Troy Garity's stock may be on the rise in Hollywood. He was nominated for a Golden Globe and Independent Spirit Award for his rousing performance in Showtime's unflinching film Soldier's Girl, a tragic love story based on the 1999 murder of Pfc. Barry Winchell by a fellow solider at Fort Campbell, Ky. Garity admits that the positive reactions he is receiving feel good, especially considering that he is highly critical of himself and often uncertain about his acting. "With this film, the subject matter and the fact that it's real life sort of supercedes any actor's vanity that I might have," he says. "It's the only movie I've done—although I haven't done many—that I would recommend for people to see. Most of the time I am just sort of embarrassed, and I have to excuse my performance." No excuses needed here. Garity offers a flawless performance.
From old Hollywood lineage—he is the son of Jane Fonda and Tom Hayden—Garity's foray into the industry seemed preordained. Said Garity, "Well, I guess it was a natural progression. I spent all of my childhood at a performance art camp. Putting on plays, it was more like commedia dell'arté. It wasn't career oriented in any way. It was more fun and therapeutic, so I never really thought of it as something I would end up doing. I was more convinced I was going to be a painter."
But his lineage may have had little to do with his desire to act. The actor recalls, "When I was in the 9th grade, on Halloween night, when you're supposed to go and out and burn your city, my mom made me go to Cirque du Soleil. I was kicking and screaming. This girl came out onstage, and I was instantly mesmerized. I dropped out of school and became obsessed with her. I saw the show, like, 70 times."
Garity thought his obsession was with Cirque's nymph. But soon after enrolling in an acting class, he realized he was instead obsessed with the feeling acting gave him. "It was sort of reminiscent of the freedom I had in my childhood at the performance art camps," he recalls.
He figured if he was going to pursue acting professionally, he should do it right: by studying the craft. He enrolled at the New York American Academy of Dramatic Arts. "It was what I was looking for," he says. "I enjoy the process of creating one's technique. I find a lot of amusement in finding wise people who swear to one scenario. I really enjoy creating a soup of everyone's technique and seeing what works for me. I think the best thing about the academy is that each quarter you were given different techniques from various masters. You were given the freedom to find what triggers you."
Garity spent a year in the academy's repertory company; then he moved to Los Angeles. A year later he was cast in the indie Bohemians, but the film's production company went bankrupt, and the film was never finished. "I think it was a rude awakening," recalls Garity. "School is such an encouraging and safe environment. It's filled with idealism and just really working on your craft. When you enter the business world—where art meets commerce—it can become quite depressing."
He was tapped to portray his father in the biopic Steal This Movie. Although he acquitted himself, the film barely registered with the public. Following an appearance in Perfume, he landed a breakthrough role in the crime comedy Bandits, as a sweet-natured but exceedingly dim aspiring stuntman, and also appeared in MGM's hit comedy Barbershop. But, Garity admits, "I prefer the serious stuff because I tend to not be serious [off-screen] so it's personally more challenging."
Once again, however, he'll show off his comedic chops as he reprises the role of the barber, Isaac Rosenberg in Barbershop 2: Back in Business which opens Feb. 6. Beyond that, future projects are to be determined. Garity explains, "I have a couple of scripts that I am looking to produce, but Soldier's Girl was very hard on me. It was emotionally taxing. I've sort of just dropped out. I don't want to do something I don't really care about. I'm being very prudent with material because I want to show myself in a different light now. I want to show my range before I fall into any typecasting. I've turned down a lot of things trying to wait. But at the end of my career, whether that be tomorrow or 40 years from now, I would like to look back and be able to say, 'Ah, I never fell into any gimmicks.'"