James Marsden dropped by the Today show to talk about his new tearjerker The Best Of Me.

The hunky 41-year-old actor also brought a picture from his high school yearbook that caused a wave of excitement too.

To James’ half-hearted dismay, the photo of his younger self appeared on screen, grinning ever so confidently and sporting the haircut so cherished back in the ’80s and so maligned now – the mullet.

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The Best of Me actor, who starred alongside Gosling in The Notebook, dishes out parenting advice to the new dad who recently had his first child with the actress.

He’s following in the footsteps of Ryan Gosling and Channing Tatum by taking the male lead in a Nicholas Sparks film.

But one thing that 41-year-old actor James Marsden has on his predecessors is parenting experience, as a father of three.

Speaking to Yahoo Celebrity at the launch of his new film ‘The Best of Me’, the Oklahoma native dished out some advice to new parents, Ryan Gosling and Eva Mendes.

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By Justine Harman
OCTOBER 14, 2014

For as long as I can remember, I’ve been enchanted by James Marsden’s hyperrealized good looks: those striking cheekbones, the oversaturated blue eyes, and that “Hey, Girl” smirk. But when we meet at The Fat Radish, a sun-drenched farm-to-table eatery on New York’s lower east side, I realize what I always realize when I meet actors: James Marsden is just one man. He’s not some bizarre amalgamation of every out-of-reach hottie and chiseled screen star I’ve ever idolized. He’s just a guy who makes jokes that don’t land, gets worried that he’s hurt your feelings (when he hasn’t), and connects with whomever happens to be in his orbit—be she a microphone-wielding journalist or a drink-bearing waitress. (No wonder he was so good at playing Liz Lemon’s adorable hot dog vendor husband, Criss Cross, on 30 Rock.)

And yes, of course, he’s divine looking. But when he challenges you to a full-on beer chug—according to the actor, he and his dad both possess an uncanny ability to rocket back cold ones—you forget that he’s the star of Nicholas Sparks’ latest, The Best of Me, out Friday, and not just another frat boy teasing the hopeless competitor inside you. And therein lies James Marsden’s charm: No matter how old we get, he stays the same age. Save for a few salty flecks at his temples, he’s as arresting and youthful now as he was in 2000’s cult-loved Gossip (you know, the dark, sexy one with Norman Reedus and Kate Hudson).

Here, we grill the 41-year old on the curse of being born beautiful, his real-life high school sweetheart, and what it’s really like to play second banana to Gosling:

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Based on the best-selling novel by author Nicholas Sparks, The Best of Me tells the story of two former high school sweethearts, Dawson (James Marsden) and Amanda (Michelle Monaghan), who find themselves reunited after 20 years apart. In their hometown for the funeral of their beloved friend, they are suddenly forced to face the love that they’ve never forgotten, as well as the life that got in their way. The film also stars Luke Bracey, Liana Liberato, Caroline Goodall, Sebastian Arcelus, Jon Tenney and Gerald McRaney.

At the film’s press day, actor James Marsden spoke to Collider for this exclusive interview about playing the romantic lead that the audience is rooting for (unlike in his last Nicholas Sparks film), sharing the role with Luke Bracey, getting the first kiss right, and how much he enjoyed working with Michelle Monaghan. He also talked about how he kept his appearance in X-Men: Days of Future Past a secret, as well as what attracted him to the highly anticipated HBO sci-fi/Western series Westworld, how Jonah Nolan sold him on the project, the terrific cast (which includes Anthony Hopkins, Ed Harris, Evan Rachel Wood, Thandie Newton, Jeffrey Wright, Rodrigo Santoro and Miranda Otto), and how he hopes that it goes to series so that he’ll get to do more. Check out what he had to say after the jump.

Your first time around with a Nicholas Sparks movie (he was in The Notebook), you were not the guy the audience was rooting for, to get the girl.

