Photo Credit : Adam Sheridan Taylor
Chase your dreams . Work hard . Get a bit better everyday for the rest of your life . Don ’ t give up . And make SURE you enjoy the journey !
to find the best place in the world for growth . That search brought me to yet another new culture and city - London . It has been an incredibly enriching experience to study at what I consider the best drama school in the world . It has opened my eyes to the depth and richness of art . It has also opened the doors for me to be a part of the amazing theatre culture in London . Look for me on the West End in the future !
Before becoming an actor , you were a star player for the Clemson Tigers . Did you ever think at that time that you would go into acting at any point in your life or were you solely focused on joining the NFL ? At that point pursuing acting had probably never crossed my mind . I was determined to play college football and after that , to go to the NFL . When I walked on to the Clemson Tigers football team I had never played football in my life . But by the end of spring practice I was awarded the most improved defensive walk on award , and I got into my first game that very first season . I was well on the way to accomplishing my goals but during my senior year I suffered a career ending knee injury . It wasn ’ t until a couple of years later , after finding myself in backwoods China doing humanitarian work , that I found my passion for acting and for the first time considered dedicating my life to it .
Working overseas , how do you keep in contact with family and friends back home ? Do you visit often ? It ’ s hard to be away from friends and family so much . It can get really lonely out there when I am just flying back and forth . I try to go home a few times a year . I also make it a point to go to the big family or life events such as weddings . A lot of times your extended family only sees each other at those events anyway , so you fit right back in . I also have made it a point to focus more on maintaining relationships and making memories with my close family and friends . I remember last time I was home I held my one year old niece in my arm and sang her to sleep for over 1.5 hours . When I finally put her in her crib I stood up and looking down at her knew that I would never forget that memory !
Your next big productions , Asura and Bond of Justice , are releasing in movie theaters this year . How do the roles you play relate to you and your experiences ? In Asura I play the demigod Rawa , the Chinese equivalent to Hercules . For this role I hit the gym and gained over 30lbs of muscle . With my training in football while at Clemson and my experience with Men ’ s Health and fitness modeling , I know exactly what to do to change my body into any shape I need . In Bond of Justice I play the role of Jet who is the main hitman for the Yakuza mafia in LA . In real life I am probably an overly nice guy , but for Jet it was amazing to be able to play the exact opposite of that , a cold hard killer .
If you could work with any directors or actors on future projects , who would you choose and why ? Ever since I saw Pan ’ s Labyrinth I ’ ve wanted to work with Guillermo del Toro . I think that movie is absolute genius ! Also Spielberg is a legend who I would love to work with someday . As far as actors , I would love to do a film opposite Tom Hanks . He has been my favorite ever since he did the movie Big . I find that I learn very fast from anyone I am around , so I would love to surround myself with the best . Tom also just seems like a genuinely nice guy .
What are your future plans moving forward in your career ? I plan to continue to pursue film on an international scale . China , the US , Europe . I am excited about continuing my career in the Chinese film industry , but I am currently in talks over a few projects in Hollywood . The next few years are going to be really exciting !
If you could offer advice to any aspiring actors and actresses , what would it be ? Chase your dreams . Work hard . Get a bit better everyday for the rest of your life . Don ’ t give up . And make SURE you enjoy the journey !
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