Paul Wesley is the kind of guy to show up to a photoshoot 30 minutes early and offer to carry catering inside. Pulling up with an easy smile and ultra-humble attitude, we were treated to an afternoon of quiet laughter and casual conversation with this actor-turned-bourbon-mogul. With a shoot location in a magnificent Beverly Hills compound, we found ourselves surrounded by ornate chandeliers, impossibly high ceilings, and sprawling views of Los Angeles. Paul fit right in – even as he sported a simple tee shirt and blue denim. Settling into one of the opulent couches that adorned the space, he waved away our offers of coffee (and anything else we could think of to occupy the 20 minutes before our setup was ready), “I was in the neighborhood,” he laughed, “don’t worry about me.”
With a background straight out of a ‘Parisian glamour’ mood board, Wesley didn’t bat an eye, swapping looks and locations with the familiar ease of a seasoned professional. When our shoot wrapped in record time, we took a second to catch our breath and dive into all things Paul Wesley; what it’s like becoming a teen heartthrob, how he broke into the Bourbon industry, and even his prized possession, his dog.
We start at the beginning, and with a cheeky grin, Paul reveals that his foray into the acting world was never his first choice (had Wesley not gotten kicked off of his hockey team as a teenager, we may never have known the talented actor). “I didn’t have anything to do,” he explains with a laugh, “so I started doing theater; like, this is kind of fun. Had I grown up somewhere else, I don’t know if I ever would have gone in this direction. But because I grew up 45 minutes outside of Manhattan, an agent saw me doing a play. It kind of happened serendipitously. I was still in high school, so I never went out of my way to pursue a professional acting career, it sort of fell into my lap,” he smiles.
Attributing his tremendous success to luck and happenstance is just the sort of thing that reveals Wesley as a true gentleman, something we confirm after asking him our signature question – “What does being a ‘nobleman’ mean to you?” “My association with the word noble would be someone who holds himself with a high level of esteem,” he nods, “It’s about the way in which you present yourself and the way you carry yourself. For me, I strive to be a gentleman, something my grandfather always tried to instill in me,” he flashes a mischievous grin, “Whether he did it effectively or not remains to be seen.”
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PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOHN RUSSO
WORDS BY EMMA UNGARO
GROOMING BY MEL DANIEL
ALL WARDROBE BY SHINOBI MENSWEAR
