BOAT SHOES, BEER PONG, HAZING – BENNY SKINNER’S SEMI-AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL PRIME AND A24 SERIES OVERCOMPENSATING TAKES A NO-HOLDS-BARRED APPROACH TO MAKING FUN OF THE CLASSICS OF THE 2010s COLLEGE EXPERIENCE. AND ALTHOUGH CORTEON MOORE WAS MORE THAN THRILLED TO DIVE INTO THIS WORLD IN THE PROCESS, THE SHOW’S HEARTFELT MESSAGE WAS HIS MOST IMPORTANT TAKEAWAY FROM THE PROJECT. BEING A DEEP EMPATH, THE CANADIAN ACTOR WAS READY TO BECOME THE BUTT OF THE JOKE AS THE TOXIC BRO GABE IN ORDER TO HELP TELL THE STORY OF FINDING ONE’S IDENTITY AS A YOUNG ADULT. AS THE SHOW PREMIERES ON OUR SCREENS, WE CAUGHT UP WITH MOORE TO TALK ABOUT FLIRTING AND WHY SKINNER IS THE BEST BOSS HE’S EVER HAD.

Left Full look **Valentino**
Right Full look **Courrèges**

Hey Corteon! I’ve been watching the show and loving it. I’m at an episode where you guys are playing a drinking game, and so naturally, the question arises: what is your favourite drinking game to play?

Let me think about it. I want to give you an honest answer.

Yes, it’s a very serious question. [Laughs]

I want to say beer pong, but honestly, I think it has to be King’s Cup. It’s the best way to get the conversation going.

Denim suit and tank top **Levi’s**, sunglasses **Jacques Marie Mage**

So, you’re playing a bro in the show – how much of that bro energy is in you? Was it easy to tap into this mode? [Laughs]

It was one of the scariest things I have ever done in my acting career. I started out doing theatre, and after moving into film and TV, I’d almost exclusively played dramatic roles in dramatic projects. And to enter a comedy like Overcompensating that has so much heart to it, and also play one of the most heightened, energetic characters on the show, felt like a daunting task. It was terrifying because the character of Gabe is so far from who I like to think I am. I see myself as a sensitive, caring and open person. And Gabe is none of the above. He’s just an insane fart bro who’s really only concerned with getting laid, getting drunk, and using his dad’s money to get a good job when he graduates. That said, he is the life of the party, so there’s a bit of Gabe in me because I like to have a good time. Also, I can pull off a boat shoe.

Suit shit and tie **DSquared2**, sunglasses **Jacques Marie Mage**

Speaking of boat shoes, the show has a lot of the classic 2010s fashions. What was your favourite thing to wear as your character?

It would have to be those custom Rowing Blazers that were made for all of the frat bros in the show. I still have it – they were so beautifully made and tailored to our bodies, so we all looked fly in them.

Do you have any personal fashion regrets from that era?

Well, I don’t want to say that I regret wearing them because they were really fly at the time, but it would have to be Nike Roshe Runs. I had a pair in camouflage print that I would wear with the worst joggers you’d ever see. And probably a cat T-shirt, you know, trying to break barriers in fashion.

You recently made a post about the show coming out that said something along the lines of, “The messier, the better.” What’s your messiest quality?

I’m definitely a flirt. That said, am I a flirt, or am I just making eye contact and being nice? But it definitely gets me into trouble every now and then. Let’s just say I’m very attentive. [Laughs]

[Laughs] We can leave it there. As the name of the show explicitly suggests, the series deals with the subject of overcompensating one can feel inclined to while being a young adult. Would you say that you have ever felt like you had to do that growing up?

Yes, I mean, I feel like that all the time, even today. I’ve always known that I wanted to be an actor. But I’ve also always been less of an academic person, and I’ve always felt this need to prove that I was intelligent, that I knew about things from outside of the acting world. As I got older and more comfortable in myself, I’m trying to find more of a connection to that part of myself that’s like, “You know what you’re doing, you know what you’re talking about.” I care about filmmaking, I care about journalism, I care about all these things that go hand in hand with the craft of acting that I really hold so dearly.

As you said earlier, you previously appeared in predominantly dramatic projects; now that you have your first proper comedy under your belt, what are some other challenges you’re looking for as an actor?

I used to want to play a psychopath, a serial killer. I used to want to be a superhero. And now, it really just comes down to wanting to be a part of projects that mean a lot to the people who are making them, and to the audience that is watching them. What was so special about Overcompensating was that it’s a story that’s predominantly about a gay man struggling to come to terms with his identity in college. And even though I play a horrible straight frat guy, that aspect of the story is important because it shows just how awful these types of people can get. So moving forward, I want to make sure that I’m intentional with my choices, thinking about what the point of the story that is being told is and what I am able to bring to the table in telling it.

The series is a comedic take on Benny’s personal experiences of coming out of the closet in college. What impressed you the most about the way he tackled this subject and ran the project?

Benny is the best boss I’ve ever had. He has unlimited energy, I’ve never met anybody like him in my life. After writing and producing the show, he showed up on set every single day, more than any other cast member. It just seemed like he could not wait to get the ball rolling every single day. He was so talented at improvising, he always made sure that people were feeling appreciated and well utilised. He’s a true leader and a true artist. And he's fucking funny, I’ve never met anybody as funny as him.

Interview by Martin Onufrowicz

Photography by Richie Lee Davis

Fashion by Oretta Corbelli

EIC Michael Marson

Grooming by Colleen Dominique

Stylist’s assistant by Allegra Gargiulo