Matt Davis Isn't Buying It

On the hit CW series, The Vampire Diaries, Matt Davis plays Alaric Saltzman, a history teacher who senses that things aren't as they seem in the small town of Mystic Falls. In real life, Davis is an even bigger skeptic than his character. The actor, 32, spoke to Kidult about conspiracy theories and alternative histories.

Where were you born and raised?

I was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, but I spent some time in Saudi Arabia with my parents when they were working there as teachers. I moved back to Salt Lake when I was 5 or 6, and I got out as soon as I could. It’s a great place but I had other ambitions.

What were you like in high school?

I played football for a number of years and I was on the Varsity team my sophomore year. I loved football growing up but you get to a point where — even though I’m not a small guy, I’m like 6’2" — there are 17-year-old dudes who are like 6’5" 300 pounds. I realized that it wasn’t the way I wanted to make my living. [Laughs] I decided to quit football and join the drama program. When I got involved in school plays, I fell in love with the experience and from that moment forward I prepared to move to Los Angeles.

Your breakout role in Hollywood was your role as Reese Witherspoon's boyfriend, Warner Huntington III in Legally Blonde (2001). Do you still get recognized for that movie?

To be honest, that’s about all I ever get recognized for! [Laughs] It’s kind of an ongoing joke with my friends because I often get stopped and it’s not like, "Hey, you’re Matt Davis. It’s always like, "Oh my God, you’re that a**hole from Legally Blonde!" [Laughs] People definitely responded to that character.

You have one of the most unique and entertaining Twitter accounts on the planet. What advice do you have for teens who want to be as cool as you are on Twitter

[Laughs] Don’t be afraid to put up what you’re thinking.

Why do you go by Ernesto Riley on Twitter. Who is that?

Ernesto is my alter ego. To be quite honest, I’m not even sure how I got the name. It arrived in my mind 1 day and I’m not exactly sure where it came from or how or why.

What are some of your interests outside of acting?

I’ve been doing a lot of reading on esoteric knowledge — like Tantric sex, the Tantric philosophies, about 2010, aliens — all of those things I find unique in dynamic ways. But the umbrella archetype for all of this is the reemergence of this sort of divine goddess energy, as it’s sort of re-expressing itself culturally. We’ve been under the influence of this patriarchal, masculine, dominating energy for thousands of years, and as 2012 rolls around, it’s reintegrating feminine energy. Having so many female followers on Twitter puts me in a great position to get out information that is resonating with people in a lot of ways. That's why my tweets are female centric.

You tweet about women more than anything else, it seems. Is that because you’re interested in settling down in the near future?

I have zero interest in settling down right now. I’ve been in and out of dynamic, passionate relationships for the last 10 years and it’s taken up a lot of my creative energy. I feel like I may have been repaying some sort of Karmic debt and now that’s been cleared. For the 1st time in years, I’m totally free and that’s what I intend to be.

On The Vampire Diaries you play a history teacher. Are you a history buff in real life?

I’m an alternative history buff more than anything else. I have a passion for conspiracy theories, alternative histories, and different points of view that you don’t necessarily get exposed to in public schools.

Can you give us an example?

Lets say for instance that I were to tell you there was a top secret space program that the government has been covering up for 80 years. And that our whole history as we’ve been taught it in public school is not an accurate portrayal of what the government knows is going on in terms of exo-politics. That would be one case. Another case is — I don’t believe that evolution and intelligent design are the only 2 plausible explanations as to how we’ve come to evolve and be as we are. I think that’s ludicrous. The historical conversation, spiritual conversation, and social conversation have become boring and I do everything in my power to find alternative stories and get that out as much as I can.

Follow Matt on Twitter.com/ernestoriley