As he stars in a new Rimowa campaign, the prolific actor answers 20 questions on work, travel and the benefits of fasting, and reveals why he’s always believed less is more when it comes to possessions
Walton Goggins is the sort of actor who works steadily and impressively for decades until, seemingly all of a sudden, they’re a big deal. For him, the tipping point probably came last year, when he gave a fascinating, Emmy-nominated performance in The White Lotus. As Rick Hatchett, a successful middle-aged man with vengeance on his mind, he was cool and inscrutable. If Aimee Lou Wood’s well-meaning Chelsea couldn’t save prickly Rick, it’s likely no one could.
Goggins aficionados will know The White Lotus is just the tip of his stacked filmography. Since he launched his acting career in the late 1980s, he’s shone in prestige drama series like The Shield, Justified and Sons of Anarchy, as well as the cult HBO comedy Vice Principals. On the big screen, he’s played everything from a renegade sheriff in Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight to a black market tech dealer in Marvel superhero movie Ant-Man and the Wasp.
His latest assignment is leading Grégoire Dyer’s stylish campaign video for Rimowa’s new limited edition dartboard case in silver. Goggins plays a sports-loving security guard at the luxury luggage brand’s Cologne factory, who happens upon the gleaming aluminium dartboard case and can’t resist testing out its contents with a well-aimed throw or two.
Here, Goggins answers 20 questions on everything from work and travel to memorable life advice. He also discusses his passion for fasting and very democratic view of star quality.
1. Hi Walton! Where are you right now?
Los Angeles, California. I just got back from a few days working up in the mountains at Lake Arrowhead.
2. You’re appearing in the campaign for Rimowa’s new limited-edition aluminium dartboard case. But how would you rate your own darts skills?
Growing up outside of Atlanta, Georgia, there was a dartboard in all my friends’ basements and pretty much every bar I went to once I got my fake ID, when I was 15. So yeah, I know how to throw a dart.
3. What trip have you always wanted to take?
My son just told me about a trip he wants to take before he starts college, which involves flying to Uzbekistan, crossing the border into Kazakhstan, taking a ferry across the Caspian Sea, and then travelling through Azerbaijan and Armenia into Turkey. When he said he wanted to take it with me, I started crying.
4. How do you pass the time on a long-haul flight?
Oh, I’ve gotten really good at this. I have a book or script to read, two glasses of wine and a beautiful dinner, then I put the seat back. I have no problem sleeping, and I don’t pay attention to time zones.
5. What is your earliest memory?
Watching my mother get ready to go to work. It was just the two of us in this little duplex in downtown Atlanta, and I remember thinking she was the most beautiful woman in the world.
6. What is your worst nightmare?
Anything to do with snakes. Sadly, they’ve featured in a few of my jobs, including The White Lotus.
7. Can you name your favourite song lyrics?
That’s such a situation-dependent question – but how about “the thrill is gone” from the classic blues song?
8. If you weren’t an actor, what would you be?
A travel writer and photographer. If I ever take a break from acting, it’s something that I may well do.
9. Which character has stayed with you the longest after filming?
I don’t mean to be an asshole by saying this, but they all do, man. I’ve been lucky enough to play some pretty rich characters, and they’ve all stayed with me for a very long time. After a few years playing Detective Shane Vendrell on The Shield, I needed to be on a psychiatrist’s couch.
10. What film have you watched the most?
I’d have to say The Deerhunter, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Stripes, and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Oh, and Kramer vs. Kramer, because I’m a child of divorced parents.
“For me, stars are everywhere if you just give a shit and listen to what people say” – Walton Goggins
11. Of all the people you’ve met, who had the most star quality?
I’ve worked with a lot of movie stars, but for me, stars are everywhere if you just give a shit and listen to what people say. When I was driving back from Lake Arrowhead, I met up with this guy called Dan Pollock who makes these fucking stunning wooden tables. He’s this radical, authentic, quintessential Southern California hippie who lives in a desert commune. And spending a few hours drinking beer with him was pretty special.
12. Do you believe in awards?
I’m not gonna sit here and say I don’t believe in awards – I’m not that person. But I don’t compare people to people, let alone movies to movies or stories to stories. What I do know about this business is that the reward is in the doing: it’s about having an idea, then working hard to bring it to fruition.
13. Are there any mantras you live by?
Be empathetic, because you never know what that person has gone through today. I say this to my son all the time.
14. What one thing could you not live without?
I can’t imagine a life without exercise in it. I’m addicted to it.
15. How would you explain the benefits of fasting to someone who has never tried it?
Well, it’s about discipline first and foremost, but also about clarity. It makes me mentally sharper. Other people mindlessly eat – and I dig the shit out of doing that, too – but when I’m fasting, I have a greater appreciation of food and really enjoy each meal.
16. What makes you happy?
My wife, my son, and travelling without an agenda to places I’ve never been.
17. What makes you sad?
People who are unkind and the world in its current state.
18. What is the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
Really, the only thing of value my dad ever gave me was this advice: that he’d rather have one shirt that cost $250 than five shirts that cost $50. I really took that to heart. It took me eight years to buy an Illum Wikkelsø sofa, but I got there and I treasure it.
19. How would your friends describe you?
Intense, fun as shit and really loyal. I take pride in being someone they can depend on.
20. And finally, what will you be doing after this interview?
Well, seeing as I’ve been fasting for about 12 hours now, I’m gonna go to the gym, and then I’m gonna have two nine-minute boiled eggs.
The Rimowa Dartboard Case in Silver is available at select Rimowa stores worldwide.
