Exclusive Interview: Pop Culturalist Chats with 86 Melrose Avenue’s Gregory Zarian

Award-winning storyteller Gregory Zarian has never taken a moment in his career for granted. From an early age, his family instilled in him the value of hard work and to appreciate all that life has to offer. It’s served him well throughout his career, from his work in print to screen.

Pop Culturalist has the pleasure of speaking with Gregory about his journey as a storyteller, his career, and his latest film, 86 Melrose Avenue.

Career

PC: How did you discover your passion for acting and the arts?
Gregory: That’s a great story. I was given a great gift. Somebody met me when I was working in a department store, and the next thing I knew I was on a soap opera. A few months later, I was off the soap opera because I wasn’t ready. When you’re given these great gifts and your life is about to change, I truly believe sometimes you’re not ready. I wasn’t ready. I was given this opportunity to be on one of the number one soap operas in the country. I was given a forefront storyline, and within a couple of months of giving it my best, the universe had a different decision to have me written off because I wasn’t ready.

I went to Europe for a couple of years to find out who I was and what I was about. I was fortunate enough to model while I was there. A couple of years in Europe led me back to the States. That’s when I realized that, especially when I was living in Europe, that I love being a storyteller. With modeling, commercial work, print work, it’s all about storytelling. That really clicked in me.

I want to say it was when I was in Paris. I was hired to do a big phone campaign and had a great time. The photographer showed me the images, and I was like, “Oh my God. I’m telling a story.” That’s probably around the time that it really clicked. I came back to the States, and to this day, I bust my butt. I go to class. I study. I’m always watching, learning, uncovering, and discovering ways to be a stronger, better storyteller.

PC: You’ve had a lot of success throughout your career. When you look back, is there a particular moment that stands out?
Gregory: That’s another great question. I’ll give you three if I can. For a long time, people were like, “He’s a model.” Well, here’s the beautiful part about me saying I am a model, I’m hired as a storyteller. We’re given these opportunities to create make-believe. I’m grateful to all my agencies, specifically L.A. Models.

Years ago, I used to be the fit model and runway model for the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, FIDM. FIDM has their students go in for two to four-year curriculums. Then, they create their debut show. What FIDM did at the time—I think they still do now—is they celebrate the Academy Awards and the Academy Award-nominated costumes. My client at the time, Jim Watterson said, “Hey, Mr. Zarian. I want you to try on a dress.” Behind my rack of clothing was a dress. I went, “Wait, what?”

I got to wear the purple gown that Patrick Swayze wore in To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar. It’s an iconic movie. I got to walk down the runway with Julie Newmar in the same dress that Patrick Swayze wore in this movie. There was a moment when I was like, “I’m in a purple gown, I’m wearing fifteen-inch heels, I have a purple wig on, more makeup than I can even imagine, and I’m with Julie Newmar. How cool is that?” It was bittersweet when he passed away. I had a personal connection to him because the clothes were made to fit him, so I was the token size of Patrick Swayze. It was awesome.

Then, one of the best acting jobs I did was two years ago, and it was a series called Counterpart. It was based on two worlds in Germany. I got to film it with my twin brother. My mom was German. I got to go home because I spent summers going to Berlin, Germany. I got to tell this amazing story about the same person living two separate lives. Plus, I got to do it with my brother, and not many people get to tell a story with your twin brother. [laughs] I mean not many people have a twin brother, but it was pretty phenomenal.

Also, one of the most poignant moments for me as an actor was when I got to be on Venice: The Series. It’s a love story. I got to bring tons of awareness to my character that was being bullied. I got to bring a lot of awareness and light and became an advocate of anti-bullying and this amazing company called Free to Love. It was so big. I got to play a small part of this amazing love story.

PC: Who or what’s had the biggest influence, either personally or professionally?
Gregory: My parents collectively. I am the child of immigrants—my dad came from the Middle East, and my mom came from Germany. My heritage is from genocide and the Holocaust. My grandfather was invited into the Nazi party. He told them to f-off. My father survived a genocide. I come from immigrants. They taught my brothers and myself to be grateful for everything and anything. My work ethic comes from my parents, especially my father. It was very, very tough love with my father. He would say, “I could buy you a car. I could. You wouldn’t appreciate it. Go earn a car. Go work for a car.”

I have an interesting story. When I was scouted after my time on Days of Our Lives came to an end, I was still living at home, and I said to my dad, “Hey Pop. I’ve been scouted to go model in Europe.” My father really believed in the nine-to-five. He believed in old-school traditions. It’s how he was brought up. When he came to this country, he worked his ass off to put food on the table for three children and a young wife. He became the American dream. So, I said, “Dad, I want to go to Europe and model.” He said, “Gregory, I don’t believe in this pipe dream, so there’s one of two things. You can stay in my house, finish school, and get your degree or you can move out of my house and live in Europe.”

[laughs] So, I moved out of his house. I called him a month later when I was in Italy. I said, “Hey Pop. Ciao. I’m in Italy.” I said, “Dad, I don’t have any money. What do I do?” He said, “Gregory, you can do one of two things. You can cash in your ticket, come home, and go back to school or you can get a job.” He ended every phone call with, “I love you.” He put the drive behind me. He put the drive behind all three of us—my twin brother, Lawrence, my other brother, Vincent, and me.

