The Florida native couldn't be happier about his leading ladies — two Emmy winners, Lesli Kay and Cady McClain (Molly and Rosanna), and an Emmy nominee, Maura West (Carly). "I'm working with three very strong actresses, and they're all different," he notes. "Lesli and I are friends off the set, and she's helped me get situated -- finding a place to live and helping me out with general questions. It brought us closer. I like Cady a lot, we just don't hang out as friends. Maura's very alive, very vibrant."

Collier, whose previous credits include small roles on BEVERLY HILLS, 90210 and SUNSET BEACH, says he wasn't intimidated to take over a role created by someone else. "I like that there is already a history with Mike," he notes. "There's a foundation for me to work with." He hasn't seen Shawn Christian's take on the role and doesn't plan to. "That was six years ago," he shrugs. "People speak highly of him and that he did good work, but I wanted to make my own choices."

But where there is an established character, there is also a past. "I need flow charts and diagrams to figure out who Mike has had relationships with," he cracks. "Chris (Goutman, ATWT's executive producer) gave me a summary of what had happened with Mike and all the relationships he had. That helped a lot. I couldn't just automatically go, 'OK, I'm going to make up this as our relationship,' because these fans have been watching for a long, long time. If you go on the Internet, you see people talking about 30 years ago! They know everything that happened, word for word, looks that were exchanged."

When asked what he's looking for in a special someone, the currently unattached Collier quips, "You do not have enough room on this tape (laughs)! It's changed a lot. As you get older, you start realizing how important good conversation is -- somebody who can make you laugh, somebody who's strong. I'm very happy with the way my life's going and my career. A lot of times people end up in relationships when things aren't going well and they rely on the other person [to make them happy]. It's never been a big priority for me to have someone there all the time. If it happens, great. If I'm 60 when I get married, that's fine with me, too. I only want to do it one time. So if it takes time, it takes time."

This article originally appeared in the Dec. 10, 2002 issue of Soap Opera Weekly