Milo Ventimiglia is currently knocking ‘em dead on the NBC series This Is Us. I’m glad, as it’s a really good show, despite the fact that NBC kind of sold it to us by showcasing Milo’s bare butt in the promo for the show. I was thinking it was going to get its own credit in the titles.

On the show Milo plays husband to the lovely Mandy Moore. They definitely have lots of on-screen chemistry, even with Mandy rocking a huge pregnancy belly on that first episode. Does that chemistry extend off-screen? E! asked the 39-year-old actor about his co-star in the snarkily named segment “A Quickie with Milo Ventimiglia” (Me: If you’re offering, okay, but only if he shaves off that mustache.) Of course, he had nothing but nice things to say about her, saying, “Mandy is one of the kindest, most amazing performers and women I’ve met in my life. She is exactly as I’d heard. She is amazing.” But when the subject of dating his co-stars came up, Milo bluntly replied, “Bad idea—don’t shit where you eat.”

I know, as I’m sure you also do, that you don’t answer a question like that unless you are speaking from experience, and Milo has dated co-stars before. He was romantically attached to his Gilmore Girls co-star, Alexis Bledel, for four years. After that, he entered a relationship with his Heroes co-star Hayden Panettiere. The union turned a few heads in Hollywood as Milo was 31 and Hayden was 19 at the time they dated. Guess Milo finally learned his lesson.

In the E! video, Milo also discussed working on Fergie’s video for “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” which he said was “amazing” but confessed to being “mildly terrified” of doing romantic scenes with the singer while (then boyfriend, now spouse) Josh Duhamel was watching. He also offered up some sage dating advice for the ladies, including, “Be yourself” and “Contribute as much as you’d like to take.” I know, I know, just remember, he’s an actor, not a matchmaker.

Milo continued the press tour for This Is Us with an appearance on The Talk on Tuesday. Inevitably, conversation focused on the butt shot seen ‘round the world. Milo recalled, “When I first read the scene I’m like, ‘This is NBC, I’ll be fully covered and everything. Then when I showed up for our very first scene, first day of working on the pilot I walk into my trailer and I see flesh colored fabrics in varying sizes. ‘Okay that’s the kind of rodeo we’re doing today so here we go.’” Milo tweeted a photo of said “flesh colored fabrics” with the caption “Day 1/Scene 1. Amazing wardrobe choices.”

Mandy Moore was also on the show and recalled (perhaps wistfully) that Milo was eating pizza during the show’s table reads. I’m sure Milo loves pizza (who doesn’t?), but he was actually getting into character, in order to make audiences believe he was just your average 36-year-old 80s-era Dad. He admitted, “This was the first time in my career, in 21 years, where the producers said, ‘Stop working out.’” He must have resumed hitting the gym, because he showed off his toned torso on Ellen last week and that, my friends, was no “Dad bod,” 80s-era or now. Meow. But seriously, watch This is Us. It’s definitely my favorite new show of the season, butt shots or no butt shots.