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Lee Norris captures hearts as Mouth on The CW’s One Tree Hill. He’s been a common face since the early 90s, especially in ever immortal hit Boy Meets World. Lee’s fans have grown up with him as he transitions into new roles, and now Lee himself is all grown up. Shed whatever impressions you might have had about this once geeky adolescent – Lee Norris is about to become your latest crush!

THE STAR SCOOP:
Tell us a little bit about what you’re up to right now.

LEE NORRIS:
Right now I am hard at work on season four of One Tree Hill, and I’m enjoying that. We’re shooting in North Carolina, which is where I’m from, so that’s really fun. I’m sort of waiting for the release of a movie I did, it’s called Zodiac, it’s coming out in January. Other than that, just hanging out with friends and family, and enjoying life.

THE STAR SCOOP:
For those who don’t know, can you tell us a little more about your character in One Tree Hill?

LEE NORRIS:
I play Mouth McFadden, who is sort of the nice guy in Tree Hill. He’s a fun character to play because he gets to do a lot of things that are funny. We have comical story lines with some of our episodes. For example, I got to sing Karaoke on a dare. He is known to be a lightweight in the drinking department, so in a recent episode, he had one beer and sort of threw up. I also get to do some real serious stuff on our show. He was friends with a character who ended up bringing a gun to school, and ended up taking his own life. I get to do a wide range of stuff, and that makes for a fun character to play, and hopefully for a fun character to watch, as well.

THE STAR SCOOP:
With the CW as a new network, why did One Tree Hill get to stick around [in your opinion]?

LEE NORRIS:
There’s no question that our fan base is the reason we’re around for another season. We’re not necessarily a very critically acclaimed show, unfortunately. But that’s not who we make our show for. We make our show for our fans, and for the people. They are so passionate, and I really got to witness it firsthand last year. We went to different appearances around the country and got to meet people face to face. They are so dedicated and really wanted another season. I think our writers also did a great job of making people want to watch another year of the show. They didn’t write last year’s finale as the finale to a series. They wrote it as the finale to a season. Yeah, we made it to the new network, but now we want to prove ourselves, and we want to thank our fans for getting us here.

THE STAR SCOOP:
Can you tell us a little bit about Zodiac and your role in it?

LEE NORRIS:
It’s a movie directed by David Fincher, who is a director that I really look up. He’s done some of my favorite movies including Se7en and Flight Club, all those dark, gritty movies that guys my age everywhere just were really waiting for to come out. I have a small part in the movie because One Tree Hill was nice enough, basically, to let me off to do it. I play one of the victims of the Zodiac serial killer that is a true story. That serial killer existed and terrorized the San Francisco Bay area in the 70s. I’m actually in the very beginning of the movie. Obviously, I can’t give too much away, but it is a serial killer and I am his victim, so you can figure it out [laughs]. I got to work with a great director and a great cast. It was great.

THE STAR SCOOP:

Probably by asking this question at all, it’s being answered, but in terms of Boy Meets World sort of following you everywhere you go, quite obviously, how have you been able to distance yourself from that stereotype of that nerdy kid? What have you done in the roles you go after now?

LEE NORRIS:
That’s a great question. It is difficult for actors that are on sitcoms, or especially hit sitcoms or hit shows, once they’ve been on it, you’re sort of locked into a certain role. Minkus on Boy Meets World was a great character, and I loved playing it, and I’ll never regret it. But you’re right, I’ve had to be careful about the roles that I’ve picked since then. What a lot of people don’t realize about my time on that show was that Boy Meets World ran for like, seven or eight years, but I actually was only on the first season. People are always surprised to hear that, I think that’s because it’s so heavily in reruns these days. But I think it sort of worked to my advantage that I was only able to do it for a year, because as soon as I left the show, I came back to North Carolina, and I started working on other projects that were very different from that stereotypical nerd. And I also took some time away. I went to college and tried to grow up a little bit. When I emerged from college, One Tree Hill came about. When I looked at that role, I was very selective when I looked at the script. I thought, is this another nerd? Is this what I’m going to be locked into if this show gets picked up? What appealed to me so much about Mouth and about One Tree Hill, is that he’s not a jock by any means obviously, but you also can’t stereotype him as a nerd. What he is is sort of a kid who floats between all those different groups, and that’s very much who I was in high school and in college. I think that’s a much more realistic presentation of character. I’ll always look for a great role, no matter what. If I find another great role who happens to be a nerdy guy, but he has some redeeming qualities, then I may go for that, because I’m always going to look for the role that’s appealing and interesting to me.

THE STAR SCOOP:
How does it feel, though, still, to have been part of something that, thirteen years [since it started], is still [so popular]?

LEE NORRIS:
It’s an amazing feeling. It’s an amazing experience to have someone come up to you, and say that they feel like they grew up with you, and that’s what happens to me a lot. It’s been amazing to have that kind of reaction, and I just feel really blessed, that I’ve been able to be part of these shows that are a part of a certain youth out there, a certain age group. I just feel really blessed. And you’re right, it is kind of cool to look back on it. Sort of like a living year book. It’s so surreal to look at yourself as a twelve-year-old.

THE STAR SCOOP:
People will get an idea of who you are from the roles they see you in on TV. How would you describe who you are as a person, separate from you characters?

LEE NORRIS:
I would that say that that’s some of myself into those characters. I think any actor does that, because you have to draw from your own life experiences when you act. I really am just a guy that I’m all about having fun in life. I really thrive around people that enjoy life and that love having fun. I know life can’t be fun all the time. I’m certainly realistic, but I’m drawn to people that are more naturally optimistic and that love life. I sort of shy away from people that are kind of moody, that don’t seek out an appreciation for life. I feel like I’ve been very blessed, and that I really don’t have any reason to complain about the way my life has been so far. So I’m very grateful, for family, for friends, for this career, and I think that I’m kind of a clown in life. I’m always joking, having fun. I’m also very loving. I love my family and my girlfriend, and the people that enrich my life. I’m not sure that that’s different from Mouth or Minkus, I’m sure that they’re very loving, fun people as well, but they’re sort of in a box.

THE STAR SCOOP:
Where do you want to go from here?

LEE NORRIS:
It’s so difficult to tell in this business. Actors go from one job to another, and sometimes there [are] big long breaks in between those jobs, and other times you bounce along. I think what I have to continue to operate on is what I’ve told you earlier, that I’m just going to look for great stories, and great roles. I looked at a lot of projects, and I really discovered that I have to work on projects that genuinely interest me and intrigue me, because if I don’t work on those kinds of projects, I’m not sure that I’m going to be able to give a great performance that is really worthy of people seeing. No matter whether it’s in television, or in film, or on stage, or whatever it is, it just has to be something that is interesting to me. Obviously, there is a lot of luck involved, and a lot of other things that go into whether you actually get those parts. But, that’s the main thing, it to continue looking for stuff that’s fun, and hopefully people will really want to see.

If you live near the Mall of America, you can see One Tree Hill‘s Lee Norris and James Lafferty at a signing there from 12-2, Saturday, November 11th. Lee would love for the fans to come out!