'Carrie Diaries' Post-Premiere Interview: Brendan Dooling on Walt & Bennet's Future & More

'Carrie Diaries' Post-Premiere Interview: Brendan Dooling on Walt & Bennet's Future & More

Check out this brand new post-premiere interview with Carrie Diaries star Brendan Dooling!

The 23-year-old actor stars as Walt, Carrie’s (AnnaSophia Robb) best friend, roommate and closest confidante, who was recently outed by his ex-girlfriend Maggie (Katie Findlay).

We caught up with Brendan to chat about tonight’s awesome premiere, Walt and Bennet’s (Jake Robinson) future, and more!

The Carrie Diaries airs every Friday @ 8PM on The CW!

Click inside to read our interview with Brendan Dooling…

JustJaredJr.com Interview – Brendan Dooling

JustJaredJr: Hi Brendan! We loved the premiere! We have yet to see Maggie and Walt come face-to-face, though they both seem pretty bad about what went down between them. When will we start to see that play out, and do you think they are capable of being friends?

Brendan Dooling: I think that Walt and Maggie love each other very much. I think the circumstances don’t allow them to be that easygoing relationship that they had before. They were so close to each other before and now they have to find that balance of sharing that special bond with the person you lost your virginity to and forming almost a new friendship. But I think it’s definitely possible and I think both of them crave that ultimately, but it’s just a matter of time.

JJJ: Walt and Bennet are waiting until he’s 18 to date. When exactly is that? How long do we have to wait to see them together?

BD: We don’t see it in any specific episode, but it’s roughly at the end of the summer, which falls around the second, third, or fourth episode. It’s kind of fuzzy now because we shot it back in July, but it’s relatively early in the season.

JJJ: Walt mentioned that he’s free to see other people until then. Will he take that opportunity or hold out for Bennet?

BD: His heart lies with Bennet. There’s no question there, but he is in the city and there are a lot of new experiences to be had. Even though he wants Bennet in the end, I think he’s open to trying new things – not even for himself, but to prove to Bennet that’s he no kid. He’s not just waiting around like some puppy dog waiting to go outside. He’s an independent man and I think he wants to prove that to Bennet.

JJJ: In the premiere, it seems Walt is a lot more comfortable saying that he’s gay. Has living in New York City helped him with his confidence and being more comfortable in his own shoes?

BD: Most definitely. He doesn’t have to deal with the conflict that is Castlebury for him right now. The city allows him so much more freedom and allows him to get comfortable in this skin of his before he has to go back and face the harsh reality of Castlebury.

JJJ: Speaking of that, will we see Walt’s parents this season and the fallout of them finding out?

BD: We’re definitely going to see all the drama that comes along with coming out, and coming out in the 80s specifically. The writers stretch it out, appropriately, throughout the whole season. Everything is touched upon. I don’t think advocates of Walt’s storyline will be disappointed.

JJJ: Good to hear! We love that the writers are really taking their time to get the story just right. It’s been one of our favorites.

BD: Yeah, it’s nice to have that full arc and you’re not just bombarded with all the harsh reality of it. It’s a little more…for lack of a better word, human. You get to see all sides of it and the slow progression, and how he deals with it. It’s nice.

JJJ: Definitely. When we talked to AnnaSophia she mentioned that her favorite thing about the show is Walt and Carrie’s friendship. What can we expect with them this season now that they’re living together?

BD: It grows in leaps and bounds throughout the whole season. We’re roughly around the eleventh episode out of thirteen, as far as shooting. She becomes Walt’s biggest supporter and shoulder to cry on. Donna was that person is season one, interestingly enough, just how it evolved. But in season two, once the truth comes out and Walt’s friends know, Carrie is behind him one hundred percent and they grow from there. He owes a lot of his confidence that builds up in season two to Carrie.

JJJ: Will we still see that friendship between Donna and Walt?

BD: We definitely see it. That’s a bond that Walt is never going to give up or trade because she was his rock in toward the end of season one, so he’s never going to give up on that, and we’ll definitely see more of that relationship grow in season two.

JJJ: We also loved the scene tonight with Sebastian and Walt. Will their friendship cause any problems between Walt and Carrie since she’s not on the best terms with him?

BD: No, definitely no issues for Carrie. There’s no drama there, as far as Sebastian and Walt are concerned whatsoever. Sebastian turns out to be a very understanding guy and Walt appreciates it. It’s actually funny to say, but they have a…not a bromance, but just a man-understanding, if you will. And they exist as that. It’s kind of really easygoing and it’s a nice friendship that forms out of the first episode.

JJJ: Samantha invites herself to crash with Walt and Carrie. Will his collective composure clash with her spitfire attitude?

BD: They are on totally different ends of the spectrum. Walt has sort of a WASP-y air to him, sort of reserved, very refined. Whereas, Samantha is just a whirlwind. She has lots of confidence and she flaunts it every chance she gets. And so as much as they might butt heads, they also learn from each other and it even though it’s constructed through Carrie, they end up having a really great friendship.

JJJ: The second season almost feels like a different show. It has all of the same great elements, but it’s just a little bit sexier. How would you describe it?

BD: Yeah, I think that’s it. It’s a great way to describe it. I would just add the fact that there’s more humor. The writers have really embraced the quirkiness of the show, the quirkiness of Carrie, the friends that she has, the characters that she interacts with. There’s definitely a lot more comedy involved in season two, while staying true to the drama of first love, 1980s homosexuality and what a problem that would be for Walt. We still see all the honesty of it, while also being able to laugh with the characters we love a little bit more.

JJJ: There’s still so much story left to tell with your character. Anything you’re hoping to see with Walt this season?

BD: All of the things I wished to see Walt go through, he will eventually go through toward the end of season two. I’m sorry to be vague about it, but there’s a lot of controversy regarding Walt’s way of life during that time, how much fear there was surrounding it, just because of AIDS and people not understanding how people could live this lifestyle. And I think that was always the most important thing to me – to make sure that element of Walt’s sexuality was grasped. And Amy Harris does a fantastic job with it. So my goal as far as the storyline is going to be fulfilled. Now it’s just a matter of whether or not I can portray it honestly, and not criticize myself to harshly (laughs), and just play it as truthfully as I can.

JJJ: We have no doubt that you will. Was is surprising to see how much support and love came out of your storyline? Many people cite it as their favorite on the show.

BD: I was pleasantly surprised just to see how many people really did fall in love with it. I knew that there would be a following, not necessarily people who really loved it, but who were interested in the very least because of the time and the circumstances. But yeah, I was definitely pleasantly surprised to see how many people could really empathize and relate to Walt’s story. It’s been a nice surprise.

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Photos: The CW
Posted to: Brendan Dooling, Exclusive, The Carrie Diaries