Credit: Elias Tahan

Credit: Elias Tahan

Keith Powers is a name you’ll want to remember, the charismatic actor, well-known for his role as Theo on the hit MTV series Faking It is back with a new show called Sin City Saints, which can be seen in bulk on Yahoo Screen. Not to mention, it was just announced that he’ll be trotting on over to the ABC Family network for a recurring arc on its rookie series Recovery Road, scheduled to come out early 2016. Man, this guy is blowing up on the Hollywood scene, and you’re not going to want to miss a beat. Whether he’s playing a complex and dreamy undercover cop or a talented but naive NBA superstar, Powers is one of those up-and-coming actors you NEED to be watching.

Faking It, which returns August 31 (are they trying to kill us with the longest hiatus known to man!?) will explore Theo’s relationship with Lauren (Bailey De Young) amongst other things. Powers was kind enough to chat with me about what’s to come on season 2B as well as his character LaDarius in the Yahoo Screen original series Sin City Saints, which also stars Malin Akerman, Tom Arnold and Andrew Santino.

Powers not only dished on the latest happenings of his acting career, but gave us the scoop on upcoming merchandise via SOAH, a brand he created, not to mention gave his supporters a heartfelt and special message that without a doubt will hit you straight in the feels.

MCKENZIE MORRELL: Tell us about Sin City Saints and this LaDarius character you play?

KEITH POWERS: Sin City Saints is about the owner of a Basketball team. His name is Jake Tullus. He’s a guy that’s not really ready to buy a team. He’s way over his head. He’s an internet billionaire who decided to just buy a team, very irresponsible. He drafts LaDarius who is played by me, the rookie point guard and all star. He makes LaDarius Pope’s life a living hell throughout the whole season. It’s basically based around the expansion team and everything that goes on around it.

MM: It was released in bulk, the whole season just ready for binge watching. That being said, would you say you like watching a show week to week or having that opportunity to get it all in at once?

KP: It’s weird. I’m used to watching it week to week but binge watching is also cool because you don’t have to wait. But I think it takes away some time from the character development. The writers never really get a chance to see what the fans are saying or get to change up a character. Whatever they put out there, they can’t witch up until next season. But I actually like binge watching. That’s dope instead of having to wait a whole week for just one thing that’s really important.

MM: What shows would you say you binge watch?

KP: I haven’t really binge watched any shows. The last show I binge watched was Once Upon a Time on Netflix which was very good.

MM: Have you been keeping up with it?

KP: No, I haven’t been keeping up with it. I watched the whole first season then I stopped. The second season didn’t interest me for some reason. I don’t know what it was. I think it was the fact that they were starting to become like the fairy tale characters more. I liked it when you kind of had to figure out who was who.

MM: This show was filmed in Las Vegas. What was that experience like? Did you get to explore at all?

KP: It was great. It was better than I thought. I thought I wouldn’t be able to focus some days but it was great and I had great cast mates. We’d get to party, but you really had to stay focused shooting in Vegas. It was fun but after several weeks I was like I’m ready to go back home.

MM: Your character gets catfished on the show. Has anything like that, even on a small scale, ever happened to you or someone you know? With the internet, everything is questionable.

KP: People hit me up saying they know me and I’m like I don’t know you. But it actually happened to me when I was young, on MySpace. I got catfished when I was like 16 by a girl. But me and a couple of my boys all got catfished by her, we all figured out she wasn’t real.

MM: That’s never fun. Especially on the internet when everyone can be anybody. So now, what can fans do to help make sure we get more seasons of Sin City Saints?

KP: Just keep supporting it and keep letting other people know about it. It’s really up to Yahoo and what they want to do for their brand. But obviously just spread the word and just continue to get others to watch it. A lot of people love the show and they give it a lot of props. So as long as the word gets out there more, I think Yahoo would be like ‘we can’t get a cast like this all the time. Our cast has great chemistry. Why not do a season two?”

MM: Definitely. We’re hoping for a season two. For those who haven’t gotten a chance to watch the show, what would you say to them to get them to tune in?

KP: That you don’t have to be a basketball fan to watch the show. I think that probably stopped a lot of people who were not basketball fans. But you really don’t have to be a basketball fan, it’s like comedy based around basketball teams. But if you are a sports fan, that’s a plus.

MM: That’s awesome. So to kind of switch gears a little bit, let’s chat about Faking It. The fans have been eagerly awaiting its return. What can we expect from your character, Theo, when it comes back from its hiatus?

KP: He’s going to be different as far as he has a different objective. Instead of the charismatic, smooth Theo, you’ll get more of the romantic, in love Theo. Right now he’s trying to prove his love to Lauren more and he’s trying to prove that he really likes her and wants to be with her. This time it’ll be a little different.

