Exclusive Interview: Pop Culturalist Chats with Grayson Thorne Kilpatrick

Grayson Thorne Kilpatrick is an exciting young actor making his mark on the industry. From an early age, it was clear that Grayson had an innate love for performing, reenacting the infomercials he would see on TV. But growing up in a small town in Alabama, Grayson never imagined his dreams would come true, until a traumatic event changed the course of Grayson’s life forever. He’s gone on to appear in film and TV programs including Chicken Girls: The Movie, Wet Hot American Summer: 10 Years Later, To Tell the Truth, and Daddy’s Home. Pop Culturalist spoke with Grayson about his career, finding the light in a dark moment, and his upcoming projects.

PC: How did you discover your passion for acting?
Grayson: Well, from a very young age, I would watch infomercials and reenact them. My mom asked me, “Grayson, would you like to take acting classes?” I thought, “Wow, that would be cool, but I live in Alabama, so there is no way a kid from Huntsville, AL could be in a TV show or movie, right?” I didn’t know at the time how wrong I was.

When I was three, I had a traumatic event that changed my life. My parents and I lived in a great house in a subdivision near the city of Huntsville. We had amazing neighbors that were more like family. Most of the neighbors we had were military or retired military since Huntsville is known for the U.S. Space and Rocket Center, NASA, and there is also a military base called Redstone Arsenal close by.

But just like anywhere you might live, sometimes bad things happen. I don’t talk about this incident much, but my parents and I lived through a home invasion. My mom shielded me as best she could. She told me we were playing a game and not to be scared. Both of my parents were tied up and I hid behind the French doors that were next to the front door. The men that broke in knew I was there, but they were not concerned with me.

Later, we come to find out that the men that broke into our home actually had the wrong house, but it didn’t help the trauma of seeing men have guns held on my parents. After the ordeal, my parents put me in Child’s Play Therapy. It was a place where a young child who had been through something traumatic could act out their feelings to help them cope with whatever was bothering them. So, I did.

For many months, when I heard a doorbell, I would run and hide. After completing the program, I enjoyed acting out and using expression to explain myself. But, I still did not believe that I could be a real actor. Even though the home invasion was a bad experience, I really think it was meant to be because it pushed me in the direction I needed to go. I can think about that time and really get into a dramatic role.

PC: Who or what has had the biggest influence on your career?
Grayson: Later in life, I met an actor I highly respected that gave me direction. Five years after the home invasion, my dad had read in the local papers that Grayson Russell (Diary of a Wimpy Kid) was in town filming his new movie, Space Warriors, at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center.

Grayson Russell was going to be at a local movie theater viewing one of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid movies with fans and would be signing autographs before the movie. My dad got our family and one of my friends, Mason, tickets to go watch the movie with Grayson. Grayson Russell was great! He took the time to answer my questions and took pictures with me.

At the screening, Grayson mentioned they were looking for extras to be in the movie he was filming. I asked my mom if she could take me to see if I could be an extra. She did, and I was an extra and fell in love with the environment. I loved watching the crew move their equipment around to do the same scene but get different angle shots. So, the next week my mom enrolled me in a local acting school called Hollywood Huntsville. By the spring of the next year, I filmed my first movie and had agents in Nashville, Atlanta, and New Orleans.

In January 2016, our family moved from Huntsville, AL to Los Angeles, CA. I booked my first movie and guest star role on a TV series that same month. By February, I had to go SAG-AFTRA, a professional actors’ union.

PC: You’ve had tremendous success in your young career. When you look back, is there a particular moment that sticks out to you?
Grayson: I think when I went into a call back for the movie, Black Pumpkin. After the audition, they hired me on the spot. Then, they actually allowed me to have a voice in casting the role of Elliot, who was to play my best friend in the movie.

Working on Daddy’s Home with Mark Wahlberg was also special. Getting a role in Chicken Girls: The Movie is another particular moment that sticks out as well. When I was hired for the role of Sheldon, it was great: my manager sent my demo reel over to production and they booked me off it. I am hoping Sheldon will get to reprise his role again one day.

Other times that stick out are when I worked on the set of Documentary Now! with Bill Hader and Fred Armisen, and with Fred Savage on a TV pilot episode. Also, working on the set of American Horror Story was amazing. I would love to do another episode on that show! The makeup artist was out of this world—he made me look like a werewolf! Working on Your Pretty Face is Going to Hell with Henry Zebrowski was so amazing. I loved working on the set of To Tell the Truth and meeting Anthony Anderson and his momma. She is such a great woman; I loved her.

PC: What’s been the biggest lesson you’ve learned being a part of this industry?
Grayson: I have learned when you go into an audition, you do your best. When you come out of that audition, you leave it there. Let it go. Don’t worry about whether you get the role or a callback. I mean that’s always nice to get, but there will be another role. I truly believe if it’s meant to be, it will be. I think I was guided to the place I am at now, but because of events in my life. There was a reason for each of them and I believe I was meant to be in this industry. I love the phrase my manager uses: “Onward and upwards”.

PC: Of all the characters that you’ve played, which is the most similar to you?
Grayson: I think it would be when I played Lawrence “Pork Chop” Chubbs in Black Pumpkin. He loves playing video games, eating, and spending time with his best friend. I love horror and comedy, and this movie is a mixture of both. It was funny, in one scene Pork Chop is eating a pizza and dipping it in ranch dressing, and I actually do that all the time.

PC: You have a few projects in post-production. What can you tease about them?
Grayson: There’s a TV show called NC16, which is about friends trying to make it through high school together. We had an amazing writer, Michael Rojo, and director, Michael Spound. Then there’s also Water Dawg, and that one is about a man who delivers a psychedelic drug to a funeral.

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

PC: Guilty pleasure TV show?
Grayson: I love Lucifer, The Umbrella Academy, and Cobra Kai. My all-time favorite TV show is Mr. Ed—I have all the seasons. The ringtone on my cell phone actually used to be Mr. Ed’s theme song.

PC: Guilty pleasure movie?
Grayson: Deadpool or Deadpool 2. I collect comic books, and Deadpool has to be my favorite.

PC: Favorite book?
Grayson: My absolutely favorite book series is Land of Stories by Chris Colfer.

PC: A band or artist that fans would be surprised to learn in on your playlist?
Grayson: I have a lot of classical music on my playlist like Vivaldi, Pachelbel, and Beethoven. But, I also love AC/DC so go figure.

PC: Last show you binge-watched?
Grayson: Black Mirror! I am hooked on that show right now.

PC: Hidden talent?
Grayson: I am into Rubik’s Cubes. I have over 50 cubes in all shapes and sizes. I can completely solve a 3×3 in about a minute, but I have 4×4, 5×5, 6×6, and a 7×7 mirror cube. I have two Ghost Cubes, Megaminx, Pryraminx Pyramind, Gear Cubes, and Mastermorphix. I would love to get the mega 17x17x17, but if I am making a wish, who would not want the masterpiece cube that came out in 1995 for the 15th anniversary of Rubik’s Cube.

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