Max Thieriot Talks Shirtless Scenes in 'Bates Motel'! (Exclusive)

Check out our new exclusive interview with Max Thieriot from one of our favorite shows Bates Motel!

The 25-year-old actor plays Dylan Bates, a man working in a drug operations, who is also the son of Norma (Vera Farmiga) and older brother of Norman (Freddie Highmore).

Max recently chatted on the phone with JustJared.com about his character in the second season of the show, going shirtless for the show, what he loves about racing cars, and what he last downloaded for music.

“There’s actually another scene that will come up where I have my shirt off. I just kind of started preparing for that, but, to be honest, I was actually a little disappointed because I wasn’t supposed to be shirtless that day. I just kind of started my diet. I started cutting down a little bit. I was a little disappointed that day because I just ate a giant breakfast and hadn’t worked out and done all these things and then they say ‘you’re going to take a shirt off in the scene.’ I was like, ‘no, really?’” Max shared about his shirtless scene.

Click inside to read the rest of the interview with Max Thieriot…

JustJared: For those people, who haven’t seen Bates Motel yet, why should they tune into the show?

Max Thieriot: I think it’s entertaining, it’s captivating, it’s suspenseful, and it’s different I think. I think the writing’s great, the acting is great, I think all-around it has dark comedy, and obviously a lot of suspense and drama. It’s a psychological thriller and even action, it’s a lot wrapped up in one.

JJ: It’s scary but in a different way not horror like!

MT: Yes, it’s more suspenseful and psychological, instead of being just out-front and obvious about gore.

JJ: So in the last episode, Dylan lands himself in the hospital and he meets his boss. How will this relationship with his boss evolve over the rest of the season?

MT: It will definitely evolve. We are bringing in a new character, I think it will be an interesting sort of relationship between the two. Even though it’s his boss, there’s hesitation but also an instant sexual tension.

JJ: What made your character decide to stand in the middle of the road and go face to face with the car coming right at him?

MT: At this point, after all the news that Dylan has been given, he’s kind of just lost and basically he sort of believes that nobody really cares for him and that he’s an outsider. He doesn’t fit in and he’s at a point where he sort of having a little bit of a “don’t care” mentality. He is kind of just risking it all. He’s not thinking of the consequences. He’s not really worried about anything, he’s kind of just acting in the moment. There’s a part of him that doesn’t really care if he dies.

JJ: For scenes like that, did you do your own stunts?

MT: For some of them, but the actual car hits they wouldn’t let me do, which I get. There was a stunt guy who did the actual roll on the car.

JJ: Was that actually you hitting the ground?

MT: Yeah, I hit the ground. Basically you shoot it in little segments. I did all of it except for the actual car roll hit. It’s crazy, but it’s fun to do. Being the wild man myself, I kind of have a tendency to want to do those things. I have this theory that stuntmen are trained at what they do, but they’re still human. Physically if he can do it, I can do it. I always feel like I kind want to do it myself, but obviously insurance reasons they really frown upon that.

JJ: A few episodes ago, we learn that Dylan’s father is actually his mother’s brother. How would you react to that news if it happened to you?

MT: I think it would obviously be a really tough thing to deal with. I think I would have a certain amount of disbelief and disgust. There would definitely be a lot of built-up anger and hatred that surfaces because of never knowing about this and a lot of questions. I think there are a lot of things that your mind would race through receiving some information like that.

JJ: Your character’s relationship with his mom has its ups and downs to say the least. With this incest confession, what can we expect from the mother son relationship for the rest of the season?

MT: You can expect to see it’s constant ups and downs. I think Norma and Dylan’s relationship is constantly a roller coaster. As soon as it starts to get a little better, it always seems to dive off the cliff. That’s how their relationship has always been and that’s why it’s never been able to be a constantly happy relationship between the two of them.

JJ: Your character adds a lot of comic relief with his dialogue in the first season. At first, we saw him as the tough guy, and then we saw his more softer side. How do you think Dylan has evolved and changed in the second season?

MT: He’s beginning to show a little bit more vulnerability and that he is capable of not just being that sarcastic and kind of smug. In a lot of scenes, you see the immature, tough guy, badass and now you get to see the softer sides to him. You also see that he’s a little bit more emotional deep down. He has a lot of stuff that’s been building up over the years and now we’re starting to see some of that now. It”s nice to bring the other sides to Dylan that we didn’t see last season.

JJ: Dylan seems to be the only sane person in the Bates family, how Is he able to stay sane in such a chaotic environment?

MT: I think hes somewhat sane, but I think it’s all relative. I think he seems sane because the other two are a pretty mess at the moment, but I do think that he still has issues. He’s Norma’s son. I do believe that’s where alot of it stems from, but he has a little bit of a side to him and even more that we haven’t even seen yet. Dylan is the window into the lives of Norma and Norman for the viewer. He gives the viewer this perspective of their relationship. He’s kind of someone that people can relate to more in certain ways.

