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Congratulations on an amazing Olympic performance. You should have gone home with a medal.
(Laughing) I think so, too, but thank you.
The other amazing thing about the Olympics was that whole fur controversy, which stemmed from what seemed like a tiny amount of fur on your costume. Were you really getting death threats because of it?
Yes. Honestly, there was a price put on my head, and there was FBI activity around me before and during the Olympic games. It was a very serious threat that was made against me, just over this tiny piece of fur. It's very distressing and it's very scary when that kind of thing happens. I mean, bad comments you can kind of shrug off, and it's not that bad, but when someone actually threatens your health, it's a whole different matter.
Now that the Olympics are over, is it still something you have to deal with?
Well, I'm still receiving messages, and there are still things going on out there, beyond my control, about the fur situation. But, in general, I think I got through the worst part of that storm.
читать дальшеWhat's next for you now? Will you compete at the World Championships later in March?
Yes, later this month I'll be doing the World Championships in Turin, and after that I'm performing with Evgeni Plushenko's tour in Russia and Europe, then performing in Japan and South Korea ... everything's very fresh. We're just two days out of the closing ceremonies right now, so everything's very new, and I'm very exhausted from the Olympics and the amount of media things I've done, so I'm looking forward to getting back in the rink and working.
Is there a vacation in your future at all?
I think after I perform in the Plushenko shows, I'll take a small one before I perform in Asia. My goal is to lay on a beach for a week and relax.
As you pointed out, the Olympics just ended, but people are already wondering: What are your thoughts right now on competing at the 2014 Games in Russia?
I would love to compete in the next Olympics. It's no secret that I'm a big Russophile, and I love the country and I feel that Russia is a second home for me, so it would be a dream to compete in the Olympic Games there. But, I'll be pushing 30, I won't be a spring chicken anymore, and things will be different. There's a whole new batch of skaters coming up now who are amazing, and they all need their time to shine ... If I still have that competitive fire, and I'm still healthy and able, I'll try. I can't say that I won't try at this point. It's a long way away, but in the back of my mind, I've always been thinking about competing at the 2014 Games, because I was watching the TV very closely when Sochi and Russia were named as the host for that Olympics, and it's a very important country and a very important place to me. So it would be amazing to compete there.
The World Championships are the second biggest competition, after the Olympics, in figure skating. How do you feel about competing there just a month after the Olympics?
I'm definitely feeling exhausted. I think the amount of stress it took for me to get through the Olympics, with everything that happened before the Olympics, with the fur scandal, and this and that, and just ... I didn't feel like I was a medal contender, so I had to work 10 times harder than everyone that was being touted as a medal contender going into the Olympic Games. And then I still skated my absolute best, two of the best performances I've ever skated, and I still came in sixth, and I was barely sixth. So, I mean, that's very disheartening and very disappointing. From all of that, I'm very tired, but I definitely have the will and the want and the need to get myself back out there and perform and compete and feel that fire. There's nothing like that adrenaline of competition.
Aside from the controversy with the fur, and all of those things that had nothing to do with your actual skating performances, do you feel like you've really become known to a much wider audience?
Yes. Aside from the fur scandal, and all the things that may have hurt me in one way or another during this Olympics, I feel like my fan base has grown enormously and that people who were never interested in figure skating before, became interested after watching our competitions. I've gotten so many messages of support and love, and when those audiences just stood for my short program and my long program, I felt them. I felt they were on that journey with me, and I felt like I could do no wrong for my fans, and the people watching, and that's an amazing feeling to have, especially as somebody who has never really been considered one of the top competitors in the world. I've always been, I think, second tier in a lot of people's minds. But when people who aren't in the figure skating world come in, and they want to watch, and they choose you, and they want to watch you, and they choose to support you, it's a beautiful thing.
It's no small thing to draw new fans to a sport, especially, as you said, when there has been a lot of controversy.
I've been criticized by many, many, many people, about being a bad influence for my sport, about being a bad influence on men's figure skating, and I resent it. I've also gotten a lot of messages of support. A lot of messages from people who said they've been comforted by a performance, really entertained. And that's all I can do. I can't please everyone. And maybe in some people's minds, I am a bad representative of men's figure skating, or a bad representative of the United States, and that's their opinion. But for me, I represent myself when I go out there, and I think there are a lot of people who can identify with that. But my fans are my fans, and they're very loyal and supportive. I wouldn't be where I am without the people who support me.
