So Many Questions: 'Zesty' Guy Anderson Davis says looks shouldn't be that important
When you're making a living in an industry that obsessively covets physical perfection, it's easy to understand how someone might get caught up in their own hype.
Defying the established tolerance for self-indulgence, actor-model Anderson Davis has managed to keep his feet on the ground in a career that currently includes showing off his, ahem, body of work to millions as the Kraft “Zesty” Guy. Sure, eager kitchen warriors might be to thank for the 2.5 million hits his Zesty commercials have gotten on YouTube, but one look is all it takes to appreciate Davis' powers of persuasion.
It's a livelihood that he takes in stride. Putting the emphasis on the exterior, he says, is missing the whole point. Life is too short to get caught up in the things that, at the end of the day, don't really matter that much. Not the likely perspective from someone who has enjoyed national advertising campaigns for the likes of Mercedes Benz, Gillette, Bud Light and GE, along with roles on “CSI,” “Days of Our Lives” and “Whitney.”
But it's reflective of the fundamental values that he holds paramount.
At the end of the day, he wants to be remembered as a good actor, but that doesn't supersede the importance he puts on being remembered as a good guy.
Question: So, you realize you probably just sent a whole new generation of women back into the kitchen with that Kraft Zesty Cookbook, right?
Answer: I hope so. It's all about America and health. We gotta do our part for the world.
Q: Did you ever think that one day your pecs would be making the rounds on national television?
A: I never thought I'd be so naked so often … ever.
Q: You're in an industry that obviously is hyper looks-and-body conscious. How are you able to maintain a level-headed approach to fitness?
A: I look at life on kind of the full scale, and I believe in balance. For example, I have a lot of friends that are very hard fitness fanatics, and when you start giving one aspect of your life too much, you start lacking in the other aspects of your life. If someone says, “Are you into fitness?” I don't really say, “Yeah, I'm into fitness and I love fitness.”
I've always been an athlete and have carried those athletic genes from a young age. But I, by no means, enjoy working out. I am not a fan of it. I've never counted a calorie in my life. It's great to be healthy, I'm not against being healthy, but it's just not a passion of mine. ... For me, it's about having a balance, whether it be career, anything that you do on the side.
Q: We hear quite a few cautionary tales about putting too much emphasis on physical beauty as it pertains to women. Are men feeling that same pressure?
A: I think so. It's sad because life is so short, and to put so much emphasis on the exterior — you're missing the whole point. It's great to be beautiful, but I sit back and look at some of the people I admire most in life, and it has nothing to do with the exterior. It has to do with how they change the world or how talented they are in what they do. You become attracted to people based on their talents and what they're doing to change the world. If you just look at the exterior, that stuff, like they say, it fades.
So I think it's important that there's more substance behind good looks. I think we're all hard to look at at 7 in the morning. You are not pretty and your breath is not pretty at 7 in the morning. It doesn't matter who you are!
Some of the actors that you really enjoy watching, they're not the most beautiful person in the world. Anthony Hopkins, I really enjoy his work, but he's just an old man, and even in his heyday, I don't think he was really mainstream attractive, you know? But, you start admiring people for the substance and the stuff they are giving versus what you see.
Q: That's an interesting perspective.
A: I feel like it has set me apart in kind of a way in that I'm not trying to create any alter ego, I'm not trying to create anything different from who I am and what I believe in. I'm not trying to impress anybody; I'm just trying to be myself. Someone asked me what I want to be known as in 10 years — and I want to be known as a good actor, but a really good guy. So it comes back to me and the foundation, and what's really important. I love acting, and it's a craft and I study it.
There's more important things in life, there just is. When it's your livelihood, it is important. but when you look at things on the bigger scale ... . I look at the media today, and we spend so much time worrying about this young gal Miley Cyrus and her dancing when there's so many other issues that the country needs to be aware of that they're not being shown. I don't want to bite the hand that feeds me, but the media has a responsibility, and we have a responsibility to be role models, not be idiots.
Q: Where does that foundation come from?
A: I just got some good folks, I have some good parents that raised me right. Like anyone, I slip and make stupid moves sometimes and often. But I think you always go back to your foundation. Even if you kind of veer off for awhile, and you start thinking one way, you always end up kind of coming back to that — foundational teachings and beliefs. Being in this industry, you're set apart as a celebrity. You're above the law, and above this, and it's stupid. You shouldn't be that way. The idea of divide, to me, it's weird. It's a weird thing because I sure as heck don't feel any more important of a person than the next person.
Kate Benz is the social columnist for Trib Total Media. She can be reached at kbenz@tribweb.com or 412-380-8515.