JJ: You had to go shirtless for that one scene this season. How did you prepare for it?

MT: There’s actually another scene that will come up where I have my shirt off. I just kind of started preparing for that, but, to be honest, I was actually a little disappointed because I wasn’t supposed to be shirtless that day. I just kind of started my diet. I started cutting down a little bit. I was a little disappointed that day because I just ate a giant breakfast and hadn’t worked out and done all these things and then they say “you’re going to take a shirt off in the scene.” I was like, “no, really?” There wasn’t really a lot that went into that. I’ve been on a constant gym binge for the past few years now. It’s been a constant gradual binge. It’s always constantly changing as they want to be big and then they want you to be be skinnier or cut.

JJ: You’re always carrying a gun on the show, but what’s your favorite prop onset?

MT: The gun is definitely on the top of my list, but I don’t have that many props. I guess my motorcycle I like. But they haven’t seen that much of it this year at all. I did like the motorcycle. It was also kind of fun was when we shot at the drydocks. I like that set a lot in general because I think they do a really great job on it.

JJ: What is one word that you would use to describe Freddie?

MT: Sincere. Freddie is like the nicest guy. He’s so smart, he’s pretty intelligent that sometimes, it’s frustrating to talk to him because he so much smarter than you are (laughs). The most impressive thing about Freddie is how he’s able to juggle acting, but he also goes to Cambridge. He speaks four languages – French Spanish Arabic and there’s another one. It’s really impressive!

JJ: How about one word for Vera?

MT: Loving

JJ: If you have any advice for your character Dylan, what would it be?

MT: Survive.

JJ: What’s your favorite offset moment in the past two seasons?

MT: Last year, we had a really great day where Freddie, my wife, and I rode around the park. I want to say it was a four mile bike ride, so not that far. We hiked Grouse Mountain, it’s called the Grouse Grind and that was pretty awesome.

JJ: If Bates Motel is renewed for a third season, what do you want to see happen to Dylan and the rest of the family?

MT: Just more shocking scenes, scenarios, story lines, and other new really cool characters. it’s really cool when they introduce these new quirky, strange, or dangerous characters into the mix. They’re are fun ya know?

JJ: You guys are shooting in Vancouver, what are your favorite things to do when you aren’t shooting?

MT: I like to hike around, walk around town, and check out new cuisine restaurants. There are great places in Vancouver. I guess I go to the gym a lot. I have friends that come and visit and I show them around town. We shoot weekdays and we have weekends off. When football is on, I’m pretty much glued to the TV Sunday all day.

JJ: What’s the craziest fan encounter since being on the show?

MT: I guess people have asked if I was Dylan or not know my real name. I haven’t had too many crazy fan encounters. I noticed, for the most part, people are a little more apprehensive. A lot of people are shy and nervous to talk to me, I don’t know why. People would dance around coming up to me. Don’t get me wrong, there’s the occasional person that will ask a million questions and come right up to you.

JJ: Besides from Bates Motel, what other projects are you involved in that you’re able to share?

MT: I’m getting ready to shoot in June, Texas Rising. It’s a miniseries on the History channel. The same people that did Hatfields & McCoys. It’s sort of the western 1800s historical piece about the Alamos and the original band of Texas Rangers.

JJ: We see that you participated in a Toyota celebrity pro race. What is it about racing that peaks your interest?

MT: It’s a competition. I’m a competitive person so I like to compete. The adrenaline of racing cars at high speeds. When I was younger I did a lot more on the streets, but obviously you’re putting a lot of other people lives at risk on the street. If you can contain that onto a race track and only put yourself at risk, think it’s a better place to be doing it. I think it’s also fun to compete with other actors, celebrities, and racecar drivers on the track and kind of see where you matchup against those people.

JJ: We see that you have a Twitter and Instagram, who’s your favorite person to follow on both?

MT: Man, I don’t think I have a favorite person. I follow a lot of people I know, I love following all my friends on there. But they are all different, depending on what they do. Their posts are all unique and different to what they do and I like to hackle with them back-and-forth over Twitter (laughs).

JJ: What is the last song you downloaded?

MT: Neon by Chris Young.

JJ: What’s the last show that you binge watched on?

MT: Well I just rewatched Hatfields & McCoys. I haven’t gotten into the Netflix game yet. I’ve been to watch on Eastbound and Down, Duck Dynasty, and Game of Thrones. A real mix.

JJ: If you weren’t acting, what would you see yourself doing?

MT: If I hadn’t started acting and had done something else I would’ve probably started racing. I don’t know how far that would’ve ended up. It was about the same time I started acting, I started racing go karts and I quit racing go karts because I was acting.

JJ: What’s a fun tidbit that not many people know about you?

MT: I own my own wine label. It’s called Senses.

Bates Motel airs on Mondays on A&E at 10/9c!

Interviewer: Nhu Tran (@Nhu_Tran)