Dean McDermott says he is not a 'monster'

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 28 (UPI) -- Dean McDermott is tired of being labeled a monster.

The 47-year-old actor said as much in an interview with ET Canada last week. McDermott cheated on wife Tori Spelling in December 2013, but he told host Cheryl Hickey the incident doesn't make him an evil person.

"You know, when you're at the checkout and you look over and you see one of these magazines and it's like, 'Dean McDermott's a monster,' and I'm like, 'No, I'm not a monster, I'm a human being and I messed up,'" he related. "I messed up and I'm owning up to it and I'm getting help. But to label me a monster or evil is very hurtful."

McDermott entered rehab to become a better husband and father in January, and has been working with Spelling to save their marriage since. Although he claims to take full responsibility for his infidelity, he did remind Hickey, "You know, I'm not the first person to ever cheat on his wife."

Spelling was recently hospitalized for bronchitis, sinusitis and pneumonia, and McDermott attributed her illness to the "emotional" and physical demands of shooting True Tori six days a week. The Lifetime reality series airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET, and follows the couple as they attempt to move past the cheating scandal.