'Be Good Johnny Weir,' your Sundance Channel reality show, has also been a big part of bringing attention to you as a skater and a celebrity. With three episodes left, what will we see the rest of the season?
There's a lot of drama. The beginning of the series kind of started a little bit [slowly], but going into the season finale, we'll see the Olympics Games, and the things that happened to me there. The next two episodes will be me in Japan, and at the National Championships, and everything starts to pick up and get fun and more cheery. And I'm just amazed with the technology, and the fact that we just filmed some things [at the Olympics] that they're already editing to finish out the first season.
So the Olympics will be the series finale?
Yes. And it was actually kind of stressful, because I wouldn't have had a season finale if I hadn't made the Olympics. So I'm very proud that I was able to do that and give Sundance Channel the season finale that we wanted.
Will there be a season two of 'Be Good Johnny Weir'?
We're talking about it right now. For the series now, what I wanted was to show was the real life of a figure skater and how difficult it actually is, and how we aren't prepackaged, how we don't go to school, how we're not a preconceived notion, as many people take us to be. I wanted to show the behind-the-scenes of a figure skater. So, if they do want a second series, I think it'll be a lot more about my real life, and how I transfer from the life of one of the top figure skaters in the world to life as a student or as a TV personality or as a this or a that ... and I think that would be really interesting because life isn't just a series of random transitions, and I think it's very empowering to see young people on television going through things.
I think you and best friend Paris should do a sketch comedy series.
(Laughing) Well, I know Paris is definitely up for it.
You guys are so fun and so funny together. You're definitely this season's best TV bromance.
Paris is definitely my best friend. There's no romance involved with that, but he's my best friend, and he's a very good addition to the show. He's very comical and he lightens the mood, which is good, because I'm very serious and dramatic, and everyone around me seems to be my coach, my mom, my agent. Everyone's a very diva, alpha woman, and Paris just kind of says it like it is and it's very funny.
Your fellow Olympian, Evan Lysacek, is going to compete on the new season of 'Dancing With the Stars.' Were you approached about doing the show, too?
We definitely had a discussion with 'Dancing With the Stars,' [but] honestly, what they wanted was the Olympic champion. I absolutely would have done it. But I think, if not this year, then next year. I think I have the personality that I could be a figure skater on 'Dancing With the Stars,' even for next year. So, I would love to do it. And I wish Evan luck for this year.
Would you consider doing another reality show? You've talked about pursuing a fashion career, so maybe a show that would follow you as you become a fashion student?
Absolutely! I, of course, would prefer to do my own reality show for the rest of my life, but I'd love to be a 'Real Housewife of Atlanta.'
Could NeNe handle you, though?
Oh, I love NeNe. She wouldn't have to handle me, I would just be there for her.
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ohnny Weir Talks Olympic Scandals, Reality TV and Becoming a 'Real Housewife'
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Congratulations on an amazing Olympic performance. You should have gone home with a medal.
(Laughing) I think so, too, but thank you.
The other amazing thing about the Olympics was that whole fur controversy, which stemmed from what seemed like a tiny amount of fur on your costume. Were you really getting death threats because of it?
Yes. Honestly, there was a price put on my head, and there was FBI activity around me before and during the Olympic games. It was a very serious threat that was made against me, just over this tiny piece of fur. It's very distressing and it's very scary when that kind of thing happens. I mean, bad comments you can kind of shrug off, and it's not that bad, but when someone actually threatens your health, it's a whole different matter.
Now that the Olympics are over, is it still something you have to deal with?
Well, I'm still receiving messages, and there are still things going on out there, beyond my control, about the fur situation. But, in general, I think I got through the worst part of that storm.
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отсюда
Congratulations on an amazing Olympic performance. You should have gone home with a medal.
(Laughing) I think so, too, but thank you.
The other amazing thing about the Olympics was that whole fur controversy, which stemmed from what seemed like a tiny amount of fur on your costume. Were you really getting death threats because of it?
Yes. Honestly, there was a price put on my head, and there was FBI activity around me before and during the Olympic games. It was a very serious threat that was made against me, just over this tiny piece of fur. It's very distressing and it's very scary when that kind of thing happens. I mean, bad comments you can kind of shrug off, and it's not that bad, but when someone actually threatens your health, it's a whole different matter.
Now that the Olympics are over, is it still something you have to deal with?
Well, I'm still receiving messages, and there are still things going on out there, beyond my control, about the fur situation. But, in general, I think I got through the worst part of that storm.
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