Q&A with Kevin Sorbo
By Edward Terry, The Layman, August 20, 2010
Actor Kevin Sorbo, star of the hit series “Hercules: The Incredible Journeys” and “Andromeda,” took time out of his busy schedule days before the release of his newest movie to talk with The Layman about Hollywood, faith and his career as a Christian actor. His new movie “What If …,” in which he stars with Kristy Swanson, John Ratzenberger and Debby Ryan, hits theaters beginning Aug. 20.
Kevin Sorbo, who plays Ben Walker in the new release “What If …”, has been a Christian his whole life, but did go through a period during the height of his TV success when he wasn’t close to God. A near-death experience, which he’ll talk more about in a soon-to-be-released book, strengthened his faith.
Q: How’s the movie being received so far?
A: We had two premiers, one in Chicago and one in Grand Rapids about a week and a half ago. They were unbelievable. The one in Chicago, at the church of our director Dallas Jenkins, a super church called Harvest outside of Elgin … 3,600 people were there. They had to turn 1,000 people away. People were laughing, they were crying, at the end of it was a standing ovation. … We must have signed 2,000 autographs.
Q: How do you feel about the movie?
A: I was really happy with it. I took the part for a number of reasons. Dallas (Jenkins, the director) is a friend of mine, his wife and my wife are friends, our kids are the same ages. … He was telling me about this movie he was starting to cast … He told me there was a big part in there for me, but he didn’t think I would be interested. I said “Why?” He said “there’s no money in it.” I said “Let me read the script.” So, I read the script and said “I don’t care if there isn’t any money in it, I want to do this.” … It really was something I wanted to do. I loved the chemistry of the characters. I love the story – we need more stories like it.
Q: How did you prepare for the Ben Walker role?
A: I think a lot of it just comes from what was written in the script. I didn’t prepare to be a preacher. I prepared to be a guy who has this job thrust upon him. I have my own faith. I’ve been a Christian my whole life, but I’ve certainly had my places where I’d fallen away from God. … I can relate to the guy. I can relate to getting off the right track. … Pursuing your own goals without any gratefulness or thankfulness behind it – so I kind of related to the character.
Q: What do you hope the audience takes away from this film?
A: A lot of the faith-based movies in the past have always been shot sort of cheesy, kinda soap opera in a way. This movie isn’t like that at all. I don’t look at it as a Christian movie per se. It’s a movie about redemption. … We all have what ifs in our life. … This movie is sort of a guiding light to show people that no matter where you are, no matter how upset or disappointed or frustrated you are in your life, if you want to change, you can change your life. It’s just a matter of bravery and not accepting that fear factor that everybody carries. … I think this movie is perfect for what’s going on in the world. … This is a chance for not being negative. A chance to start being positive and let yourself grow.
Q: Where does this movie rank in your career?
A: I certainly have to give a bow to “Hercules.” I enjoyed that show. It was seven years; it was fantastic. … This ranks right up there high. Of all the movies I’ve done this is the one by far that I’m most proud of. … I have three other (faith-based) films waiting in the wings right now. … I shot another called Soul Surfer … that’s a big release with 3,000 screens on Sony with Dennis Quaid and Helen Hunt and Carrie Underwood, her first feature film. … I like the family movies, and Hollywood has gotten away from that for decades now. Hollywood never used to be that way. … Hollywood loves to sort of live in their pity and misery. They constantly preach that they are the tolerant ones, when the people in Hollywood really are the ones that are the most intolerant. They fight to the death on freedom of speech, but only if you agree with what they say. So, movies like “The Blind Side” and movies like “What If …” hopefully will open their eyes that faith-based is not a niche thing.
Movie Review
PLC review of the
upcoming film “What If…”
Q: Have you been actively pursuing faith-based films?
A: I certainly was looking for movies my family could go see. Having three small children (ages 8, 6 and 4) certainly it was an avenue I wanted to go down and make sure they could see movies that daddy is doing.
Q: How will your fans react to this film?
A: I hope they respond in a positive way. There are some elements of Hercules in it. … The stories in each episode were family based and morally based. It was always good triumphing over evil. … I think people like Hercules for a number of reasons … I think they enjoyed the fact their family could watch it. I got a letter from an editor of TV Guide once that said (Hercules) “is one of two shows I could watch with my family.”
Q: What do you like to watch?
A: With the kids, we want to keep it pretty clean. You have to give a nod to Pixar. … (Toy Story 3) is an amazing story. … John Ratzenberger, who stars as the angel in this movie, is a voice in every Pixar movie. … I took my kids to “Toy Story 3” and was crying like a baby at the end of it. … “Nemo” – just an amazing movie.
Q: You lean a little more to the right than most of Hollywood. Is that a fair assumption?
A: It doesn’t take much to lean to the right in Hollywood.
Q: Tell me about your faith journey. How did you come to Christ?
A: My parents were very religious (Lutheran). Since birth it was Sunday school and church every week. … I go to a church called Christian Assembly, non-denominational. It’s a wonderful church, fantastic music and great people involved. … (At the beginning of Hercules) I had stopped going to church. I wasn’t praying regularly. The faith was always there, I have never been a nonbeliever. … I had an illness that hit me at the end of season five that almost killed me. The studios kept it pretty quiet, but it’s going to come out in my book pretty soon. I had an aneurism that exploded in my body. It wasn’t good. To me it was a wakeup call. It brought me right back to God again. … It took something like that to bring me back a little more to reality and to place my priorities in the right categories and all. … I try to do something every day called “the grateful prayer.” Grateful for having hot water, grateful for a pillow to sleep on, just be grateful because we take so many things for granted. The poorest in this country, America, are better off than most of the world.
Q: Do you have any what-ifs?
A: Everybody has what-ifs. … I was a really good athlete – a really good baseball player. But my love was football and basketball, so I didn’t pursue baseball. Baseball is probably the sport, if I had any chance of being a pro athlete in any sport, it would have been baseball. … I’m a jock. It sort of gnaws at me in the back of my head a little bit. That’s one of my many what-ifs. … There’s a great quote from Arthur Miller: “Maybe all one can do is hope to end up with the right regrets.”
Q: What can the public do to help promote this movie?
A: If this can get out there in papers, in magazines and tel
evision, and people just know that it’s available to them – I think people will go. Tell them to go to thewhatifmovie.com and kevinsorbo.net and spread the word. I want them to get it out there.