{alltv} Aaron Paul of 'Breaking Bad' is all bubbly as the Emmys draw near

Sunday, August 29, 2010

{alltv} Aaron Paul of 'Breaking Bad' is all bubbly as the Emmys draw near

It's E-day! And the Champagne will soon be flowing freely. Aaron Paul rings up USA TODAY's Donna Freydkin from his Los Angeles home, ready to roll with his friends to Sunday's Emmy Awards.

Party down. Saturday night, Paul hit the exclusive and media-free Evening Before fundraising bash. The night, he says, was "incredible. So much fun, so surreal. We just got to cut loose and eat some really good food, and I got to meet (Lost's) Matthew Fox, which was incredible. I wished him luck." The whole event was just "good times," Paul says. "They had these lobster hot dogs. They had this amazing ravioli. They had ice cream sandwiches. Man, I hung out with almost the entire Modern Family cast in our own little area. There's a lot of people watching."

And at this very moment. Paul, who plays Jesse Pinkman on AMC's hit series Breaking Bad, is at home with his buddies. They're getting gussied up before heading to the Emmy Awards. "We're all getting ready. All my friends are at my house going crazy. They're singing 'We're going to the Emmys.' They want to go do a Champagne run. They're all excited," he says with a laugh.

Cool, calm, collected. Jitters? What jitters? "I'm not nervous yet. I'm not. Which is kind of strange. I feel really calm, but I think that will change once I get there. I'm not really expecting anything. I'm just happy to go, and that's why I'm not nervous. We will see!"

The night is still young. After the Emmys, Paul has a full agenda. "I'm doing the Governors Ball. I can bring only one of my buddies. After the Governors Ball, I'll meet with everyone and try to get everyone into the AMC party and maybe hit the HBO party."

Happy times two: Friday was Paul's 31st birthday. And the birthday boy recalls one last memorable moment from his big day, which started off when he attended the Emmy nominees reception. "When I was on stage getting my Emmy certificate, I was up there with Glenn Close and my favorite guys from Modern Family, and they all started singing Happy Birthday to me. They gave me a hug. It was kind of a surreal experience."