An Interview with Lou Ferrigno
It is not often that we have the opportunity to interact with a true legend in the action entertainment world like Lou Ferrigno. Ferrigno made the transition from competitive bodybuilding to acting in the late 1970’s when he helped bring comic book superhero The Incredible Hulk to life. Ferrigno’s acting career has continued over the past four decades starring in movies like 1983’s Hercules, 1989’s Cage, 1992’s Frogtown II and 2015’s The Scorpion King 4: Quest for Power.
I recently had the opportunity to ask a few questions of Mr. Ferrigno, who is currently making the rounds promoting his appearance in Alejandro Montoya Marín’s short film, Perps…
CTB: The short film Perps was unlike anything I had ever seen you in before? How did you get involved in the project?
LF: I was contacted by Tina Presley, who offered me the project, and I loved the idea.
CTB: Would you like to work with Tamas Nadas again in the future? Perhaps give him a rematch?
LF: Definitely. Tamas is a fine producer who brings the best out the actors he is working with.
CTB: Going back to the beginning of your acting career on The Incredible Hulk. Were you surprised with just how popular that show was and really still is? I know when I was probably 4 or 5 in the late 70’s my dad took me to the Autorama here in Cleveland where you were signing autographs and the line was so long to see you they had to cut it off.
LF: Yes, especially after 43 years! I worked hard to keep The Hulk alive due to my passion. The Hulk is still my biggest and most iconic character.
CTB: You made a few movies for the infamous Cannon Group, where you got to play another iconic character, Hercules. Any fun or interesting memories of working with Cannon? You threw a bear into outer space!
LF: Loved my time making movies for Cannon Films. Especially enjoyed filming in Italy among the ancient ruins. The bear scene always got the biggest laugh.
CTB: Lastly, what projects do you have lined up next that your fans can look forward to?
LF: I have two movies coming out. Cranial Sacral, a horror film starring Michael Paré and Richard Tyson. And Guest House, a comedy starring Billy Zane and my son, Lou Ferrigno Jr.
CTB: Thank you so much for your time, Mr. Ferrigno. And as a reminder to the readers, you can check out Lou Ferrigno’s electrifying performance in Perps right now on YouTube.
Stay tuned for an interview with Lou Ferrigno’s Perps co-star, Tamas Nadas, coming up tomorrow!
Hey Chris, great article. I just happened to be searching for the date of that autorama in Cleveland. I too was there and I was around 10yrs old. I was and still am a huge fan of Lou Ferrigno, I guess I was one of the lucky ones to have been able to see him on stage posing. We stood in line and I actually got to go up to him and shake his hand. He autographed a Polaroid picture we had taken of him while in line and a 8×10 photo of him in full “HULK” mode. Just wanted to share that with you as it is a very fond memory of mine. Keep up the great work.
Thanks Steve. Were you able to track down the exact date?
Not the exact date but I was able to find a YouTube video of an interview Fox 8 did with Lou Ferrigno. It says it was in 1979 so I guess that will be good enough. The link to the video is: https://youtu.be/0JbL-4RYVIs.