Taylor Kitsch: from the success of Friday Night Lights to the failure of John Carter and his new show on Netflix

As soon as Taylor Kitsch appears on screen in her new Netflix series, “American Primeval,” about ten minutes into it, one of the first things audiences see is her bare rear end.

Those who know Kitsch from his iconic role as Tim Riggins on the NBC series “Friday Night Lights” in the mid-2000s might believe this scene appeals to his reputation as a former youth star. However, in “American Primeval,” Kitsch is far more focused on the raw depiction of life in the 19th century American West than simply pleasing the eyes of nostalgic millennials.

This intense miniseries depicts blood, mud, and war on an epic (and costly) scale, chronicling the violent 1857 clashes between the U.S. Army, Native Americans, Mormons, and settlers in the Territory of Utah, with a cinematic but deliberately disenchanted look (and it’s not “Yellowstone”).

As Isaac Reed, a white man raised by the Shoshone tribe, who reluctantly agrees to guide Sara Rowell (Betty Gilpin) and her son through perilous territory, Kitsch embodies a heavy physicality and intense looks. So much so that when he first meets Sara emerging from a river, he barely seems to care about the impropriety of a naked body on display to a stranger.

With a wardrobe consisting mostly of tattered rags and an unkempt beard masking the carefully trimmed features that secured him a spot in 2000s Abercrombie ads, this role is a world away from what one might expect from Taylor Kitsch. This is precisely what he appreciates.

“I take a lot of pride in playing very different roles,” said Kitsch, 43. He added that feeling uncomfortable helps him perform at his best. “I try to chase fear and seek out projects that, when I first read them, make me go, ‘Oh my god. How am I even going to do this?’”

‘American Primeval’: Kitsch reunites with the man who shaped his career

Kitsch was a fledgling model turned actor, even experiencing precarious periods, when he met Peter Berg, director and executive producer of “American Primeval,” during his audition for “Friday Night Lights” in 2006.

Berg, who developed the football series based on his hit film of the same name, said he knew as soon as he saw Kitsch get out of his agent’s car that he had to play Riggins. Although the studio had previously pre-selected several promising young actors to play this role, Berg managed to convince the producers of the series to trust this young, still unknown Canadian actor.

This series marked the beginning of a fruitful creative partnership between Kitsch and Berg, which lasted nearly two decades. They have since collaborated on films like “Lone Survivor” and “Battleship,” as well as other series including “American Primeval” and 2023’s “Painkiller.”

Kitsch said his symbiotic relationship with Berg allowed him to grow as an actor. “I hope to challenge him as much as he challenges me to stay authentic and keep each of us on our toes,” he said. “I think he knows I’m going to try to play it up and always stay fair when he picks me.”

Berg’s support was instrumental in launching Kitsch’s career, but six years and five seasons on the set of “Friday Night Lights” left him paradoxically unprepared for what awaited him next: a career star in the cinema.

A career at a crossroads

While Kitsch was able to “learn and fail” several times on the set of “FNL,” he encountered far more rigidity on the set of his first blockbuster, “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” in 2009. “My first Day on ‘X-Men’ was like, ‘Hit the right spot, find the light, say your line, and don’t say it that way,’” Kitsch recalled. “I had never been confronted with that, and it was like, ‘Whoa, are we really using lights and cues here?’”

The challenges of cinematic glory

It was the first in a series of obstacles that would punctuate Kitsch’s tumultuous quest to secure a starring role in a film. It’s impossible not to talk about the critical and commercial fiasco that was Disney’s 2012 film “John Carter.” At the time, the decision to star in a film based on an iconic science fiction book series seemed obvious, but Kitsch maintains that he does not regret his choice.

“When Andrew Stanton, who had just won two Oscars, asks you and his preparations fascinate you…” he declared. According to him, at the time, the title role was highly coveted. “No one knows the actors I beat, but I still can’t believe I did it.”

A beneficial questioning

All this did not go as planned. Both films disappointed at the box office and received mostly negative reviews, which changed the course of Kitsch’s career. But perhaps that was a blessing in disguise. In reality, becoming the next blockbuster action hero wasn’t what Kitsch actually wanted.

“It’s the cliché: one for them, one for you,” he recalls. “They tell you: ‘Do this, and you can do whatever you want.’” In an alternate universe where “John Carter” would have been a phenomenal success and would have led to a multitude of sequels, Kitsch might not have not having time to explore the character-driven stories he prefers, like “True Detective” season two, or the biggest challenge of his career: playing cult leader David Koresh in the limited series “Waco” . Kitsch believes the latter role was crucial in defining the type of actor he wants to be.

Commitment and humanity

He also applied the same philosophy to “American Primeval,” losing 20 pounds, learning some Shoshone words, and working with a healer to prepare for his role as Isaac. For Kitsch, preparing extensively is non-negotiable, as he believes it helps clear his doubts.

Kitsch wants to continue telling stories that are close to his heart

Future: Kitsch hopes to return to one of his most popular roles. He will reprise his role as former Navy SEAL Ben Edwards in the “Dark Wolf” prequel to “The Terminal List” alongside Chris Pratt. He also emphasizes the need to advance his own project, namely telling his sister’s story. “Her story is just incredible, very moving and inspiring,” he said. “I would like to be able to make it on a reduced budget to maintain creative control.”

Not included in the program? Worrying about audience figures or ticket sales. “Here’s a great anecdote,” Kitsch recalls. “I was in Austin, filming ‘Friday Night Lights,’ when the movie ‘X-Men Origins: Wolverine’ had just come out. All these congratulations started coming in, but I wasn’t sure what it meant.” What he took from that time was a desire to ignore outside expectations and focus on what really matters in his work.

Kitsch is therefore ready to move forward with the same mindset for his future projects, such as “American Primeval”. He simply hopes to have the opportunity to fully immerse himself in his character, which he considers to be the quintessence of his profession.

“We’ll see what happens,” he concludes. “I will continue to fight, no matter what.”