Taylor Kitsch is a simple man with simple pleasures. When he’s not acting, he likes riding his motorcycle, exploring the great outdoors and drinking a glass of bourbon. It’s fitting for his latest endeavor: A campaign with Jefferson’s Bourbon, a brand Kitsch likes because they share his sense of humor.
“My lifestyle is quite outdoorsy and quite out of the box,” he tells Observer. “I’m pretty self-deprecating. But at the end of the day, it is about quality. So all those [qualities] are aligned with me. The ad is about breaking the tradition. And that’s like the way I go about life, to be honest. Adventuring, thinking out of the box.”
The actor, who most recently starred in Amazon Prime Video’s The Terminal List: Dark Wolf, a prequel to 2022’s The Terminal List, spends his off-time in Bozeman, Montana. He moved there in 2021 from Texas, where he spent over 15 years, and has embraced the outdoor spirit of the town. At the moment, he’s back in Texas preparing to shoot Peter Landesman’s upcoming film Eleven Days, a hostage thriller set in a penitentiary. As much as he enjoys his job, balancing work and pleasure is a “constant battle” for Kitsch.
“I love what I do so much,” he says. “It just becomes your life, and you obsess over it, and I love it as well. It’s a catch-22, because I also love being in the outdoors, and photography, and motorcycle riding all over the world. That stuff allows me to forget [my job], and I honestly do think it makes you a better actor [by] learning about different cultures and being uncomfortable. That’s what living is about to me. So I don’t know if there is a balance. I’m quite extreme.”
Kitsch tends to select roles that push him, just like he enjoys extreme travel to places like Patagonia, where he rides motorcycles and photographs wildlife. But that doesn’t necessarily mean something has to have a big action component.
“Eleven Days is more about the human condition, the study of one man against another,” he notes. “It’s a true story in 1974, so that’s what intrigued me, other than being uncomfortable. It’s very different from anything I’ve ever done. I think you’ve got to be uncomfortable, and you’ve got to try to put yourself in situations where you don’t have an easy answer. So I’m excited. And I’m scared. And that usually means I’m doing the right thing.”
Here, Kitsch reveals what he takes with him on the road, what he needs on set and what’s in his home bar besides Jefferson’s.
Travel must-haves
I always travel with my pillow, from my bed. I don’t use it on the plane, but I’ll use it in my hotel or wherever I’m staying. Even on my bike trip to Patagonia, or when I’m going through Italy or something. I do take it because I am so particular. The worst feeling on the planet is going [somewhere] and there’s just shitty pillows. I don’t know the brand, but it’s super soft. And I got a really good cooling pillow case. I pack it in my backpack. I also need a good sunscreen, which I get from my dermatologist. I won’t rent a motorcycle helmet, so I bring my own. Good sunglasses—I have Oakleys and Ray-Bans. My regular glasses. I lose a charger every fucking 10 minutes, so I need multiple chargers.
On-set essentials
I don’t bring my pillow. I have my notes and my journal for the character. I keep things very simple on the day with the script, so I’m able to just let go and let my gut take me where it goes. I need a ton of water. If my blood sugar gets low, I get really tired and my brain slows down. I like to have apples and peanut butter. I go through maybe four to six apples per day. The peanut butter’s got to be crunchy. I don’t ask for a specific brand. I think that would be a little much. But that would be pretty funny if I were on set yelling for Skippy only. So I don’t have a specific brand, but the more natural the better. I also obviously have to have my morning coffee. I really take it slow so I don’t get too anxious before [working], so I’ll try to time out my coffees. It’s usually an iced triple shot with a splash of oat milk.
Go-to workout
It depends on the role. With The Terminal List, I was boxing a ton. With Primeval, I used weights. I did some band work, but not a lot. And your diet changes completely depending on the role. You’re always manipulating your body a little bit. But it’s really about energy, simplifying your life and hoarding your energy for the role. I did boxing for Dark Wolf. I love it. I got a little heavy speed bag in my house in the basement. If I’m on the road, I’ll try to find a boxing gym. I like doing anaerobic stuff, like high-intensity intervals.
Attila Szvacsek/Prime
Favorite local spots
I’ll plug these guys: Ghost Town coffee in Bozeman. It’s my favorite. I take my motorcycle almost every morning to Ghost Town. There’s a great deli called Finks. There’s an incredible bakery, Wild Crumb, which is scarily close to my house. I gained 25 pounds to play Glenn Krieger in Painkiller, so I was crushing that bakery twice a day.
Favorite vacation spots
We get long winters in Bozeman, so I’ve learned to leave for a few weeks and go [to the] southern hemisphere for a motorcycle ride. Early February, I was in Patagonia for two weeks on a motorcycle ride with two of my best friends. That was amazing. We were tracking pumas with our cameras and doing a lot of wildlife photography and landscape photography. I’m going to photograph the orcas in Argentina early next year.
Getty Images/Unsplash
Photography gear
I use a Sony Alpha 1 with a 50 and a 35 [mm lens]. If I’m doing landscape, I’m usually at a 21. I got into it from doing The Bang Bang Club in 2009. I learned to shoot on film. I have an old Leica that I used in The Bang Bang Club that I still take portraits on. I love shooting in black and white, like Ansel Adams. At that period, he was really ahead of his time. And I think anyone that knows wildlife photography knows that it takes patience. It took him days and days to get those photos. Sometimes I’ll be sitting out there for six to eight hours waiting on a wolf or whatever it is.
Sony
Home bar essentials
[My setup] is so simple. Obviously, I’ve got Jefferson’s in there. I have a couple of glasses that are very particular to me, like a Dark Wolf glass and a Terminal List glass. I have those next to it, but it’s so simple—it’s just in a corner of my living room. And then I have a little ice maker below. I like to drink bourbon on the rocks after a long day of being at work or being out in the outdoors.
Jefferson's Bourbon
Current playlist
I’m always listening to some David Gray. I just think he’s one of the best lyricists on the planet. I’ve been a fan since the early ‘90s. I did this mini trailer for the African Children’s Choir, and I cut it to a David Gray song. I asked him if I could use it, and within an hour, he was like, ‘Yeah, no problem.’ Black Crowes are great. If I’m working out, I go full techno and go crazy. I have a song list for each character. So depending on the scene, I’ll go into that just to put you in a certain state of mind. But for me, it’s a lot of David Gray. I’ll always have a David Gray in my song list for any character I play. He’s just fucking incredible.
What he’s watching
I just finished Alone, which I love. They drop these guys and girls off, and they’re out there for as long as they possibly can. I just love it. That’s probably my favorite show. I think you glorify or romanticize it, right? You’re like, “Fuck, I could easily go at least two weeks.” I do think I’d be good if there is fishing there. I could at least survive a couple weeks. Everyone goes their own way, and they can build a great bunkhouse or whatever they’re gonna sleep in. I think I’d get a little carried away with my OCD and build something a little too much. But, yeah, I’m fascinated by that show. I’m also excited because hockey is back. I have a good friend on the Wild, Mats Zuccarello. Henrik Lundqvist is a dear friend of mine, but he’s retired. Detroit is probably my favorite team because their general manager was my idol growing up, Steve Yzerman, and he’s an amazing guy. I’ve got to know him, so I’m always rooting for Detroit.
What he’s reading
Just my script. If I pick up a book, then I’m guilt-ridden because it’s like, “Why aren’t you spending time on your script?”
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