Brian Austin Green is interviewed in the new issue of Details Magazine (the one with The Hamm on the cover). Now, I’ve never really formed a full-fledged opinion of BAG as an adult. I thought he was ridiculously cheesy back in his 90210 days, and when he was all grown up and being the “silent partner” to Megan Fox, I often wondered if he was just as stupid as Megan, or if he was the kind of guy who liked to be with really insecure, dumb women because that’s the way he got his rocks off. But in this Details piece, BAG comes across as… nice. Likeable. Intelligent and interesting and a guy with sh-t to say. Granted, he’s not a brain surgeon or anything, but I wasn’t expecting to think he would be this nice and down-to-earth. The full Details piece is here – and here are some highlights:

Details: You were on the original Beverly Hills 90210 for 10 years—a show that defined America to the world.
Brian Austin Green: In a bright, flashy, horrible-hair kind of way. Let’s be honest.

Details: The hair didn’t seem as horrible at the time.
Brian Austin Green: I was just talking to the guy behind the bar, who said, “I used to love the original 90210 . . . the new one is not so good.” And my response is, “Of course not.” 90210 only worked because of that time period—because the world didn’t have access to a lifestyle like that. The Internet wasn’t what it is now. With TMZ and Paris Hilton wrecking cars and people being chased on freeways, there’s nothing interesting about Beverly Hills. Beverly Hills is nothing anymore.

Details: Do the paparazzi hound you?
Brian Austin Green: It wasn’t so much of a problem before Megan, but once Transformers hit, that was it. I had never experienced paparazzi on that level, because during 90210 they were still developing pictures and selling them by hand. It was a whole different experience.

Details: Some of the glamour and magic of Hollywood has been eroded.
Brian Austin Green: As someone who still loves movies and television, I honestly don’t want to know what Mel Gibson is like at home. I want to watch Braveheart. I don’t want any of the personal stuff. I’m not saying Mel’s choices are the best—obviously not—but it’s a shame that no one will enjoy a Mel Gibson film in the same way again. Mel made a business out of being nuts on camera, out of his f-cking mind. And it’s like, what, do you expect him to be totally normal at home? It’s not possible.

Details: What was it like to be famous in the nineties?
Brian Austin Green: Car shows. Mall appearances. And Grad Nite at Disneyland. Times were simple then. But now—just today we had a guy in the grocery store with his camera phone videotaping us walking down the aisles. And there’s nothing I can do about it, other than take the guy’s phone and drive off with it. Then there’d be a video with a headline: STEALING CAMERAS? WHAT’S BECOME OF BRIAN AUSTIN GREEN? THE MARRIAGE MUST NOT BE GOING WELL. AND HE’S NOT WORKING MUCH LATELY.

Details: You’re on the new season of Desperate Housewives. How did you land that?
Brian Austin Green: I was in Hawaii on my honeymoon, and I got a call from my manager saying, “Marc Cherry wants to sit down with you. He’d like to have you read. Just a couple scenes.” I said, “Of course.” I’m not against auditioning. I audition for everything. The best parts you have to audition for. The ones that I’m offered are the ones like Megalodon 2: This Time It’s Personal.

Details: You play a buff contractor.
Brian Austin Green: Sweaty guy with a hammer. A lot of tank tops. I’ve got to say it’s a whole new world for me. I’ve never played a hunky guy. There was one day when I had to take my shirt off. I must have done 400 push-ups. I feel like I understand the pressure that women go through. I feel, like, all-woman at times.

Details: I hear that you’re actually pretty good with a hammer.
Brian Austin Green: I built a theater with a friend in Los Angeles, yeah. I spent months hanging drywall. I own a level, and I know how to use it. And I have a chalk line also. You might want to throw that in there.

Details: Does Megan tease you about this new ab-conscious role?
Brian Austin Green: She does. She busts my balls just enough to make me laugh and not feel self-conscious about what I’m doing. She’s good about it.

Details: You’ve married Megan Fox and turned her into a stepmom—not the role most of us imagine her in.
Brian Austin Green: She is absolutely my better half in parenting. She just gets it. It’s instinctual for her. She loves my son, Kassius. And from the time we started dating—you know, she was 18—she stepped in and took control. It’s unbelievable. At 18, I was like, “Hey, which club is open tonight? And how cool do my pants look? Can I sneak a drink across the bar without getting caught?”

Details: Was the nearly 13-year age difference a concern at any point?
Brian Austin Green: When we met, I had just separated from Kash’s mom and a relationship was the last thing on my mind. It’s not something I ever thought would be serious. But she brought out parts of me that I had lost in my last relationship. I had come off of 90210, and I never wanted to leave my house. I was afraid of the press. I was afraid of people’s opinions of me. I would walk into a Coffee Bean and not want to look the guy behind the counter in the eyes because I was afraid he was thinking, “Oh, that’s that ridiculous guy from 90210 who put out the hip-hop album.” Megan was a big part of boosting my confidence. And at the same time, I was somebody responsible and grounded for her to be around. We just matched.

Details: Your relationship was often described as on-again, off-again.
Brian Austin Green: We’ve been together for six years. Find a picture of one of us with any other boyfriend or girlfriend—I challenge you. You’ll only find pictures of her doing press with Shia LaBeouf or me with my son. That’s it. We never once dated anyone else or did anything else.

Details: Did you ever try to give her advice on navigating the world of celebrity?
Brian Austin Green: You know, in the beginning, she didn’t really want to hear the comparisons, because it was her own crazy road, and it was overwhelming, and she wanted to figure it all out on her own. But now we sit and we share stories, and we’ve found the commonality of it all. It’s the most backwards, f-cked-up love story you’ve ever heard. And it worked. And the day that I said, “I do,” I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life. And it was the absolute perfect start to what we hope will be an amazing life together.

Details: She’s a lot more famous than you are right now. Is that intimidating?
Brian Austin Green: I know the normal male thing is the man works and is successful and brings home the paycheck. I don’t know who the hell set it up, but it’s what people expect. I just don’t care. I hated being famous during 90210. I’m not an extrovert. I’m 37. I have a beautiful wife. I have an amazing 8-year-old son. I love acting, but this is just my job. F-ck, next year I could book some crazy movie that blows up and things could shift completely. And I guarantee you at that point she’ll say, “F-ck, thank God. You go do all that sh-t now. I’m sick of it.”

[From Details Magazine]

See? He sounds grounded. Accepting that his wife is more famous, and he’s also the first one to defuse the onslaught of 90210 jokes by making sure he makes them first – it’s very clever. I took out all the parts about his rap career, because I found that a little sad, but whatever. He sounds nice. I’m a fan. I hope he gets more television work. Maybe a guest spot on the new Law & Order: LA. Maybe The Closer! I could see that.

Header: BAG in Toronto on Sept. 10, 2010. Credit: WENN.