TV Guide: Sarah Shahi interview
Here’s a very fun interview with out gorgeous Dani, Sarah Shahi, conducted by TV Guide. While most of it is spoiler-free, a couple of question at the beginning do contain spoilers, so they’re hidden behind a spoiler tag, only click if you’re ready to get spoiled, otherwise enjoy the rest of this great interview!
For Sarah Shahi, Life Is Beautiful
by Ileane Rudolph
Sarah Shahi’s got a cool cop show, a hot new look — and she’s getting married. What’s not to love? We talked to the LIFE (Oct. 6 at 10 pm/ET, NBC and then Fridays at 10 pm) star about what’s ahead for Dani this season, her stint on THE L WORD and growing up in Texas with a name like Aahoo.
TV Guide: Your character on LIFE, cop Dani Reese, is looking pretty hot this season. Did she get a makeover?
Sarah Shahi: My hair is down! You will never see that bun again. We wanted to make the show a little sexier, a bit more fun. [Laughs] Next thing, a bikini.
TV Guide: How’s working with Damian Lewis?
Sarah Shahi: I just wish he’d keep his hands off me, that hound. No, he’s a happily married man. We laugh a lot and we sing a lot.
TV Guide: Do you like being surrounded by guys on the show?
Sarah Shahi: I love being surrounded by a bunch of charismatic men, but when we have a female guest star, I’m like, “You’re my new best friend!” I do talk to the female crew about gyno visits, men and tequila. My favorite subjects.
TV Guide: I bet you had plenty of gyno chat on THE L WORD. Did you think twice about joining that lusty lesbian drama?
Sarah Shahi: No, I was broke. But I had a wonderful time. When I got to the set, I was introduced to Kate Moennig [who plays Shane], and then the director said, “OK, Kate, in this scene you’re [servicing] Sarah.” I was like, “Oh, boy, I hope my mom never sees this.” But she was cool.
TV Guide: On screen, you’re fearless — lots of sexy scenes without many clothes. Are you as free in real life?
Sarah Shahi: I am. Sometimes to my fiancé’s frustration, I walk around the house naked with the windows up and don’t even think about it. My mother’s a very liberal woman from Spain who taught me there’s no difference between your hand and your breast.
TV Guide: Who’s your fiancé?
Sarah Shahi: Steve Howey. He was on Reba. He has the most amazing heart I’ve ever come across.
TV Guide: Sarah Shahi’s not your real name, is it?
Sarah Shahi: No, it’s Aahoo, which means gazelle in Farsi. Aahoo Jahansouz Shahi.
TV Guide: Your dad’s from Iran. Was he conservative in your upbringing?
Sarah Shahi: My parents divorced when I was 10, but when my father was there, he was trying to create almost like a little prison for me. There’s all sorts of issues with my dad that have helped me with this character. He had addiction problems, too.
TV Guide: Don’t you have a connection to the former Iranian royal family?
Sarah Shahi: I do. My great-great-grandfather was a shah back in the 1800s. Unfortunately, I don’t have any gold coins or jewels to show for it.
TV Guide: What was it like growing up Spanish-Iranian in Euless, Texas?
Sarah Shahi: It’s a tiny little town and a charming place to grow up. But every boy I liked never liked me back. To be beautiful in Texas, you had to be blonde and blue-eyed and have a name like Ann. Aahoo was a little weird for them.
TV Guide: Tell us something surprising about you.
Sarah Shahi: My biggest fantasy was to have a pie thrown in my face, and I always said whoever did that, that’s the guy I’d marry. My other boyfriends never had the nerve, but on my birthday two years ago, Steve threw a big gooey pie in my face. It was awesome.
[ Source: TV Guide ]