A lot of people dream of being a superhero at one point in their lives. And lucky for Milo Ventimiglia, who plays Peter Petrelli on the highly rated, critically acclaimed television series “Heroes,” getting to be a superhero is all in a day’s work.
But he hasn’t always been the good guy.
“I’ve played roles where people genuinely hate me,” Ventimiglia said. “They walk up to me and tell me they hate me. (But now with “Heroes”) to have smiling faces, to have people approach you with joy in their hearts, makes me feel like I’ve done my job better and that I’ve impacted them.”
For Ventimiglia, who attended UCLA from 1995 to 1999 as a theater major, the inspiration for his most famous role came easily.
Drawing parallels between Peter Petrelli maturing into his super powers and a student maturing during college years, Ventimiglia simply used his own college experience as a frame of reference.
“I think (Peter is) a young man who is trying to find his way and become an adult,” Ventimiglia said. “He’s a bit older than (most college students) are now, but he’s going through those formative years, that experience, trying to find how he can make an impact on his surroundings.”
Though he may be best known for playing Peter Petrelli, Ventimiglia, a versatile actor, has played a variety of roles. From breaking hearts on “Gilmore Girls” as Rory’s love interest, Jess, to portraying an antiheroic serial killer in the upcoming film “Pathology,” each of his roles is a far cry from the one before, a diversity that he values.
“I really honestly hope that people don’t get so connected to one character,” Ventimiglia said. “Understand that I’m an actor, and I’m malleable, and I’m going to play a lot of different roles in my career. To me, I hope fans (or) anyone who watches anything I’ve done will be excited by seeing me do something different. (But) at the same time, you see pieces of me in every performance.”
Ventimiglia knew that he wanted to be an actor from a young age. When it came time to choose where to go to college, he decided that he wanted to remain in Los Angeles to stay close to his family and to pursue his career.
Although he applied to both UCLA and USC, he ultimately chose UCLA for its well-rounded theater program.
“For me, it was going into a place that had a reputation of being good,” he said. “What I did a lot of when I was there was keep my head down and focus on what books I had to be reading, subject matter. I did a lot of set building, hanging a lot of lights for performances and plays.”
The training and advice of his professors and his classes at UCLA helped shape Ventimiglia into the actor he is today. Sandra Caruso, a theater professor at UCLA, taught him in her class, in which she combined art at the Getty and theater by having students act out the characters in the paintings.
“He did one; I remember it was the “˜Europa’ by Reuben,” she said. “He was extremely creative. I just remember ““ this was before he was well-known ““ him being an exceptional actor.”
Despite the number of years since his time at UCLA, Caruso still regards Ventimiglia as one of her best students.
“I’ve taught 15 years and many classes every quarter, and maybe thousands of students,” Caruso said. “He had always stood out as one of the best I ever had, because he was also fairly charming and mischievous. He was inventive and very inspiring to have as a student. He was a very good actor, at a very young age, way back ““ it was in his blood.”
Ventimiglia continued to attend UCLA for four years; however, due to his rising acting career that began to take off during college, he left school to pursue acting full-time before finishing his degree.
“School started to get in the way of the work,” he said. “I always looked at school as, “˜I’m here. I’m getting a degree ““ great. (But) look, I’m not always going to be in school, and I have to look out for my career.’ So, when the opportunity presented itself to leave, I left.”
Despite his success today, Ventimiglia regrets not completing his degree at UCLA. But though he lacks a diploma, he still feels he got something just as important out of his time at school.
“I wish at this point I would have graduated,” he said. “(But) overall, I look at college as a place where you are learning about yourself. You are learning how to interact with people. You are a young adult: you are forming your mind on how you interact, how you approach subjects and people. You learn to work with others … For me, I took the overall experience of UCLA, the school, what it meant to be 18 through 22 and figuring it all out.”