not really about me. I remember last year I was having a conversation last year with some girls, and I said, "Oh yeah, we all really want to do a season two." And this is before season two was [even announced] -- well, the next day, there was a big article, "Vinny confirms there's going to be a season two! In Seaside!" Looking back, it's hilarious. Season two was in Miami, not Seaside. We didn't know up until the last second that we were going. People say whatever they want and publish it. It's annoying having to explain myself to people. "Actually, I didn't say that. Actually, I was having a conversation. We'd like to do a season two." It's annoying.
What's up with your law career? Do you plan on pursuing that or sticking around on TV for years?
Well, I definitely have an artistic side to me as well. I write, I act, I draw. With that artistic mind I have, a lot of doors have opened for me. I can try to pursue, like -- if it's something using my writing skills, maybe a book. Or maybe if it's my drawing skills, some clothing designs. Or my acting skills. I'm basically just jumping on every opportunity I can, but keeping my tunnel vision on the main goal and trying not to venture out to many things at the same time. My political science degree is always on the back-burner. I took my LSAT, so even if I want to take the LSAT again, I know what I'm getting into. I'll keep it on the back-burner. Who knows, maybe with my popularity, I can have a career in politics with a law degree. I think it'll work out either way.
Which artistic endeavor is the one you most want to focus on?
I'm literally able to do all of these things -- I can write, I can do a little music, I can draw. I've been drawing since I was a little kid, but it's not something I love to do every day. If there's one thing I love to do every day, it'd probably be acting. I can act every day. I'd happily do it, you don't have to pay me. But that's one thing I'd love to do and get paid for.
Music, eh? Can we expect a rap single like The Situation had?
[Laughs] I don't know if it's going to me much like that, but I dabble in music. We all just want to make the best of this. We're clubby types of kids, we want to put out things that people will listen to and bob their heads too. You might hear it, but I don't want to say anything until you actually hear it.
You were on the cover of The Village Voice with The Situation and Ronnie, and it turned out to be the "queer issue." Did you read that story about the "down-low" side of the Jersey shore? We don't really hear about that on your show.
I read the story about us, I didn't read the story on -- I think it was about the gay people in Seaside or something like that? Honestly, ah -- I really didn't read the story, so I don't want to be too... whatever about it. It really hasn't been a big thing when I've been down to the shore. If people are gay, then that's cool, you know what I'm saying? I don't want to be like, "Oh, gay people are there, hiding." We all go there and have fun. I mean, I hook up with girls and talk to girls, I don't waste time talking to guys that much. I don't really pay attention. [Laughs.]
There are rumors that you, Ronnie, Sammi, and Angelina won't be on the show next year. Is there any truth to that?
Honestly, being in the business in awhile, I've learned not to listen to the press more than anyone. The press can say what they want, but nothing's confirmed. If I do go back, it's great. If I don't, there's plenty of other things going on in my life. I'm thankful for every opportunity I've gotten, and it's going to be a fun second season either way.
Now, prepare us for season two. What exactly will we see?
You're definitely going to see a lot of drama. It's like season one, but times ten. So, the drama, picture more of that. Hookups, picture more of that. We definitely did our thing. We were there for longer, we're in a crazier environment. Picture season one just blown out of the water. As for the perception of me, I hope it won't change. I am myself, and I do react differently in different environments like anyone else. There are sometimes when you go on a vacation with, like, your girlfriend, and you're a little more calm or whatever. But there are times where you go on spring break, and you go crazy. We'll just see how I reacted to the new Miami environment, while still being the same kid who went to school and did all that, has morals and tight with my family.
Excellent. Thanks again for the interview, Vinny.
What, no movie questions? I'm a movie buff!
Well, all right. We do a segment at Movieline called "My Favorite Scene." What's your favorite movie scene?
Off the top of my head, there's a scene that gives me chills every time I watch it. In Crimson Tide when Gene Hackman -- you know what I'm talking about, right? When Denzel won't turn the key, and Gene Hackman says, "They're fueling their missiles! We don't have time to f*ck around!" That's probably one of my favorite scenes.