Kevin Sorbo - Actor

By: Dominick A. Miserandino

Kevin Sorbo is the star of the current WB series, "Andromeda," but most people still know him better for his role in the former hit show "Hercules." Sorbo played the good-natured Greek god for more than four years. Now, 20 pounds lighter minus the stringent workout regiment, he talks about the Hercules phenomena, the new show, and what may lie ahead.

DM) To what do you attribute the popularity of "Hercules."

KS) The humor of the show; we don't take ourselves seriously. We knew that after we finished the very first movie. We did five two-hour movies before the series. Anyway, at the ending of the first movie, we realized that if we took it too seriously people will laugh at us instead of laughing with us. I think that was the main part people enjoyed – the tongue-in-cheek. Plus, there was always good moral messages in there. I got messages from churches and school – it was just amazing. I still get letters from people who never saw the first seven seasons and fell in love with it in reruns.

DM) Is there a fine line between being humorous and not taking yourself too seriously? Some critics panned the show almost as if they didn't get it that you weren't taking yourself seriously.

KS) I love that about critics because the show went on to be the most watched television show in the world so it shows you what critics know. Critics do what they do because they can't do what they really want to do which is be an actor. I don't know if there is a fine line. People have pre-set ideas of what they want the show to be and if it didn't become that, they're just going to rip you apart. This is what the producers wanted. That's why the cast me. If they wanted to make it a real mythological Hercules show, they wouldn't have put California dialogue in there. I wouldn't have been built like an NFL quarterback. I would have been built like a linebacker or a left tackle with steroids, 300 lbs instead of 230. That's not what they wanted. They wanted to bring a different sensibility to the show that was never done before. I don't care what they say.

DM) Do you get reaction from fans now that the show is over?

KS) Yeah. It's four and a half years over. Sometimes I just look at it and I'm blown away whenever we get together for one of these DVD commentaries. I see each of the shows only once. I see the rough cuts and the final cut, but we're talking about season three, which is 1996. It's weird for me to look back on it. Eight years is a long time. You forget things and start to laugh when you remember them.

DM) Do you see anything differently in hindsight.

KS) I did once. Even when it was fresh in my mind, when we just finished a show and we saw the final cut four months later. I look at them and I don't necessarily see me doing the role. Even if I wasn't the guy playing Hercules I would have been a fan of the show. I just liked it. With fans coming in that still love the show, I still get letters. I get people who come up to me and say, "I like Andromeda, what you're doing now, but I really miss Hercules." I think that's the biggest thing I get from people, more than anything. For me, it was a lot of fun to do, so when I look back on these episodes and see what was in there, I am impressed by how well the show looked. The production value was great. It will be timeless because it was a time-period piece. It's not something like a 70s show. It will always look like a fun show.

DM) Does your Hercules experience almost overwhelm your work on Andromeda?

KS) Oh yeah. I still get people who say, "What are you doing now man? You're not as big as I thought you'd be." That always cracks me up. I feel like saying, "I'm really not Hercules. When I played the character four and a half years ago, I was bigger. I'm an actor, I don't have to weigh 230 lbs and lift weights two hours a day." Most of that is from guys. Let's face it – we're men and by nature that makes us insecure. I get that from guys all the time. I say, "I'm only 6'3" and I weight only 210 so I guess I'm a little guy." I would say that 60% of the people who come to me now are hard-core Herc fans. They know Andromeda but that's not the show that they want to watch. That comes from the studios as well. Universal and USA that owned Hercules did a great job of marketing and getting the show out there. Tribune is happy that the show makes a little profit and they're happy. We've still picked up for a fifth year so the show is doing well, though.

DM) Does Andromeda still get the same hard-core fans?

KS) You get some, but it's a different fan. With Hercules, it's interesting; people look at you like you're their buddy and pal. I didn't play him like a jerk. He was a fun guy, he made mistakes and he'd make fun of himself. He had a good relationship with his buddies. Andromeda had a different type of fan base. They take things a little more seriously. Andromeda fans get pissed off if things don't go the way they want it to go.

DM) Which character is more you?

KS) Definitely Hercules! He's a lot braver than I would ever be. I think as far as the self depreciating humor, that was more me.

DM) You've done guest spots on "Dharma and Greg," "Just Shoot Me" and others. Do they look at you as "The Hercules guy," or are you Kevin Sorbo?

KS) I think at first I'm the Hercules guy. I just did an episode of "Hope and Faith." I think people, even the studio people, look and say, "Wow, he can do that," especially in a business that if you're an actor, you're an actor. But even in Hollywood you have to keep proving yourself the more successful you are.

DM) It sounds like you have to prove you're an actor as opposed to that buffed-up guy who worked out and played on "Hercules."

KS) I'm sure. I'm sure. You can't change peoples' perceptions of you. Am I worried about being typecast? I'm playing another role right now that's quite different from Hercules and it's doing really well. Even though it's not the hit that Hercules was in America, overseas Andromeda is kicking ass. It's in over a 150 countries and it's doing fine. I might be typecast as an action guy, but I don't think people still look at me as just Hercules. That's not a horrible thing, either. There are actors who never get to work ever. I'm working. Is it something I'm going to have prove later down the road. Yeah, I will. One more year on andromeda I'm going to have to start pounding the pavement again to prove that I can do other things. I have enough believe in my ability as an actor. I think I'm very good at what I do. Do I think that I have room for improvement? Yeah, we all have room for improvement no matter what job we're in. I know I get better every year as an actor. I get more confident as an actor. Just like anybody in the profession should feel the same way I think you need to have the confidence to do well in no matter what they're in. Otherwise you should find something different to do. I love what I do and so far I'm lucky enough to make a living at it.

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