Peter Facinelli Discusses the Difference Between Acting for Film and Television

Peter Facinelli is currently playing two very different types of doctors; Dr. Fitch ‘Coop’ Cooper on Showtime’s Nurse Jackie and vampire-turned-doctor Carlisle Cullen in the Twilight franchise.

The roles themselves are diverse, but Facinelli also notices major differences between acting for film and acting for the small screen.

He told the Los Angeles Times that television is not nearly as finite and cut and dry as film, saying, “In television you don’t really know where you’re going to be in Episode 7. It keeps it fresh in the sense that you only know what your character is going to do that week, and you’re not exactly sure how it will develop.”

With Nurse Jackie, he says that “It’s kind of fun for me because sometimes I’ll pick the writer’s brain and what’s going on with Coop for the season and they have a rough idea. They don’t really like to tell us, but sometimes they’ll spill some info — it’s almost like going to a medium and they’re telling you your future. But things can change. They’ll throw you a curveball. It keeps you on your toes.”

Written by Jennifer Abidor