We were brought up not to take anything for granted. We boys were taught to be chivalrous gentlemen. I believe that all of that goes hand-in-hand. We don’t step over people to get what we want; we get down and dirty and work hard. I believe there are people that within a blink of an eye are on a show and their life is set. I actually feel that I’m the person that has to break his butt for every job. I wouldn’t change it because it makes me appreciate every job. It makes me appreciate walking down the runway with Julie Newmar a little bit more. It makes me appreciate being on Westworld last year more. I mean, Westworld, come on.

None of it is taken for granted. It’s Disneyland and you get to go to the front of the line every ride, and I earned it.

86 Melrose Avenue

PC: Tell us about 86 Melrose Avenue, your character, and what drew you to this project.
Gregory: 86 Melrose Avenue is a hostage thriller. It’s about an ex-Marine who is suffering from PTSD, and he has a break. I believe that we are all now suffering from some type of mental break because we’ve all survived COVID. I call it the global car crash—one minute we’re living our lives, the next minute we’re told not to leave our house. That’s PTSD to me.

He comes in, and he takes all ten of us in the art gallery hostage. We are all forced to face our own mortality. It deals with PTSD, mental health, gun control, gun violence. For me, I play a gentleman named Avi. I play an Israeli character who came to the United States when he was five. His father wanted him to get the best life that he could.

It’s very personal to me because my father, even as I was saying it was tough love, wanted us to have the best life we could. However, it wasn’t the life that my dad chose for me, and even with Avi, it’s not the life that his dad chose for him. In life, I wanted to become a man and have my dad see me. Avi wants to make his dad proud, so there were choices that Avi makes after being held at gunpoint to make his dad proud. We all want to make our parents proud in the best way we can.

The reason why this movie meant a lot to me is I’ve worked with the writer-director Lili Matta before. We’ve stayed in touch. My mom was a ballsy woman. She really was. To survive what she survived as a woman, I bow down to her. Lili comes from Lebanon. She survived growing up during the war. She has a vision of telling these stories about strong women and how they overcome. She wears her heart on her sleeve and in all the best ways, she’s tough. She’s an intense female director that has a lot of things to say. I’m so proud to be part of the world.

PC: Unlike most movies and projects, you shot this film in chronological order. How helpful was that as you approached this project?
Gregory: I didn’t know we were doing it that way. The very first day when I got to work, I was filming the end of the movie. We shot the ending, and I was like, “Wait. What?” We did a few pickups on some other stuff because most of it is in the art gallery, but there was a bit with all of us that wasn’t in the art gallery.

On Monday we got to the art gallery, and we were there until Saturday. It was shot in order. When you’re watching this movie, you really see the innocence of strangers meeting at an art gallery. The more I’ve talked about this film, I’ve actually gone back and watched it. You see the break.

There’s a beautiful moment when Travis, the ex-Marine, comes in and takes us all hostage. I’m not giving anything away. There are photo stills of all of us on the floor. He comes in and says, “Crawl.” I didn’t know that was going to happen. As an actor to have someone wave a weapon at all of us and say, “Crawl,” and as a man, for me to crawl, it was palpable. Everything that we all did instinctually was organic, authentic, and real. When people come back to me and say, “Hey, what was that like? You were shuddering. You were crying. You looked petrified there. What was that?” I say, “It’s real.”

That’s what I love about storytelling. Every emotion of turmoil that the audience feels with this is because we lived it every second.

PC: The film is out now, and it’s been incredibly well-received. What do you think is resonating most with audiences?
Gregory: In one second, your life can change. The truth is resonating with people. Do you know there’s a statistic about gun violence and gun control? Over 230 people are injured every day. Close to 58% of all women have been in a relationship that has had domestic violence involving guns. Over 58% of all women have either been shot or shot someone due to gun violence. That’s staggering, and it shouldn’t happen. It shouldn’t happen.

If we are having a conversation now about why a gentleman named Kyle Rittenhouse is pulling out an assault rifle and randomly shooting somebody on the street, that’s a conversation we have to have. It’s in your face. It’s confronting. One out of seven adults suffers from mental illness.

My hope is that we all check-in in a different way. “Hi, how are you? How was your day? Are you okay? What’s going on?” My mission is to make a difference for people. If you walk down the street, and you have an extra quarter, and you see somebody’s meter light flashing red, put a quarter in their meter. Put the quarter in. They’re probably running late. It’s probably a mom that finally gets to take her kids back to school, and she didn’t have the time.

I believe that we are all given a moment to reset, to have more conversations about race, color, religion, shape, size, sexuality, mental health, everything. That’s my mission for the movie. That’s why I’m such an advocate of “How are you? No really, how are you?” We can make a difference.

PC: This film really makes you question your own mortality, the things that you’ve done, haven’t done, and still need to do. What’s left on your bucket list?
Gregory: To be a dad. I want to be a dad. Conversations are being had. I recently became a dog dad. His name is Byron. I was just told by the trainer that all of Byron’s bad habits are my fault, and that’s okay. [laughs]

Work-wise, would it be great to be on a series that has phenomenal storytelling? Sure. Of course. But our bucket lists change every day. You have those moments where you wish you did things differently. Let go of the past. Forgive people that we think have hurt us. Be open to an apology. Be open to apologizing. Say “I love you” more. Send a thank you card. Ask a thousand questions because when someone’s gone, they can’t give you the answers anymore. And be fearless.

To keep up with Gregory, follow him on Twitter and Instagram.

Photo Credit: Brian Kaminski