Days of the Wolf NJ: Tyler Hoechlin & Ian Bohen Highlights

Last weekend in New Jersey, Creation Entertainment held its second of three Teen Wolf conventions this year. (The first, in Burbank, was in March and the third, in Chicago, is coming up in June.) Guests included Tyler Posey, Tyler Hoechlin, Arden Cho, Dylan Sprayberry, Ian Bohen, and Linden Ashby, with resident emcee Orny Adams leading the way. I giddily live-tweeted as much as I could, but I’m focusing this recap on Tyler Hoechlin and Ian Bohen’s panels, because that’s how we roll in the Shire.

I attended the convention as a Gold patron, which gave me a seat in the front row and access to two exclusive panels. Originally, the Gold panel was meant to be the two Tylers, but filming commitments caused Tyler Posey to have to change his con schedule, so the boys were there on separate days. Creation remedied the situation by giving Gold patrons two panels instead of one. Posey got his own panel (crashed by Dylan and Linden) on Saturday night, and Ian joined Hoechlin Sunday morning. Hoechlin and Ian also had solo panels on Sunday, and so this recap will encompass all three.

First off, it’s important to note that so far, neither Hoechlin nor Ian have filmed any scenes for Teen Wolf season 5. Though both actors are open to return, as of right now there seems to be no plan to do so. Ian pointed out that Peter Hale came back from the dead, so he doesn’t think a few inches of glass in Eichen House will keep him down for long. Besides, he would really like to know who Malia’s mother is.

Instead of season 5 tidbits, we were treated to hilarious anecdotes about their crazy fan experiences and the hijinks they used to get up to on set. Hoechlin talked about how determined Haley Webb was to make him break character, including walking drunkenly towards him with crossed eyes while reciting her Darach speech near the end of season 3. He also shared the story of the only time he has ever broken character, which was while they were filming the paralyzed scene in “Fury” (2×10). He and Dylan O’Brien were on the floor, pretending to be paralyzed, when Stephen Lunsford (Matt) lifts up his shirt (to show them the kanima scales). Hoechlin said that Dylan made a noise (like a loud, surprised inhale), and even though he couldn’t see him, he just knew what face he was making, and he started laughing.

They also talked about various injuries they incurred while filming. In season 1, there is a scene where Peter throws Derek into a wall. For the safety of the actors, they generally film these scenes using a breakaway wall, so that there is a bit of cushioning. However, they ran out of breakaway walls, and so Ian ended up throwing Hoechlin into a real wall. Ian also gleefully related the story of the time he accidentally kneed Posey in the groin.

Ian told the story of being followed in Paris, which he described as a movie-like moment. He and Hoechlin were in a cab on the way to a restaurant when Ian glanced behind them and realized they were being followed. He said to the cab driver, “Do you see that car back there? Lose them.” And the cab driver did! Tearing through the streets of Paris, they were finally able to lose the car, but when they arrived at the restaurant, the driver broke the first rule of car chases and remained at the destination. So the car that had been following them was able to catch up, and the fans waited outside the restaurant for them to leave.

Later, Ian talked about a “game” they used to play on set. He, Hoechlin, Posey, Dylan, and Daniel Sharman would run up to each other and smack them really hard on the back of the thigh. They thought it was hilarious. So one time, Ian put padding down his pants. Hoechlin, thinking that he had caught Ian unaware, ran up to smack him on the back of his thigh. Ian didn’t feel a thing, but Hoechlin hurt his hand on the padding, and ended up not talking to Ian for days. “Not cool, man, not cool,” Ian said. Ian naturally chastised Hoechlin for attacking a man with his back turned.

I’d heard a few of the stories before, from other conventions, but trust me when I say that reading the story secondhand on the internet does not compare to hearing them tell it in person. I hardly did those justice. Also, to be completely shallow, I really do just like listening to them talk. They’re extremely personable and their excitement to be at the con felt very genuine.

Both Hoechlin and Ian were asked (at their solo panels) about advice they might have for aspiring actors. Ian instructed everyone that when auditioning, just remind yourself that you are talented and you have every right to be there. Hoechlin said that it’s important to be persistent and to not take things personally. He also said that failure is good if you learn something from it.

We also learned a bit about their upcoming projects. Hoechlin’s film That’s What I’m Talking About, directed by Richard Linklater, should be out by the end of this year. (Undrafted, on the other hand, he has no idea.) He also may have a new movie lined up – fingers crossed! And a little bit of information that I was privy to from his Meet & Greet, he just finished writing a pilot script! He was hesitant to share too much about it, though, as he didn’t want to jinx anything. Ian, meanwhile, is about to start shooting his crowd-funded film The Tow.

In his Meet & Greet, Hoechlin talked about how difficult it is to have personal headcanons when you’re on a television show, because you have no idea where the writers will take the character. He had mentioned in his panel with Ian that he’d created an entire backstory about Derek’s relationship with Peter, and then “Visionary” (3×08) happened and was completely the opposite of everything he thought. Ian has previously talked about how he didn’t want Peter to be a villain. He said that he felt that Peter had spent his entire life searching for acceptance, and the closest he got to it was his relationship with Derek. He also thinks that Peter is too narcissistic to fall in love.

There is so much more that I could talk about, but I feel I’ve rambled enough. Needless to say, these two were the highlight of my convention.

Author: Jamie Sugah

Jamie has a BA in English with a focus in creative writing from The Ohio State University. She self-published her first novel, The Perils of Long Hair on a Windy Day, which is available through Amazon. She is currently an archivist and lives in New York City with her demon ninja vampire cat. She covers television, books, movies, anime, and conventions in the NYC area.

Twitter

Help support independent journalism. Subscribe to our Patreon.

Copyright © The Geekiary