Glenn Turner plays Senator Jules Price in Studio Films’ Forbidden, a.k.a. Light Through the Fire, an 11Eleven11 Project. It’s one of his first acting roles since returning to the business. He reveals that the stress of his full-time job as a portfolio manager prompted him to return to acting after a 15-year break.
Turner took an in interest in acting at an early age. “I was fascinated by horror and comedy flicks at the local theater where my family sometimes spent a full afternoon. My brother and I would often return home and assume the roles of the characters of the day. We found we had a knack for imagination and storytelling,” he says.
Still, he didn’t consider a career in acting until after he graduated from Georgia State University. “Actors like Harrison Ford, Tom Cruise and Tom Hanks seemed to take acting to a whole new level. Films such as Glory and Jerry McGuire demonstrated how movies could affect people and I wanted in,” says Turner.
“There were no TV spots or films that were readily being made in Atlanta and moving to L.A. wasn’t in the cards. I’ve remained active on the periphery as a drama director and video director at my church, but film remained my passion. Unforgettable movies with new technologies like Titanic and Avatar would silently prod me back,” he says.
Turner is a longtime fan of Journey, Jimmy Buffet, Jerry Seinfeld and Jim Carey and said The Rocky Horror Picture Show was his most memorable movie because it was interactive.
While his acting idols are Jack Nicholson and Sydney Poitier, his all-time favorite movie is Crash. Cities he enjoys most are Chicago and San Francisco.
His worst role and onstage mishap? “Assuming the knucklehead role in a play, which grew old quickly. My worst mishap was mistiming a fake punch on stage. You guessed it; a bloody nose and black eye,” he says.
Still, even that onstage moment was better than one past job. “The worst job I ever had was blowing-out flour machines at Sunbeam Bakery,” Turner says.
Even though he’s spent much of his career in finance, Turner says if he weren’t an actor, he’d be a news anchor. As to why he took this role in Forbidden, Turner said, “I wanted to be part of something great. Everyone involved was honoring to the actors. The worst case scenario was I would gain a roomful of new friends.” –yvette caslin
