In this interview, actor Randy J. Goodwin reflects on the core values that have guided his career, emphasizing professionalism, humility, and the belief that work should speak for itself rather than self‑promotion. He recounts how veteran actors such as Sidney Poitier, Lou Gossett Jr., Kelsey Grammer, Wesley Snipes, and Michael Jai White modeled a work‑first attitude, and shares a personal anecdote about a real‑estate investor friend who didn’t know he was an actor, illustrating how his craft remains separate from his personal identity. Goodwin stresses that his Midwest upbringing—rooted in Nebraska, Christian faith, and “deep in the mud” values—instilled a strong sense of integrity that helped him navigate Hollywood’s challenges, including the MeToo movement, where he received a call from a CBS producer questioning industry conduct. Throughout, he frames his purpose as using his work to help others on their own journeys, focusing on learning moments rather than failures.
Chapters
That's how my uncles were. And when I got into the business, Sidney Poitier, Lou Gossett Jr., Kelsey Grammer, Wesley Snipes, Michael Jai White, all of these guys, they were about the work.
Yeah.
You know, they weren't about, hey, look at me. Right. If I walk up and I go, hey, Toby, what's going on, man? Hey, you know I'm on a new show tomorrow night. Hey. Right.
On a new show. Yeah.
So I just, I don't open my mouth. A buddy of mine here in Omaha, he's a big real estate investor, Gerald. Gerald. Gerald Williams is hilarious.
He goes, I've known this guy for 2 years. He never told me he was an actor. I was like, what?
It's not my job to tell you. He goes, my wife goes, you know Randy's an actor. And I go, no, he isn't. He never told me that. He goes, shoot.
He goes, I've seen you my whole life. That's right.
And I love when people say that because it lets me know my work is out there because it's not about Randy. It's about Randy's work and how Randy can touch people and help them along their journey to get to where they want to be. I'm not going to say get to where I am because your journey is not my journey, right? You know, right. But there will, there will be similarities. There will be pain. There will be heartache. There will be failures. Well, I don't like to use the word failures. There will be learning moments.
Learning curves, you know.
So everyone goes through stuff, and there are similarities to every one of our journeys, but, you know, to each his own. You will have your own.
So let's talk about a little bit, um, I alluded to it, um, in Hollywood there's a lot of challenges. Um, we, we as the public don't want to recognize the, the trials and the tribulations that actors actors go through. Uh, every now and then a scandal will break out, but for somebody like you who was knee-deep into it every day, it wasn't a scandal, it was a way of life.
Yes. Yeah, I, um, I got a phone call, you know, when the whole MeToo thing started, right? Yes. Um, I got a call from, uh, one of the producers from CBS I've done a couple of shows with, and He goes, "Dude, do you see what's going on?" I go, "Yeah, everybody, man." He goes, "Well, at least we know one person that's not going to get a phone call." I said, "Who? Everybody's dirty." And he goes, "You, you idiot." And I went, "Oh, oh, oh." And that's— so I'll give you one story to sum up. Well, I won't sum up why I am the way I am because I'm a Nebraska boy. I am an Omaha, Nebraska native. I am from the Midwest, Midwest upbringing, you know, just deep in the mud roots, Christian faith, my whole life growing up in this thing. So for me going to Hollywood, it was not a problem to draw a line in the sand before I got there.
