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people know Laura Prepon as the sassy but adorable girl next door on the Fox
sitcom That ‘70s Show.
That’s where she plays Donna Pinciotti, a fast-talking, Aerosmith-loving,
hoop-shooting Wisconsin teenager who recently lost her virginity to an
incredibly lucky neighbor. As it ends up, Laura is a lot like her character. If you didn’t know that this gorgeous redhead with the mile-long legs stars in a hit show, or that she has three indie flicks on the way, or that she used to model in Milan, you might mistake her for just another 20-year-old in baggy pants and a funky old sweatshirt. Because there’s nothing about her that reeks of Hollywood pretension. Shooting the breeze over pasta at her favorite L.A. red-sauce joint, she’s all clear-eyed moxie and down-to-earth frankness. In fact, you get the feeling she’d rather chew glass than walk the red carpet at the latest Hollywood schmooze-fest. It’s likely this attitude is a result of growing up far, far away in the New Jersey suburbs with four older brothers and sisters, and parents who let her get in just enough trouble. That’s where she was first bitten by the acting bug, spending half her time in New York City studying to make it her life. Nonetheless, whether you want to call it a Jersey thing, a tomboy thing, or just plain real, it’s a spirit that has made her—like her character—one of the coolest women on prime time. Are
you getting tired of being known as the ‘70s girl? Not
so much the ‘70s girl, but the “tough girl,” because on the
show I play such a tomboy. I’m trying to learn how to ease up on that a
bit. Like, I went on an audition the other day, and I tried hard to keep it
light, but they still said I was too tough. Maybe
you shouldn’t have challenged the casting director to an arm-wrestling
contest. No,
no! I put on a girly outfit and totally tried to lighten it up! What’s
wrong with being tough? Nothing. I love being the tough girl! And if people want to think that, that’s cool. It probably has a lot to do with my voice being sort of deep. Even my mom thinks I’m my brother sometimes. I’ll answer the phone when I’m at home, and she’ll say, “Brad, put Laura on the phone.” But I love having a deep voice. I think deep voices on girls are sexy. Us, too. Do you play a tomboy in your upcoming indie flick The Best and Brightest, too? No, I play a college girl who really knows how to wrap guys around her finger. It was fun, because on That ‘70s Show I’m always in jeans and a sweatshirt, and in this movie I’m wearing miniskirts, heels—clothes that put Erin Brockovich to shame. I even had to do this fantasy scene where I French-kiss another woman, played by James King, the model. At first I was, like, “Shit, this is too weird!” But it was fine. James and I have been friends for a long time, so it was no big deal once we just did it. You tend to speak your mind. Did that ever get you into trouble growing up back in New Jersey? All the time in high school. I got sent to detention and suspended a lot for being late for class, not showing up, or talking back to teachers. Like one time a teacher said something to me, and I said, “Kiss my ass!” Not as an insult or anything but, you know, just as a reaction, like “What the fuck?” No big deal, but they threw me in detention. So you developed a flair for cussing at an early age? I read somewhere that my mouth is a sewer. It said that I’m a Jersey girl with a sewer mouth. And you know what? I love New Jersey. I’m fucking proud of being from Jersey, and I don’t give a shit what people say. And my mouth is not a sewer, although some people may think it is. I don’t even notice when I swear, so I don’t know how I’m going to tone it down. We like a girl who’s not afraid to toss out a four-letter word now and then. I read this article on Jodie Foster where she said she swears a lot, too, that when she feels strongly about something, she uses strong words. I feel the same way. So, you know, what the fuck? Do you have a hidden talent that would surprise people? Well, for someone who’s not really into hair and makeup, I’m really good at doing other people’s. Whenever I’m back home and I go out with my sisters, I always do them up. Not long ago my sister and I went to see The Lion King on Broadway. I got her a new outfit, and I did her hair and makeup, and she looked so hot. I swear to God. Even I was, like, “Damn!” Maybe you picked up that skill when you were a model. I wasn’t that glamorous, let me tell you. I hated modeling. It’s really cutthroat. My sister was the one who