BY BILL PHILLIPS
He has never been to Prince George before but is no stranger to Canada. Lou Ferrigno played in the Canadian Football League before he took up acting.
The man who brought The Incredible Hulk to life will be in Prince George this weekend at the fifth annual Northern FanCon. While it is his first trip to Northern FanCan, Ferrigno is no stranger to such events.
“I will be signing autographs, doing a Q&A,” he said, adding there will be a professional photographer there so you can get your photo taken with Ferrigno or other celebrities here for the annual event. “I’m looking forward to it. I can’t wait to meet the fans.”
Playing the Hulk in the television series The Incredible Hulk from 1977-82 catapulted Ferrigno to stardom and it is what he is most recognized for. However, he has had a long, and varied acting career. So what stands out for him?
“I’ve one over 40 films, I’ve done five different TV series,” he said. “I don’t really have a favourite. I did a movie in England about three years ago, that’s one of my favourites. It’s about a guy from special forces who seeks revenge.”
Ferrigno has been very busy and has two movies coming out later this year. The first will be Purge of Kingdoms.
“It’s a spoof of Game of Thrones,” he said. “I play the role of Ned.”
However, he wasn’t about to give away any spoilers and couldn’t say whether he loses his head, as does Ned Stark in Game of Thrones.
He will also play the psycho in Cranial Sacrial, a murder mystery thriller. He is also in Enter the Fire, which came out last year.
So what will be his message to those coming to FanCon and hoping to get some hints?
“Embrace your passion, maximize your personal power,” he said. “And for people who want to go into acting, it takes time. You can’t become an overnight star, you have to take acting classes and you have to love acting. It has to be in your blood.”
As most know, Ferrigno was a bodybuilder before he moved into acting. He was featured in the 1977 documentary Pumping Iron about the bodybuilding sport and even though his physique opened the door for him, he took acting classes to hone his craft and worked in theatre, acting in plays such as Arsenic and Old Lace.
A veteran of the Arnold Classic, one of bodybuilding’s largest events, Ferrigno says bodybuilding is a great way to get into shape and stay in shape … fitness is something he continues to work vigorously on.
“I train every day. I don’t go to competitions, but I keep up with the sport. Bodybuilding is great, it’s a growing sport,” he said. “It’s a very popular sport, very healthy too.”
He will continue to make movies and is hoping to develop a project with his daughter focusing on bodybuilding, fitness, and how to motivate and help people.