He got known around the world for playing a Greek demigod on television, and now he dedicates his film career to the Christian god he believes in.
Kevin Sorbo was an instant international star when he was cast for the title role in the massive hit TV show Hercules in the 1990s.
When that show ran its long course (it survived more than half a decade, and also crossed into the Xena: Warrior Princess franchise), the fame did not. He was the long-haired, muscle rippling hero of a generation.
His down-time didn't last long after the Hercules shooting finally wrapped. He had been granted sizable roles throughout that period on the side, like the title role in the movie Kull The Conquerer and a recurring feature part in the prime time comedy Dharma & Greg, but he was a major television star all over again when he was anointed Capt. Dylan Hunt, starship commander in the most famous TV franchise of them all.
When he took the bridge of Andromeda, he joined the Star Trek enterprise in a huge way.
After another five years in the public spotlight, he was back to being a freelance actor and freelance he did. Sorbo inhabited two seasons of The O.C., got a part in the popular youth biopic Soul Surfer, was the voice of Ka-Zar in The Super Hero Squad Show, took on the voice role of Crusher in the Skylanders franchise, and he played comic book character Lar Gand in the live-action Supergirl series now taking the DC Universe to new television levels.
The interesting thing about that role is the similarity between Lar Gand and Superman, and how, for the Supergirl project, the actor cast as his wife was Teri Hatcher.
Hatcher reached superstar status as Lois Lane in the 1990s mega-hit show Lois & Clark opposite Dean Cain. Cain squeaked out the casting of that role from second place actor Kevin Sorbo.
Now, Cain and Sorbo have a film project in the works together.
"Dean was a good friend even before that," Sorbo told The Citizen in a phone interview this week. The two remain fans of each other's work.
And there is a lot of work. Sorbo's main career these days is acting or directing his own film and television projects. "I got rid of my agent a long time ago," he said, and acts as producer on his own behalf. He said he has to struggle for money, but there is a growing list of investors who have been happy about the returns Sorbo's films have brought.
"I just finished a movie we were shooting in Louisiana. It was called One Nation Under God," he said.
"I do a lot of these family-friendly/faith-based type of movies. This is about getting 'one nation under God' put back in the pledge of allegiance.
"And then I've got a movie that I directed and acted in called Let There Be Light and it comes out in theatres in October and it's a Christmas movie. We've got Dionne Warwick and a big group of singers working on the theme song right now. One hundred per cent of the proceeds of that movie will go to the food banks of America.
"There'll be an app out soon, and you can go to lettherebelightthemovie.com to check out the trailer right now.
"I've got a movie I'm about to start in New York. I'll be there for two months. And then I go to Poland in October, November to shoot a World War II movie there."
Sorbo gets to play a major part in the latter film, and the role is that of a Nazi officer. He is keenly interested in the history he'll be operating within, especially in that country where the Second World War was so profoundly traumatic.
He also doesn't often get to play a villain, another chance he's relishing.
He is so busy with his own projects that he doesn't often take parts from the Hollywood pool, but once in awhile his friends pitch one his way.
"I'll give a script 20 pages. If I like it, then I'll do the movie. It's pretty much as simple as that. It depends, I guess, on my mood that day if I like the script or not," he said.
It's a platinum age for both film and television because of the many new platforms available to actors, directors and producers, and because technology is available that allows small-budget storytellers to tell big-budget stories.
They may lack the special effects and A-list actors, but they have all the bones for a strong tale.
"I like what I call actor's movies," he said. "I love a good visual effects movie as much as the next person, but you often leave not caring about the characters whatsoever. I like doing movies that have character development, or characters people can relate to whether they like them or not. They can strike a chord and make you feel."
Sorbo will tell Prince George film fans all about the gift of story and the power of performing arts, in person, live on stage. He is one of the headliners at Northern FanCon on this weekend at CN Centre. He will answer fans' questions live from the stage and he will be available in the autograph area along with many other famous folks who have come to share the weekend with northern B.C.
Tickets to FanCon are on sale now. Look up details on the official website or Facebook page.
