Josh Kelly talks about his return to Lifetime in new series 'UnReal' [Exclusive]

Having a background in the soap opera One Life to Live, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, and the Lifetime drama Army Wives, Josh Kelly is gearing up for, yet, another dramatic role in the anticipated new weekly series UnREAL

The countdown is on! Just 3 days until the premiere of #UnREALtv on @lifetimetv with @JustJokingJK. pic.twitter.com/P9YUY2z88t

— UnREAL (@UnRealLifetime) May 29, 2015

Kelly’s previous involvement with Lifetime made him even more ecstatic to be working with the network again. “I had such an incredible experience with Army Wives. It was the first time that I was treated like a series regular when I was just a guest star,” he said. “It’s so important for an actor to do scenes and to feel like a part of the cast as opposed to feeling like an intruder. Lifetime just does it right.”

Army Ranger veteran, Josh Kelly, stars as cameraman Jeremy, who has an undying connection with producer and ex-girlfriend Rachel, played by Shiri Appleby, in the one-hour scripted show that provides a tell-all for what really goes on behind the scenes of reality television. For the off-camera look at a bachelor-like reality show, titled Everlasting, it’s all about making “good tv” according to the producers played by actors on UnREAL, including Constance Zimmer, known as executive producer Quinn King. Lifetime and all it’s creativity has mastered the inception of television by fostering up a show within a show.

The anticipation hasn’t just been building up for fans but for the actors as well, as Kelly has been waiting for the premiere of Lifetime’s newest hot spot for quite some time. “I auditioned for it almost 2 years ago. Having it actually coming out is a little unreal as they say.” UnREAL premieres on June 1 at 10 p.m. EDT.

Natalie Murphy from TheCelebrityCafe.com had the chance to talk with Josh Kelly about everything from his acting past to his feelings towards characters and real-life actors from the show.

TCC: Is your new role as Jeremy on UnREAL comparable at all to your previous Lifetime acting on Army Wives?

Josh Kelly:
They’re similar in that both of the guys have good values, but they’re very different characters. My character on Army wives was a really bitter, angry, tortured, injured guy. My character on UnREAL is a good guy who hasn’t been destroyed yet.

TCC: What’s the tension like between characters Jeremy and Rachel who previously dated?

Josh Kelly: It’s a real love kind of relationship. You don’t ever lose those. It’s forever. That’s what Jeremy and Rachel have. They have a forever bond and that’s the problem. Sometimes you may not be right for someone. But you still try to figure out whether or not you love them or whether you should love them. They’re trying to figure everything out just like all of us.

TCC: Is there an off-screen love connection with Rachel/Shiri Appleby as well?

Josh Kelly: Shiri is one of my favorite scene partners ever. She’s such a good actor to work off of. Shiri and I can act naturally when doing scenes, but no, there’s not like an off-screen romance or anything.

TCC: Looking through your Twitter, it seems as though you have a stronger relationship with Constance Zimmer with your insane amount of Retweets and replies to her. Would you say she’s your favorite co-star?

Josh Kelly: Her and Shiri are the two leads of the show in my opinion. I’m just one of the guys. I love watching Constance work but I love watching Shiri work. But, Freddie (Stroma) and I were roommates during the show. So, he’s my favorite. Just because we were best friends while we were shooting.

TCC: One tweet talked about the naked promo photos of the cast seen on billboards for the show. Were you all actually naked together?

Josh Kelly: They shot us individually. I didn’t see the women do it, but I know I was wearing underwear underneath that.

TCC: I know Constance Zimmer replaced Megyn Price as Quinn. Did you get the chance to work with her at all before she left?

Josh Kelly: I love Megyn. I think she’s one of the most talented smartest actresses I’ve ever worked with. We became very good friends. It was a bummer, but it makes sense. Constance was more right for the role. It’s weird actually liking the person who didn’t get to keep the role.
TCC: Having torn up your shoulder in Jarhead 2, did the weight of the camera bug you as Jeremy the cameraman?

Josh Kelly: The producers were so afraid when they cast me. They were like “well, he can’t hold a camera now.” I told them, “Don’t worry about me.” I was fine. I wore a brace during initial pilot. I had a dislocated knee for two years in the army and I’d have to pop it into socket every time I did an air fall, crash jumping off of helicopters. I can hold a camera.

TCC: Are you actually filming shots for the show or is the camera just a prop to help show of your muscles?

Josh Kelly: When we shot the pilot I was filming things, but when we shot the series I wasn’t. I think there were Union rules. I would’ve maybe had to be in the camera union. I don’t actually know what union rules are. I probably should since I play a camera guy on TV.

TCC: Will you be watching the first episode with your fellow cast members at a premiere party?

Josh Kelly: Yeah of course. I loved working with everyone and I love hanging out with them. They’re all fun. You meet a lot of cool people acting, at least I have. I’m very fortunate.

TCC: Any other upcoming films or projects in addition to UnREAL?

Josh Kelly: I have a short film that I did that is one of the hardest things I’ve ever worked on called Prisoner of War. It deals with soldier suicides and the day-to-day struggle of veterans that they have with themselves everyday. I got to see a rough cut and it is really powerful. It’s really incredible with what the director did. It’s going to be released in a film festival and on the Internet at some point. I can’t talk about how much we did, but we did some crazy things that have never been done on camera.

Image via Twitter courtesy of Josh Kelly

photo courtesy of Roger Wong/INFphoto.com