'JAG's' Star Reveals Hard-Knock Life

Aussie Actor Trevor Goddard Goes From Hoodlum To Hollywood

The hot CBS drama "JAG" just got hotter. Actor Trevor Goddard, who portrays Mic Brumby talks about going from a life of juvenile crime (yup, you read right) to stealing scenes on prime-time television., has just upped his deal with the show and will be a regular this season.

I sat down with the actor to talk about his new rank. While I expected a great conversation, I had no idea what I was in for. As it turns out, Goddard's life has been anything but charmed.

Waiting For Goddard
I wait for Goddard in the fanciful Wolfgang Puck Café in Los Angeles.

Right on time, Goddard ambles to the table. The native Australian is sweating. Goddard sports a baseball cap and workout clothes. He's just finished a long run.

In search of energy, the actor orders an extra-large cappuccino, the "biggest they've got."

It's easy to see why "JAG" cast the ruggedly handsome Goddard in the role of Aussie Mic Brumby. Goddard's character turned a million heads, including that of the beautiful Mac (Catherine Bell), last season.

"JAG" is a military drama about lawyers serving in the Navy's Judge Advocate General Corps. The show debuted on NBC in 1995 and was picked up in 1997 by CBS after the peacock network canceled the show. The series stars Bell and actor David James Elliott. Supporting characters like Goddard's have also been instrumental to the show's success.

Now Goddard has an opportunity to play an even bigger part in the series. Clearly, Goddard is pleased with his emerging role as a show regular.

"They built (Mic into the show) slowly as an exchange officer from Australia," Goddard tells me. "And they gradually built up the romance between myself and Mac."

The role of Mic Brumby is of particular interest for Goddard, because he actually gets to play a decent guy.

"This is a good guy, the love interest, an educated lawyer. Normally, all I play are the bad villains, the brawlers," Goddard says.

Villains would be an understatement. Before "JAG," Goddard had made a name for himself as the perennial mean guy in films like "Deep Rising," "Assault on Devil's Island" and "Mortal Kombat."

This season sees Goddard's character resigning his assignment with the Royal Australian Navy and taking up civilian practice. In this new scenario, he'll be going up against JAG lawyers often.

Juvenile Haul
Born in Perth, Australia, Goddard's childhood was far from charmed.

Goddard admits that he got into "a lot of trouble" growing up, spending time in real courtrooms in his homeland.

"The first stint in solitary was car theft, grievous bodily harm, assault," Goddard says of his criminal past.

After his parents separated, Goddard and his mother moved to England. Goddard brought his troubled reputation with him to his new home.

"I had no father figure at all. I was totally without guidance and ran amok," he says. "I was actually homeless for four years."

But Goddard's experiences left him with valuable lessons and remorse.

"I regret everything. Everything I did, everyone that I hurt," Goddard tells me.

He says that he was finally able to go from being a hoodlum to being a Hollywood star thanks to a combination of growing up and having a family of his own.

"I have two little boys of my own, and I hope they go the right way," Goddard says of his sons, Travis, 5, and Daniel, 2.

Goddard encourages other young people to take the high road.

"I like to give back to other kids, to talk to them and try to keep them on the right track," Goddard tells me.

Taking Off The Gloves
"I was 59-1 as an amateur,8-1-1 as a pro." Goddard is talking about his record as a prizefighter.

"I was always a fighter since 7 years old. A mate of mine put a ring up in the garden, and friends started going over there and boxing," he recalls. "It was a way to get out your aggression. And that's how it all started."

Goddard's boxing career brought him to the United States in 1986.

"When I came to America, I had $2,000 Australian, and I didn't even know that Hollywood was in Los Angeles," Goddard tells me.

But soon, fate came calling. While at a professional boxing match at the Great Western Forum in L.A., Goddard got an offer that would change his life forever.

"Budweiser happened to be there, and I beat the guy on a knockout on the first round. They approached me after and asked me if I wanted to do a commercial campaign for Budweiser," Goddard says.

His answer was a resounding "yes."

Goddard's commercial exposure led to more offers, this time for bit parts on daytime soaps like "Days of Our Lives" and guest roles on prime-time shows like "Murphy Brown."

Goddard also landed on the stage, playing a sexually confused boxer in "Cock and Bull Story" in Los Angeles. The show was a success, and so was he.

Against stiff competition from such luminaries as Laurence Fishburne, Ian McKellen and Ed Harris, Goddard won a coveted L.A. Drama Critics Award.

Ringing The Bell
"It's a top-10 show. It's got wonderful writers, a great cast, good-looking blokes and girls. Great storylines, drama and action," Goddard says of the reasons why "JAG" is a success.

And success, he says, is due not only to great production, but to the fans.

Goddard's storyline in particular has been a point of contention for viewers who favor the romantic relationship between Elliott's and Bell's characters. And the fact that Goddard's character has asked Bell's to marry him, even giving her a ring, is not sitting well with some fans.

Indeed, some aren't afraid to tell the actor exactly how they feel.

"I had a woman come up in the car wash the other day and say, 'You stay away from Mac.' A little old biddy. I thought she was joking," Goddard recalls. "And then she said, 'Don't you get cheeky.'"

He admits that the experience was "pretty intense." But he wouldn't trade it for the world. Goddard tells me that he's grateful for the role and the fans.

"I've had a lot of wonderful support," he says. "It's those people who are keeping you in your job."

Resting His Case
While enjoying success on "JAG," Goddard is also continuing a busy film career.

He co-starred in the feature film "Gone in 60 Seconds," but calls his part "gone in 10 seconds."

"There was four and a half hours of footage; they didn't have a script," he says. "I had three really big scenes with Nic Cage. But you got Robert Duvall, Nic Cage, (Giovanni) Ribisi, Angela Jolie ... who are they going to cut?"

Two more films are also coming down the pipeline for Goddard.

"I just did a movie called 'Dead Man's Run' with John Savage. That's soon to be released by Sony," he tells me.

Goddard is also scheduled to start shooting another movie at the beginning of next year. He'll co-star with Christopher Walken in the feature "Freedom Boat."

"It's the real-life story about the freedom boats the Vietnamese used to escape Vietnam in 1974 during the fall of Saigon, and the Thai pirates used to capture the boats," Goddard says.

While he's grateful for a busy career, Goddard knows that Hollywood can be fickle.

"(Success) is wonderful. It's not an ego thing; I just try to enjoy and take every moment as it is. Because I know in this town, in this business, you turn around and it's over," Goddard says.

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