originally talked me into it, and I thought maybe it would be fun to travel. I got to live in Paris, Milan, Brazil, and I liked that part. It was kind of exciting at first, but then I realized it wasn’t what I wanted. I knew I wanted to act. Did you have a special model persona? Yeah, I tried to be the hard-core girl. But when you’re in an evening dress, you can’t really do that. So I quickly realized that I couldn’t be myself. As the first carrot-top to grace a Maxim cover, do you enjoy being a redhead? I love being a redhead. It’s a rare thing, so I think there’s a bond between redheads. You’re also quite tall. Are you worried this might be a problem, since most Hollywood leading men wouldn’t pass the height requirement to ride a roller coaster? I know! I saw Cliffhanger and figured Sylvester Stallone had to be about six feet tall. Then I saw him in person and realized he’s like 5’4” or something. But, yeah, I hope that’s not going to stand in my way. I mean, Nicole Kidman is quite tall and a redhead, and she’s doing all right. Since you missed the ‘70s, what kind of prep work did you do to get your head in that decade? I watched a lot of old ‘70s TV shows, but didn’t really do that much prep. Our characters live in the middle of Wisconsin, so we’re not affected by all the crazy trends that much. What’s your favorite thing about the ‘70s? That there wasn’t as much pressure on people then, or at least on kids. There were fewer restrictions, you know. What’s the worst thing? Platform shoes. Hate ‘em. They’re really dangerous. And I don’t think my insurance covers bad-‘70s-clothes-related accidents. Do you get a lot of fan mail? I never think of myself as any kind of sex symbol, but I get letters from all over, all sorts. It’s really cool. I get a lot from inmates, which is kind of scary. But the best was the guy who wanted to send me a plane ticket to fly me to his prom. What kind of guys do you go for? They have to be funny. That’s top of the list. They have to be able to spark my interest so I want to pursue it, and they have to have an awesome personality—really laid-back. All those things are sexy to me. But he can’t be anal. I can’t stand being around anal people, especially anal people with big egos. Could you date a guy if he was a lousy kisser? You can always turn a bad kisser into a good one. You just have to teach him how to do it right, and if he gets offended, then you have to say, “Dude, you don’t know how to fuckin’ kiss!” But in a fun or playful way. Sounds like you’ve played tutor a few times. Yeah. I’ve been with guys who did stuff I didn’t like, and I’d tell ‘em. And it always works out for the better. What about a guy who’s dull in bed? Well, it’s the same thing. You gotta tell them what you want. What do you sleep in? I used to wear boxers and a tank top, but now I sleep in the nude. It’s kind of weird, because I used to have to wear something to bed, whether it was a tank top or whatever. And now if I have any clothes at all on, it’s really hard to get to sleep. Now that you’re jumping into movies, how do you feel about sex scenes? The weird thing about sex scenes is that the better the actors are, the more uncomfortable they should make you feel, you know? Because if they’re really into it, they’re going to make it look that much more real, right? So I can admire a good sex scene on a technical level, but it still makes me feel like I’m watching something I shouldn’t be watching. Speaking of which, have you ever watched a porno flick? Oh, yeah. I mean, I don’t really watch them, but if guys want to watch that stuff, it’s no big deal. There was this one porno I saw based on Cinderella, but instead of a glass slipper, she has…something else, which I’d rather not mention. People think I’m crazy, because no one has ever heard of it. What’s the last thing you did that you felt guilty about? I just bought a new car when I should be saving money. I put a down payment on a black BMW SUV with black interior, fully loaded, and my business manager doesn’t even know about it yet. But it’s awesome. I had to have it. OK, how about this one: A stranger offers you a million bucks for a night of sex, and you’re guaranteed that no one will ever find out about it. Would you do it? Oh, my God! That’s a tough question. Well, first, I
guess it depends on if I have a boyfriend or not. If I have a boyfriend, then I
wouldn’t do it. If I don’t have a boyfriend, then maybe…buy
you know…a million bucks, and it’s totally safe, and no one would
ever know…yeah, I’d do it. M
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