CHANDLER MASSEY

If you want to see some of the best acting on television you need to tune into --- a soap opera. I know, I know. A soap opera? Seriously? Yes, seriously. It's "Days of Our Lives", one of the few soap operas left, and you have to tune in to watch Chandler Massey play Will Horton. Chandler stars in my new movie "16-Love" so watching DOOL (as "Days" is known to its fans) has become a habit of mine. In his two years on the show, with the help of some fine writing that elevates the entire medium of soap operas, Chandler has built a character of substance, a frightened and tortured teenager, nerves raw and anger building as he comes to grip with his sexuality. It could have been such a tired cliche, could have been handled with the usual heavy hand of soap operas, but the writers have given Chandler the material to bring a heartbreaking honesty to the story of a young man taking his first steps towards admitting his homosexuality. I'm not the only one who's watching. Even Ed Martin of The Huffington Post (Ten Noteworthy Shows From 2011 You Won't See on Other Ten-Best Lists, December 29, 2011) said:

Days of Our Lives (NBC) -- The bright note in an otherwise terrible year for soap operas (and the millions of loyal viewers who watch them and support their advertisers) was the revitalization of this 46 year old daytime drama, which like so many other soaps during the last decade had been allowed to corrode into something almost unrecognizable. Days in September briskly disposed of the sleazy storylines and frequent violence that had been rotting it from within and replaced them with relationship-driven stories about romance, family, friendship and community -- in other words, the very things soap fans crave but have been largely deprived of for entirely too long. Days also brought back a number of beloved long-absent veteran cast members, including Deidre Hall and Drake Hogestyn, and gave them all great material to play. But Alison Sweeney as scheming Sami Brady and young Chandler Massey as her tormented teenage son Will are stealing the show.

I fought the creative battle of my life to get Chandler cast as the lead in "16-Love". He was perfect for the role in every way. Not only is he a great actor and heart throb handsome, but he is also a great tennis player --- something very important in a movie about tennis players! The moment I walked onto the set, all I heard from everyone, from the Director of Photography to co-stars to grips, was "Chandler's a star". He was wonderful to work with, kind to all and the hardest worker. A dream leading man. "16-Love" is a small movie. It will have a limited release on January 20th and be on television some time after that. Lindsey Shaw, Keith Coulouris, Lindsey Black, Mark Elias, Steven Christopher Parker and Josh Blaylock star in the movie with Chandler and they are all wonderful. All stars or on their way to being stars. This was Chandler's first film, though, and I know some day I'll have the great privilege of saying "I wrote Chandler Massey's first movie".