In the Fox hit comedy's second episode of the season, airing Tuesday (8 p.m. ET/PT), the actor (ER, Full House) begins his recurring role as Dr. Carl Howell, who is responsible for the show's anesthesia-inspired Britney Spears dream sequence. Stamos, 47, recently chatted about all things Glee.
Gleerave: "I hate to be one of the actors who gushes about every single thing they do, but honestly, it's so much fun. The kids are really funny, really smart."
First day on the job: "My first day was my part of the fantasy sequence, and Heather Morris (Glee's Brittany) is doing a full-on Britney (Spears) sort of stripper dance on me. She was in a full Britney outfit from Toxic."
First big scene: "I'm still me, but then you're dropped in this world of Glee— just lifted up and dropped into the school. Halfway through this scene, you look around and go, 'Wow, I've been dropped into Glee.' "
No Britney access: "They had these wristbands. It was a big security day. Very secretive, but apparently she was great and very funny."
On playing Dr. Howell: "He's very different than anybody I ever played. He's sort of the coolest guy in a really, really small pond. So that gives me a chance to be sort of dorky. I think he thinks he's a lot cooler than he is, which is fun to play. He's a 'bro' guy; he hasn't even graduated to 'dude' yet. He's like, 'Let's talk this out, bro to bro.' He's got a lot of enthusiasm. In other shows, they wanted me to really be the cool guy or the charming guy. This guy wants to be that guy, but he misses the mark."
Practice makes perfect: "My secret (on Glee) is that — they don't even know and I hope they're not reading this — I faked I was sick for a week and I went to my singing coach and sang every day. Then they said, 'Come in for the dance,' and I was like, 'I'm sort of sick today, can you just show me?' I videotaped it, and I rented out a studio, and I've been going there every single night. I'm not a natural singer and dancer. (Stamos has starred on Broadway four times and has played drums for the Beach Boys on and off for the past 25 years.) I can get to the finish line, but it takes me a lot longer than everyone else."
He's still not a doctor: "I learned the same amount on Glee as I did on ER being a doctor. Actually, it's way worse. I was used to ER, where they are so specific and you have to do this exactly right and hold the needle. Here, I asked if I should be wearing gloves and they were like, 'Ah, who cares? It's a comedy.' "
On Jane Lynch: "I didn't want to know about her Emmy (for playing cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester). I wanted to know about her wax figure, and she was saying that was pretty weird. I told her I go down to Hollywood's (Madame Tussauds) Wax Museum and I rehearse my lines with her wax figure. She's fun."
Leader of the pack: "Lea's (Lea Michele, who plays Rachel Berry) got so much going on. The whole world is grabbing at her. We didn't really spend too much time talking, and then I had my first scene. I had a bunch of dialogue, and I felt like I was kind of dropped in. I was sweating, trying to remember my lines, and she was so sweet. She sat behind the camera and gave me this big smile. Without saying anything, (she) made me feel really safe. She's sort of the leader of the kids. She really communicated that 'You're safe, we're happy you're here.' It was a really nice moment. I won't forget it."
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