Soap Opera Digest: GUIDING LIGHT was one of your first acting experiences.
Paul Wesley: Yeah. I had only done one show prior to that, which was ANOTHER WORLD [he played Sean McKinnon in 1999], but the show got canceled the minute I joined the cast. GUIDING LIGHT was amazing, though. I got so lucky because I had just gotten into acting and I wasn't comfortable yet in front of the camera. I was exploring new territory and soaps are such amazing training. GL allowed me to be comfortable in front of the camera and really learn my lines. It prepared me for the future.

Digest: What was your favorite memory of GUIDING LIGHT?
Wesley: The whole thing was a giant favorite memory because I was in high school and all my buddies had all these crap jobs. I felt like I was in Big. I was going into the city all by myself. I had this cool, adult job, and I was getting paid. It was just so amazing being in New York. Also, I made a lot of really good friends. One of my best friends in the world is Paulo Benedeti [ex-Jesse]. He took me in and became like my older brother. I looked up to him so much. He had this really cool apartment in New York, and he'd invite me to hang out with him and his friends. I don't know why he wanted to hang out with me 'cause I was like this dorky kid. It was surreal.

Digest: Who else do you keep in touch with?
Wesley: Well, everyone was so cool, like Tammy Blanchard [ex-Drew]. She was so sweet. Brittany Snow [ex-Susan] was awesome. I've worked with Brittany since, on AMERICAN DREAMS. Jordi Vilasuso [ex-Tony] is a good buddy. I talk to him often. I talk to Paulo often. I haven't talked to Tammy in awhile, and I run into Brittany at events, but we don't really keep in touch otherwise. It's cool when we run into each other.

Digest: Since being on GL, you've appeared on teen shows like SMALLVILLE as Lucas, THE O.C. as Donnie and EVERWOOD as Tommy. What were those experiences like?
Wesley: SMALLVILLE and THE O.C. were quick gigs, although it's funny because with SMALLVILLE, I signed on to do a bunch of episodes, but I actually only did one and have gotten more exposure from that one episode than any other. It's crazy. I'm going to London next week for a SMALLVILLE convention that they're flying me out for. People really are huge fans of the show, and my last name was Luthor, so it's bigger than just being a guest star. I'm the half brother of Lex Luthor, which is a big deal. EVERWOOD was the biggest, commitment-wise. I did a huge arch [as Amy's bad-boy boyfriend], shooting up in Utah. I became really good friends with Emily Van Camp [Amy]. She's one of my best friends, we talk all the time. I also really loved shooting in Utah because I'm a huge snowboarder.

Digest: You changed your name recently. What prompted that?
Wesley: Wasilewski was too hard to pronounce! I asked my family's permission to change it, and it's really helped my career.

Digest: Tell us about your new project, Fallen.
Wesley: This show is about a seemingly normal 18-year-old kid. On the day of his 18th birthday, weird things start happening. He gets these terrible headaches and has nightmares. He hears all these voices and finds out that he can actually communicate with animals and speak every language in the world. All this supernatural stuff happens, so eventually, through a chain of events, he finds out that he's actually a Nephilim, which is a half-human, half-angel. Then he finds out that there are these powers that are sent to kill him and any other Nephilim. It's a whole Biblical story. He also finds out that he's the redeemer of all the fallen angels. He has a huge responsibility to redeem the fallen ones and send them back to the Creator. It's an interesting mythological/action/adventure show and I'm really proud of it.

Digest: Fallen first airs as a two-hour movie, but then in June 2007, four one-hour episodes will air. Why is there such a gap between episodes?
Wesley: There are so many special effects on the show, which takes awhile. They're making up for that by launching a mythological online game, like The Lost Experience, that people can follow. It'll keep the audience hooked for a year. It's supposed to be pretty amazing. Then in 2007, four more one-hour episodes will air. Then, either there will be a conclusion or there's a possibility that the show will branch out and actually be a regular series. For now, it'll be a six-part miniseries.

Fallen airs on Sunday, July 23, at 8 p.m. (ET/PT) on ABC Family.