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For the stars of The Best of Me, James Marsden and Michelle Monaghan, having Luke Bracey and Liana Liberato play their younger selves was a blessing, and for Marsden a bit of a curse!

“It was great to see Luke go in there and sweep her off her feet. He set the bar a little high for me,” Marsden said in our exclusive video interview, as he and Monaghan laughed. “In the gym, too!”

Bracey and Liberato play Dawson and Amanda as young sweethearts who are basking in the glow of first love.

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James Marsden was honored to take over the late Paul Walker’s role in The Best of Me, the handsome actor told Us Weekly in an interview on Monday, Oct. 6.

“All I can say about that is he is just one of those tremendous actors that was even that much more special of a human being,” Marsden told Us when asked about Walker. “There was a wonderful energy about him and he was a terrific actor. You always want to be good stepping into a role like this but [it] felt a little bit more of an honor to play this role because of him,” the X-Men actor shared.

Walker, who died in a car accident in November 2013, was originally cast to play Dawson in Nicholas Sparks’ upcoming romance flick. A month after Walker’s tragic death, the role was offered to Marsden.

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James Marsden, the actor who played mutant hero Cyclops in the original ‘X-Men’ trilogy, has backed his ‘The Best of Me’ co-star Luke Bracey to replace him in ‘X-Men: Apocalypse’.

‘X-Men: Apocalypse’ writer Simon Kinberg exclusively revealed to Yahoo Movies last week that Cyclops, Storm, and Jean Grey would probably have to be recast for the next X-Men film, due to its 1980s setting, and Marsden thinks Bracey – who plays a younger version of himself in ‘The Best of Me’ – could be just the man to fill his distinctive visor.

“Yeah, that’d be great [if Luke Bracey took over as Cyclops],” he explains in our exclusive video below, “Then he could just eventually take over being me. Then I would never get another role as long as I live!”

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Drama, comedy, music… latte art? Is there anything pretty-boy-turned-actor A-lister James Marsden isn’t good at?

Anyone familiar with actor James Marsden’s body of work has probably come away with the notion that he’s got a pretty broad skill set. He can effectively pull off drama (The Notebook), comedy (30 Rock), romantic comedy (27 Dresses), superheroics (X-Men), singing (Enchanted), and dancing (Hairspray). But that’s only the half of it.

Away from the screen, the actor admits he has a passion for perfecting… well, whatever happens to catch his fancy at the moment. “I’m a hobbyist,” he says. “I get into things, and then that’s all I do.” The pursuits at which he’s become a functional expert are many, diverse, and ever-growing, from the understandable to the arcane: triathlons, cycling, fly-fishing, auto racing, Star Wars, guitars, photography, wristwatches… even coffee. “I got this really fancy espresso maker and I had to learn how to pour latte art,” he explains. “I had this professional barista come to my house and show me exactly how to do it. I got obsessed with grinding my own beans.”

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CraveOnline: We always hear about the biographies that actors do for their characters. Your character, Gordon, says he’s a writer of “post-modern romance novels.” Did you come up with some titles and scenarios? Or is that occupation a pickup line?

James Marsden: [Director] Steve Brill and I explored it and I came up with some titles that we didn’t end up using. I’m shooting in New Orleans right now [after Paul Walkers untimely death, Marsden replaced Walker in the Michael Hoffman romance, The Best of Me], ugh, I can’t remember what they were, but they must not have been any good! But Gordon isn’t a character that would lie to anyone. But he does have to believe in it and say that line with conviction so that it isn’t cheesy.

And what is your favorite post-modern romantic literature?

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James Marsden is busy man. After starring in “Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues,” the actor has almost a half dozen films set to come out in 2014.

But that doesn’t mean the father of three doesn’t make time for his kids.

“It’s one of the things I’m most proud of,” the “X-Men” star, 40, told ABC News of being a father. “Work is difficult because you’ve got to spend time away from home, but it’s always nice to come back and not have to do anything, just spend time with them.”

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