Both of my parents have been actors; there were a lot of show tunes on in the car all of the time. I grew up with that.

People tell me I look mournful. They say, "Cheer up, Dan, it's not that bad!" Sometimes, I just look into space, which freaks people out. If I was ever required to do anything other than look haunted, I could. I'm a happy person.

Because I'm short and slim, I can identify with somebody who's an unlikely fit for something and desperately wants to be part of it.

I get constantly mistaken for Elijah Wood. I was in Japan and someone held out a photo of him for me to sign.

Realizing that other people have a problem with [homosexuality] was the weirdest thing for me. As a kid it wasn't even something that was mentioned. It was never something that was even explained to me. It was just, "That's Mark and he's gay." Mark was just another friend of my dad's who would talk about his boyfriend instead of his girlfriend. I was 5. I didn't care. It seemed perfectly normal, and still does.

I would say I was challenging the system quite. But I like to think that if the choices I make are slightly unexpected or challenging to people, then that is good. We are definitely three fairly like-minded people in terms of what we value in scripts and in storytelling.

It's very rare that I get stopped or get asked for an autograph or anything - none of which I mind - but people don't really care that much.