Actor Spotlight: John Shepherd (Tommy Jarvis, A New Beginning)
Actor John Shepherd had the dubious task of not only following up quite possibly the best Friday The 13th film in the franchise, but continuing a character that once was a child and now had to be portrayed as a broken adult dealing with the death of his mother. Taking on Friday The 13th: A New Beginning was not the Hollywood movie he aspired to be apart of when he ventured to town, but he was professional and turned in the best performance he could manage. Fans have grown to admire his take on the Tommy Jarvis character and the film with the pseudo Jason killer.
Back in April 2012, the Daily Herald wrote up a nice piece on the man who abruptly left Hollywood when his career in acting was just getting started to become a minister and embrace a faith that he fully believed in. He came back years later and now is a successful film executive. Below is a few small excerpts from that article which now finds John back in Hollywood
His Friday The 13th Experience
"The script was kept a secret, and I literally thought I was auditioning for 'To Kill A Mockingbird.' Then they told me it was "Friday the 13th Part V." I got to kill Jason. I was one of the few guys who got to kill Jason, because he's un-killable," he said. "But all I really thought was, 'aw, I'm going to be (filming) in a barn in the dark for six weeks with a machete in my hand.'"
After that role, he grew frustrated with Hollywood, turning down a role in "Friday the 13th Part VI" and making an abrupt career change: he left showbiz and became a minister.
"When they go to Hollywood, they say they either go to drugs or their faith. So I'm happy he found the seminary," said his mother, Marie.
What John Does Now
After working as a movie executive at several studios, including DreamWorks, Shepherd now runs his own movie studio MPower Pictures, where he makes a wide range of award-winning films, including a few sold exclusively at Wal-Mart.
His most recent films are "Snowmen," starring Ray Liotta and Christopher Lloyd, a coming-of-age story about some small-town boys who want to be world record holders; and "Machine Gun Preacher," in which Gerard Butler plays a drug addict biker who has a religious awakening and ends up crusading for Sudanese child soldiers. The movie was a 2012 Golden Globe nominee for Best Original Song (Chris Cornell's "The Keeper.")
Read The Entire Article At The Daily Herald
Back in April 2012, the Daily Herald wrote up a nice piece on the man who abruptly left Hollywood when his career in acting was just getting started to become a minister and embrace a faith that he fully believed in. He came back years later and now is a successful film executive. Below is a few small excerpts from that article which now finds John back in Hollywood
His Friday The 13th Experience
"The script was kept a secret, and I literally thought I was auditioning for 'To Kill A Mockingbird.' Then they told me it was "Friday the 13th Part V." I got to kill Jason. I was one of the few guys who got to kill Jason, because he's un-killable," he said. "But all I really thought was, 'aw, I'm going to be (filming) in a barn in the dark for six weeks with a machete in my hand.'"
After that role, he grew frustrated with Hollywood, turning down a role in "Friday the 13th Part VI" and making an abrupt career change: he left showbiz and became a minister.
"When they go to Hollywood, they say they either go to drugs or their faith. So I'm happy he found the seminary," said his mother, Marie.
What John Does Now
His most recent films are "Snowmen," starring Ray Liotta and Christopher Lloyd, a coming-of-age story about some small-town boys who want to be world record holders; and "Machine Gun Preacher," in which Gerard Butler plays a drug addict biker who has a religious awakening and ends up crusading for Sudanese child soldiers. The movie was a 2012 Golden Globe nominee for Best Original Song (Chris Cornell's "The Keeper.")
Read The Entire Article At The Daily Herald
