Burt Reynolds’s 1972 centerfold in Cosmopolitan was, simply put, a major moment in pop culture. It was our magazine’s—any magazine’s—first time featuring a man in that kind of spread, and it cemented Burt’s status as one of America’s sexiest men. In homage, we’re launching the Cosmo Centerfold series, in which we take cheeky pics (and ask cheeky questions) of the hottest celebs of our time. To get the printable, hang-on-your-wall version, you’ll have to pick up an actual Cosmo to see it in the flesh (sorry, had to). Enjoy!
It makes all the sense in the world that our inaugural interviewee for this column is none other than Gavin Casalegno, who is so damn charming that his fan base developed basically overnight when season 1 of The Summer I Turned Pretty dropped last summer. The show follows a high schooler named Belly who’s caught up in a bit of a love triangle with two brothers. Enter: Gavin, who plays one of the very hot brothers Jeremiah Fisher. The show, based on the novels by Jenny Han, was an instant hit. And you’ll all be happy to know that over the phone and at his centerfold photo shoot, 23-year-old Gavin really did live up to his lax, boy-next-door persona. Not surprising from a guy with an Instagram bio that reads, “Your favorite golden retriever.” Also not surprising: how incredibly thirsty these photos will make you. Do yourself a favor and have a glass of water nearby as you scroll.
On top of obliging us by taking his shirt off, the actor spoke about all the exciting new things to come in season 2, the advice he would give his character Jeremiah, and what his IRL date game is like.
What it’s been like navigating the wild success of season 1 and the fame that came with it?
I’ve been surrounded by some pretty amazing people who have given me some good tips as far as navigating the newfound spotlight. What it really did was just force me to value my quiet time and my alone time to be able to fill my cup so I can be able to fill others’.
Paint a picture of what your DM situation looks like right now. My guess is your inbox is flooded with messages.
I don’t know what in me wants to do this, but I read every single DM I’ve ever gotten.
Oh my god.
That’s in the thousands of thousands, so that’s been pretty fun. I recently—just to get some quiet time and not spend too much time on social media—I’ll go through phases where I turn off my DMs. And so my DMs have been turned off for, I think, two weeks now, three weeks now. So I go through phases where I’ll try to respond to some people—I read everything—and then I’ll go through phases where I just want some more chill time.
I’m so curious—would you ever date a fan or someone who slid into your DMs?
Honestly, probably not. I think I would prefer dating someone who isn’t in the social media space at all. I think that would lead to a lot less problems, to be blunt!
Something people (read: me) love about Jeremiah is that he’s so confident and outgoing. Are you the same way?
Jeremiah is a super outgoing people person and the life of the party. I think, especially in my teenage years, I was a lot like that as far as just super outgoing a people person—I never met a stranger. So I think we both just enjoy caring for people and loving on people and trying to light up every room that we’re in. Jeremiah is not too far off. I didn’t have to play a sociopath or anything like that, so it was pretty easy for me.
We’ve seen you have a crush in your onscreen persona, but how do you show someone you’re interested IRL?
Being an adult, I’ve learned what it means to just mature a little bit in the dating space; You’re dating to marry, you’re not dating to just date.
I think that gets lost a lot of times in younger generations. So I really try to be intentional with everything that I do as far as spending my time and gift giving and flirting and all these things. I really try to be intentional about it versus just—not to say Jeremiah’s careless—but a little less close to the chest, I guess you could say.
So, considering that, what would your perfect date night be? I need details.
I’d probably sign them up for a volleyball tournament and then just go for it. Nothing will strengthen a bond like competitiveness, you know what I mean? Yeah, it’s blood, sweat, and tears on the volleyball court. That would be really fun.
Going back to the show, how did the on-set energy change between the first and second season? What was it like to reunite with the cast?
I think we all have developed better bonds and better friendships, and we know each other a lot more. I mean, there’ll be times when we’ll just give each other a look and then go play volleyball when we’re about to start filming. We’ll just disappear and start playing volleyball and goofing around and stuff. So it’s been really fun. As far as pranks go, too, they just get escalated more and more throughout working together. They stole my car one day. There’s all kinds of things happening on set, and I’m really grateful for it because it’s like having your best friends on set.
Okay, that’s wild and impressive! I’m hoping that’s the most out-there thing that’s happened.
Yeah. I mean, they did it so smoothly too. Like, how they got my keys. I was very impressed.
The show is such a success now, but how did your friends and family react to the initial news that you were going to be on the show?
I knew a lot of friends were big fans of the books, and so they were probably more excited than I was. I got to bounce ideas off them, and it just made it super fun. It made it a collaboration with all my friends and family.
Is there anything that you could tell us about what we can expect from the second season? Yes, I’m asking for spoilers.
I got to see a little bit of the series and of season 2, and I personally think it’s better than season 1—especially when it comes to the music moments. I mean, Jenny [Han, the series creator] is phenomenal. I don’t even know how she does that, but she somehow finds the right music every single time, so it’s going to be really fun as far as the music score goes.
But I think it’s closer to the books. And because of that, we got to explore more of that route versus season 1 that was a little more about the debutante ball and things like that to spice it up and create things happening. I think it dives deeper into mature relationships and what that looks like. You never really know what’s going on, and that’s what the cool part is.
If Jeremiah were your friend, what advice would you give him now that he’s in this love triangle with one of his best friends and his brother? That’s so messy.
I would say to focus on yourself. I think so many people focus on a relationship and focus on dating and focus on other people, when, in reality, you should be focusing on being the best version of yourself because that will attract the right people. I think that more people need to hear that. It’s really just diving into your own passions and your own hobbies and what makes you and what brings you joy. When doing that, I think the right people will come to you.
Okay, so these are more rapid-fire kind of questions, so zero pressure….
I don’t know if you want to give me those reins.
You’ll be great. Do you have a dream project or dream role, and is there anyone you’d love to work with?
I would love to do a Western. I feel like that would be fun. Or a spy movie. I would love to work with Chris Pratt one day. I love his personality. I love all the characters he’s played. I think he’s so talented and I know he is a great person.
What is your skincare routine, if you have one?
Well, fortunately for me, volleyball allows me to exfoliate naturally, so I’m always in the sand and stuff. So that, and just really cold water and cold plunges and stuff. That’s pretty much it.
Okay, so a low-maintenance vibe.
Exactly!
What are the ways you keep grounded?
My family and friends for sure. They keep me so very grounded. And also just how I was raised with my mom and dad. We grew up not having a lot, so what I have now is just an abundance and it just keeps me very grateful.
