Today we’d like to introduce you to Ash T.
Hi Ash, so excited to have you on the platform. So, before we get into questions about your work life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today.
I loved acting from the first time I performed Gonbei The Duck Hunter at the impressionable young age of 6. An interesting play about the dangers of taking shortcuts in life. But as the years went by, those older people with supposedly more wisdom than a child convinced me that an artistic life wouldn’t be financially rewarding. So, I reprogrammed my mind to enjoy Biology and follow in my father’s footsteps of becoming a doctor.
Much of my life was spent in the library studying. 120 hours per week. I went through the grueling medical school/residency/fellowship process and finally became an Assistant Professor of Transfusion Medicine at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.
When I finally reached my goal, I realized, wow, I’m really unhappy now even though society would look upon my successes and tell me otherwise. My soul was dead.
So, I started taking acting classes at night. And voila…the unbridled thrill I felt in acting out a scene returned to me. I made a plan to quit medicine altogether and pursue my true passion as an actor.
Here I am in L.A., 6 years later. I’m not making as much money as a doctor, (yet) but I’m surely much happier in this new creative career as an actor. I’ve had some incredible successes along the way and worked on TV/film with some of my favorite celebrity actors. Dreams do eventually come true with lots of resilience.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Taking the path less traveled is rarely smooth. It was scary. Am I even going to be good as an actor? Do I have enough talent and luck to earn money in the entertainment field?
I lost my income, healthcare, social security, and pension. My security blanket was gone, and I’m living off some savings and at times have to take up random types of work to pay bills. I live with roommates again for the first time since college. I have to be as frugal and careful as possible so I can continue on this marathon.
To get representation with a great LA agent and manager has taken many years, hundreds of emails and rejections. There are times when I wonder when my next TV job will land. I can go months and months without work as an actor, especially through COVID and the SAG/WGA strike. Those days test me the most as I often ask the question, Am I progressing in my career? Am I ever going to make it?
The path is uncertain. It’s dark. There’s no guarantee for success and security as there was in going to medical school. But all of these hardships are worth it. The times I’ve been on set across movie legends have been amazing. I have no regrets in life now, and that is the most priceless feeling I enjoy on a daily basis.
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’ve worked on several popular TV shows like Euphoria, Better Call Saul, Dead to Me, and Welcome To Chippendale. Most recently, I starred in a comedy horror film called Slayers, which had a theatrical release streamed on Hulu. It has an all-star cast with Emmy winners and Oscar nominees, including Thomas Jane, Malin Akerman, Abigail Breslin, Ashley Reyes, Jack Donnelly, Kara Hayward, and Lydia Hearst. I booked this within 2 years of moving to LA, and at that level of craft was able to hold my own across other professional actors I revered.
I executive produced a feature documentary called ‘Living With Chucky’ on the Child’s Play franchise, which aired on Screambox TV on April 4, 2023.
I co-created and starred in an action-comedy TV pilot called Hitbaby about a suicidal hitman who begrudgingly trains a computer hacker to become an assassin. This was Abigail Breslin’s directorial debut, and went through a successful 2023 film festival circuit run.
The older I get, the more fearless I become. I truly realize there is nothing that I can’t achieve with the right mindset. I am constantly pushing myself out of my comfort zone to grow. This drive is why I started doing standup comedy. It was one of the last things I feared.
Can you share something surprising about yourself?
I dance salsa, play the piano, and am a published stem cell researcher.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm9518905/
- Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/big_ash_t
- Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/asht
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaELdHwi725Sq7w0KWxkgrw
Image Credits
Nicole Souza