MM: What was the fan response to finding out that Theo was this undercover cop the whole time. Did you get a lot of angry messages on twitter regarding the reveal?

KP: I thought I would get way more angry messages than I did. I know that for sure. But it was actually a better response than I thought. They actually loved that he was a cop. Some of them were actually mad that they can’t stay mad at me because I’m nice on Twitter.

MM: I see you’re pretty active on twitter and on snapchat. Do you ever get any crazy pictures or messages from fans on those types of social media outlets?

KP: Yeah I do but it doesn’t really bother me. They do say some outlandish stuff to me that I’m like “oh hold on, I’ve got to save this. This is funny.” Most of the time though, it’s solid. It’s not too crazy.

MM: Do you think it’s important to interact with the fans on twitter and snapchat and other outlets?

KP: Yeah I think it’s very important. Not because I feel like I have to do this. That’s just who I am as a person. I like interacting with people. But I think it’s good to interact with your supporters and fans anyway because they need to like you on a different level to be able to support you in anything that you do and at least give it a chance. They want to feel like they’re a part of it as well, which they are because they support you. You want to give back to your supporters because without supporters, without fans, there’s no entertainment so you have to give back to them so they can feel like they’re a part of it, because they really are.

MM: Definitely. It’s great that you have that outlook because some people feel obligated but you genuinely enjoy interacting with the fans.

KP: Yeah, I don’t feel obligated at all. That’s just who I am. It’s interesting to me.

MM: Which one of the characters that you play would you say you’re more like in real life, Theo or LaDarius?

KP: Theo because he’s more charismatic and smooth. LaDarius is real naive, that’s not me at all but it’s fun playing that because it’s not me. With acting I love having to go the extra mile with a character because it really feels like I’m acting and escaping my reality. I get to be a different person and forget about all the problems going on in my life. That’s what I love about acting. It’s like a drug.

MM: You want to keep challenging yourself and not just playing yourself.

KP: Exactly.

MM: How would you describe your overall style. I heard that you have some hats available and maybe some clothes in the works.

KP: Yeah I have this little brand called SOAH and I actually, it was a hat line at first and now we’re starting to make shirts and stuff which has been on hiatus because I’ve been so busy. It’s a merchandise brand because if was a full clothing line, I’d have to put more work into it. That’s why I made it just a merchandise brand. My style I mean, I’m more open minded when it comes to style. Moving to LA really did that to me just seeing the different styles. I really love Pharrell’s style, Kanye’s style. I love One Directions style. Just kind of mixing that European, oversees style with American hip hop style.

MM: So now we’re going into the random question round from the fans. Are you ready? Would you survive a zombie apocalypse and what weapon would you use?

KP: I would definitely want to use a gun. But if it wasn’t a gun it’d be some type of rod or metal or some sort, something that I could swing that’s long so no one gets close.

MM: Name some of your most frequently used apps on your phone.

KP: That’s a good one. Fandango, because I love going to the movies. My visco it’s like a picture editing app. I love that app. Instagram of course, twitter of course. Oh my ESPN all day. I stay on my ESPN app.

MM: You can’t live without it.

KP: I can not.

MM: What is your go to comfort food?

KP: Cereal.

MM:  What kinds of cereal?

KP: I love all types of cereal. Apple Jacks, Lucky Charms, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Life, Frosted Flakes, Rice Krispies.

MM: What’s your favorite movie of all time?

KP: Friday with Ice Cube, Chris Tucker. That’s my favorite movie. That’s the first movie I remember from being young. I know that movie start to finish. I love that movie. That and Lion King.

MM: What are some other things that interest you? Do you have any quirky hobbies or activities that you partake in?

KP: I play a lot of video games. I want to get into philanthropy. I would love to look into being a philanthropist and look into giving back to my community. I really want to look into that more when I get more time. I’m also looking into start studying and learning about producing. I think that’d be cool to do. Other than that, play video games, go to the gym. I feel like I haven’t experienced a lot of stuff in life. Snowboarding, skiing, I’ve never been on a boat. There are certain things I feel like I need to experience in life and that’s what I want to do when I really get time and I’m comfortable. I love traveling as well.

MM: To end, is there anything you’d like to say to the fans?

KP: I just want to say thank you for supporting me. I like to call my fans my supporters. Sometimes I feel like the word ‘fans’ is belittling people. Sometimes I hear the way people say fans and talk about fans and I just don’t like it. So I say supporters and I just want to say thanks for supporting me. I am going to do the best I can to give you back the best material, you know what I mean?

Catch up with Keith Powers on Twitter