On a Date With Beau Mirchoff: The Awkward Star’s Relationship Advice
The best thing about going on dates with famous guys for our On a Date with… series is looking at them is discovering just how amazing they are at giving advice and understanding women. Either that’s good choosing on our part or plain old luck because I’ve walked away from each and every date with a newfound sense of confidence in knowing that great guys are out there. After spending an afternoon with Beau Mirchoff (of MTV’s Awkward), I am more certain than ever. Completely genuine, down-to-earth, and hilarious, the 25-year-old from Seattle (“I lived there for three days. Then we moved to Victoria, British Columbia. I’m an international actor,” he jokes) met me at burger mecca Short Order to talk everything about love, relationships, and texting Dos and Don’ts.
Glamour: We have your little sister to thank for you gracing our TV screens every week. Tell us the story of how you started your career.
Beau Mirchoff: Yep, my little sister! It was a quite a process because we’d take a ferry to Vancouver from Victoria, and it was literally a 10- to 12-hour day for a two-minute audition. When I was younger, my mom wanted me to do everything to see what I excelled at, so she put me in this dancing, singing, and acting class. I also played football, lacrosse, soccer, and basketball. I really liked the acting class, but I was a really self-conscious kid. I felt so embarrassed. If I messed up, the older kids would laugh, and I hated it. So I stopped that whole arts field until I was 13, when my sister was auditioning. She was a stand-in in a commercial once, and since that [was less intimidating] I started doing that. I then got her agent, and I’d travel every weekend to Vancouver for auditions while still in school. I did that for three years until I got my first job. It was a Hummer H2 commercial, which was a really big thing for my first job. Then it went from there…I got a lead on a feature film, Scary Movie 4, and I got my manager out of that, which eventually got me out to Los Angeles. I wanted to train in L.A. because all the best coaches were out here. So I moved in 2009, got Desperate Housewives that year, and then things just kind of started rolling from there.__
Glamour: What is your go-to date-night music playlist?
Beau: OK, so we’re starting off with a couple of drinks, listening to some Led Zeppelin. Maybe then I segue to some Tom Waits, and later I switch over to some classical…a little Beethoven. I love classical music. Maybe I’d start with Mozart though. So, yeah, some Mozart! [Laughs]
Glamour: Now for some rapid fire questions: long hair or short?
Beau: Long.
Glamour: Red lips or nude?
Beau: If we’re going out and she wants to look classy and nice, sure, red lips. But I love when a girl doesn’t have to try.
Glamour: Walking the red carpet with your girlfriend: Do or Don’t?
Beau: Do. I don’t get these people who try to hide their lives to the public. I am who I am, and if you don’t like me because I have a girlfriend, [it doesn’t bother me]. If you ask me questions about my girlfriend, I’m going to answer them.
Glamour: Making dinner plans with a friend and bringing your long-term girlfriend with you because you think it’s a given?
Beau: Don’t! There is a bit of a blurred line here. Guy time is guy time, and it’s a sacred thing.
Glamour: When you first start dating someone, how soon after do you friend them on Facebook or follow them on Instagram or Twitter?
Beau: If I feel inclined to do something, I just do it. If you go on a date, I think that gives you permission to add said person to your social media sites. Maybe even a direct message or two. [Laughs]
Glamour: I went on a date with a guy who…
Beau: …who friended you that night? Then you run!
Glamour: Ha! No, one guy followed me on Twitter and sent me a friend request on Facebook before we even went out!
Beau: Yeah, that’s a little weird.
Glamour: Then another guy joined Twitter just so he could follow me! That kind of freaked me out.
Beau: Yeah, a little red flag.
Glamour: And another guy sent me an invitation to connect on LinkedIn after our first date. That was a new one for me! [Laughs]
Beau: Oh, guys! Guys are so sad sometimes. [Laughs]
Glamour: OK, making travel plans with a girl you’ve been dating for less than three months: Do or Don’t?
Beau: That’s tough. I think just be honest about it. I think you can. If you’re both really into each other, and there’s a deal on Groupon, like three nights in San Francisco, I think you present the idea… “Hey, I know it’s a little early in the relationship; however, I really think it’d be fun to go to San Francisco with you.”
Glamour: Do or Don’t: breaking up with someone via text message.
Beau: Don’t!
Glamour: At what point can you still get away with a text message breakup if it hasn’t been that long?
Beau: That’s when you do the slow fade. First date, nothing is set in stone, obviously. You stop texting as much and become a bit more distant and unavailable. Let’s be honest, it’s hard to be completely blunt and honest with someone. That’s hard to do as a human. You never want to be mean.
Glamour: Do or Don’t: the girl reaching out after the first date?
Beau: Sure. Do. Guys love that. Oh yeah, especially because the veil has fallen. Women have all the power. They should at least, and they do. If a guy is into a girl, they have all the power. So if a guy gets a text from a girl, that’s awesome. We know she’s into us. That’s a definitive sign.
Glamour: Let’s say you’re clearly dating a guy, but he’s not introducing you as his girlfriend. Should the girl bring it up if she wants to be his girlfriend?
Beau: It’s like the change of a season…you don’t really notice it. It’s just all of a sudden. Like, “Oh, wow, it’s a lot hotter than it used to be!” You just become something, so don’t have the talk. You don’t need it [if it’s the right relationship]. It will happen on its own.
Glamour: If you’ve been dating for less than a couple months and it’s your birthday, should a girl get you a present? If so, what should it be?
Beau: Do. You can’t not get the guy something.
Glamour: Do you take them to dinner and get a gift? Or just go to dinner?
Beau: Hmm, that’s tough. If it’s a few months, yeah, take the guy to dinner and get him something small.
Glamour: Like what? That’s the tough part!
Beau: Something personal is always good, but never the gift card. I made that mistake once with Jeanine. I got her a gift card to Amazon, and a year later she said, “You never give a gift card to someone.” It’s tough! I don’t know. Take her to the movies? I don’t know? Yeah, just take them to dinner. These are really good questions!
Glamour: Finally, what more can you tell us about the rest of Awkward this season and what else is coming up for you?
Beau: We’re in our senior year on Awkward. It’s that transient stage where society still deems you a child, but you see yourself as an adult, so it’s this limbo stage of your life. And all the pressures that ensue from getting into college. I also have a movie coming out called Poker Night. I’m the lead with Giancarlo Esposito; it’s a thriller. I play five different characters. I got to do a lot of police ride-alongs because of this movie, and it was so eye-opening. I also did a play called Orphans, about two orphan brothers. It’s so sad some of the systems we have in place. So many people want to do good, but they don’t have the resources. I donate as much as I can, but I want to be more involved.
You can follow Beau on Twitter and Instagram. An all-new episode of Awkward airs tonight on MTV.
__What’s your favorite piece of advice from Beau?
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