Now to all of you in the states who have never heard of Devon, it’s a county in the South West of England.  And in the midst of Devon Emrhys  Cooper dreamt of one day becoming an entertainer.  Leaving the confines of the tiny town of Totness, he embarked upon a dancing career at the age of 16 in London where he trained in Ballet.  Though he quickly made his debut in the West End Queen stage show “We Will Rock You”, and challenged his acting abilities to the reception of enthused reviews in Shakespeare, the endless frustrations of not procuring parts worthy of his diverse talents, Emrhys decided enough was enough and would take his chances as an actor in the hotly competitive land of Hollywood.

From almost disembarking the plane from LAX, Emhrys got a part of an English boy in the hit TV series CSI NY.  That was it, he was up and running, and he was perfect for the film rendition of Mama Mia with Meryl Streep which was an invaluable film experience and exposure.  More career ascending reviews coupled with rewards for his portrayal in “Entertaining Mr Sloane”, nothing could stop him.  But then suddenly, as typical in the precarious world of acting, things slowed down and the work offers dried up like a drought.

Time and time again the word “no” was uttered at our hopeful star, it was as if his career had been abruptly interrupted.  But allied with the 3 “Ps”:  positivity, patience and perserverence, after several failed attempts, a part that was well suited for his seductive English accent came up in the final series of Desperate Housewives.   And after all those “no`s” this one big YES was all that is relevant.  Instead of surrendering to what could be construed as previous failed attempts, instead of descending into a career threatening depression, he retained that positive energy and being incredibly pertinacious, he had made himself familiar to the Desperate Housewives` producers, and was portentously rewarded.

When I met Emrhys he was just about to get fitted from the Desperate Housewives`wardrobe for his new character of 
Richard, so he was still very unaware of much the character entails, but all us fans will watch with eager anticipation as the show and he progress.  But like the twisting plotlines of the show I am certain that Richard will be multi layered and contradictory.

As the triple threat, singing, dancing and acting, Emrhys is excited that Hollywood is slowly starting to encourage the production of musicals again.  Mama Mia maybe a long throwback to the glory era of the MGM Musicals, but we so desperately need this genre to be re-explored and hopefully made manifest again.  And talents such as Emrhys would certainly be fully utilised.  .

And what of other projects, well he has just filmed “Walk a Mile in my Pradas” and staring with Tom Arnold “I Want To Get Married” a comedy where he portrays a flamboyantly gay makeup artist, which he describes as immense fun to be allowed to indulge in a hyperbolised character.

Though Emrhys is evidently a confident person, even he is nervous and can be intimidated starring along side movie legends such as Meryl  Streep and Tom Arnold,  but with faith in his own talents, and the positive recognition of others, he has propelled himself forward.  For future plans he hopes to perhaps portray James Bond in his formative years, “Bond before he is Bond,” he says, which I think  a part he would glove to perfection.  Good luck Emrhys on your journey down Wisteria Lane.

Emrhys Cooper’s debut as Richard aired on ABC last Sunday.

by Darren Cheers