Taylor Kitsch is poised to become a major movie star -- if he can stomach all the Hollywood fanfare about to come his way, that is. “Am I ready for it? I’ve been asked that so many times, and I don’t know what ‘it’ is. I’m not a big Hollywood cat,” a nonchalant Kitsch said via telephone from Tokyo, where he was already doing press for “John Carter,” the $200-million-plus fantasy epic that doesn’t hit theaters until March.
The 30-year-old’s dance card is considerably full for an actor still best known for his work on television’s “Friday Night Lights,” the football drama that became a cult hit during its five-year run. His character -- the beer-toting-yet-lovable womanizing jock Tim Riggins -- was an audience favorite, and Kitsch was one of the few cast members to appear in every season of the program. After the show wrapped last year, Kitsch said he was offered a number of roles in which he’d play “the good-looking guy or the high school quarterback.”
While he wants to branch out to different fare, he’s grateful for the influx of opportunities. Growing up in Canada, Kitsch dreamed of becoming a professional ice hockey player, but when a knee injury derailed those plans, he moved to New York City to try modeling. He landed a few low-paying gigs with the likes of Abercrombie & Fitch, took acting classes when he could, but success didn’t come so easily -- he was even homeless temporarily.
“I was literally living on the subway for a couple of weeks,” Kitsch said. “You’d act as if you’re just going to sleep, more or less, and stay on until the early morning.”
Nowadays, Kitsch can afford a home in Austin, Texas, where production of “Friday Night Lights” took place. And no matter how much his star might rise over the coming year, he says that’s where he’ll remain. “If I have a meeting in L.A., I fly in, take the meeting, and get home. I know I’ll never live there.”
-- Amy Kaufman (Larry Busacca / Getty Images)