Kevin Sorbo Full Interview: Hollywood Cancellation and 'The Test of Lionhood'

Kevin Sorbo has gone from conquering worlds as "Hercules" to awakening the lions with his newest book through Brave Books.

Kevin Sorbo encourages men to awaken the Lion within. Credit: Brave Books, used with permission.

I learned so much about Actor, Producer, Director, and Author Kevin Sorbo, and a lot about the Minnesota arts. He was born and raised in a small town in Minnesota near Lake Minnetonka, the company “Tonka Toys” is also there, hence the name! Minneapolis is a thriving theater town. Apparently it’s used as a preview town for shows before they launch on Broadway. When Sorbo was 11, he went on a school field trip to see Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice.

I don't know what the heck the actors were saying, because it was Shakespeare, but I was completely mesmerized by the actors on stage. And I told my mom, I said, “I'm gonna be an actor, Mom.” And she said, “Well, that's nice to dear.” And I got that mom pat on the head, you know. But the seed was set, the seed was planted, and it was always there with me.

Thus a pursuit of an acting career was born, and it’s been a successful one. Sorbo did commercials in college and earned his Screen Actors Guild card. From there he went to Hollywood and did smaller roles before landing the plum lead role in the television series Hercules.