From “Narcos” to “Logan,” Boyd Holbrook now joins the list to beat up Indiana Jones

Boyd Holbrook was offered a part to the new Indiana Jones movie, and his first word was not immediately yes.

His wife had to convince him.

“I was hesitant,” Holbrook said in a zoom interview, the day “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” was released.

Hesitant. Hesitant to join a summer blockbuster, and one of the most iconic film franchises ever.

“I was torn at the opportunity, and the fear of messing up people’s memories,” he said.

Valid concern. Fans of franchises such as Star Wars, Star Trek and a few others, like Indiana Jones, are notoriously unhappy with new any release. Something is always wrong, and there are always allegations of being “a sellout.”

“My wife got through eight or 10 pages of the script and said, ‘Oh my God, you’re doing this.’” he said. “I wasn’t even in the script yet.”

A character actor with several solid credits to his resume, notably as one of the law enforcement officials in the popular Netflix series “Narcos,” Holbrook has steadily stacked winners.

He has now added the distinction of playing an awful, terrible, bad guy to chase Indiana Jones.

In an interview Holbrook talked about his journey from Eastern Kentucky to landing a part where he punches one of the world’s most celebrated adventure heroes.

Star-Telegram: How does a man from Prestonsburg, Kentucky make it all the way into the cut-throat world of Hollywood?

Boyd Holbrook: Clawin’ and scratchin’ your way there. I moved out of Eastern Kentucky out of high school to New York when I was 20. It’s been a journey.

S-T: What is more difficult, making it as an actor or a model?

BH: I’d say an actor. I stumbled into modeling. I was working at a theater company and some lady said I could model. I didn’t even understand what it was. Three months later I get a call to get a free trip to New York, and I had a cousin in Hoboken. I sucked that dry; it was take the money and run.

I got an apartment. I got a job. I was 24, I got into film school. When I was 25 I got into an acting conservatory. I got out when I was 28. I started working when I was 30. I gave myself two years to either do it or not, and then I was going to pull the rip cord.

I moved to New York, I was doing sculptures. I was into photography. I was trying a lot of stuff.

I remember the first time I got my first gig, it was one line in something. I remember I had a group (art) show that night, and I missed the show. I didn’t sell anything at that show, so it was an indicator of where I was in life, even though it wasn’t the best (TV) show to be on, it was a part. So I faded out of mold making and sculptures and concentrated more on film.

S-T: Were you the traditional starving actor?

BH: (Laughs). Yeah. For sure. I came to New York with $1,100 and I made it last eight or nine months. I was living on people’s couches. Living in an apartment with eight people. It was a great experience. I would not trade it for nothing.

S-T: You were born the year “Raiders of the Lost Ark” was released; what are your first memories of the character?

BH: My first memories are of the second film (“Temple of Doom.”). We actually watched it at our house, me and my sister, laying on the floor watching the movie. I think it was my first real memory of a movie. It felt like that. I remember when they come out of the airplane, and they inflate the raft with Short Round.

I wanted to be Short Round on these adventures with Indiana Jones. When I was older I found out there was actually two (Indiana Jones movies). There is just nothing like them.

S-T: You and Mads Mikkelson aren’t just the bad guys for this film, you’re really bad guys. Were you entirely comfortable with that?

BH: There is trepidation, for sure. It’s definitely deep water to get lost in. I couldn’t figure why (his character) would latch on to that (Nazi) idealism. He’s learning German because he’s thinking he’s getting into this new enterprise.

S-T: Your character punches Indiana Jones, and is punched by Indiana Jones; which is the bigger honor?

BH: Yeah, good one. When they actually do land, that’s when you get gun shy. I saw Harrison take a lick from Olivier Richters (7-foot-2, 342 pounds; he’s a bad guy in the film). He throws this big haymaker, and I guess Harrison forgot to get out of the way, or duck.

I was pretty surprised that he was standing and not affected. I was really concerned, but he took a licking and kept on ticking.

S-T: Was there any sense of surrealness to being asked to join the Indiana Jones franchise?

BH: Yes, absolutely. I’ve been that way my whole career. I remember working with Morgan Freeman on the “Magic of Bell Isle.” The amount of people I’ve been blessed to be around and work with, I am beside myself most of the time.

And to be with this iconic franchise that’s coming to a close; just be quiet and no one will figure you out.

S-T: Do you go in knowing that regardless of the movie you make, there will be die hard fans to this franchise that won’t be happy?

BH: I don’t have a problem with people I don’t know. I only care about people around me what they think. I am a performer at the end of the day, and I love character acting. I get to experience it. It’s why I’m not concerned with seeing movies that I am in.

It’s awesome to watch that film sometimes, but if you like it, great. It’s like all these pro sports guys, they strikeout. It’s the nature of the game. I try not to have too many duds.

S-T: Do you think your attachment to a film of this size will create other opportunities for you?

BH: Just being honest, yes. Work in general begets work. I’m a working actor, thank God, I can support my family and have a life. I cherish what I have. I worked my butt off for that.

You reminded me of something Harrison told me on set; he looked over at me and said, ‘It’s better than having to go to work.’

It’s work, and it’s glorified make believe at the highest level.

S-T: You call yourself a ‘character actor.’ How do you define that?

BH: Acting is acting truthfully under imaginary circumstances. We are all character actors, but I got into this game later in life. There are a couple of entry points; the heart throb. Or the MCU universe. You’re there for a long time.

My strategy was to do small roles that were noticeable in really good films. Like “Walk Among the Tombstones,” or “Gone Girl,” or “Run All Night,” or “Little Accidents.” They were characters that were identifiable, but you’re still making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

S-T: The world has changed so much the first Indiana Jones was released; do you think we will ever see a landscape where we will have movie stars like Tom Cruise, Harrison Ford, Sly Stallone or are they from a bygone era?

BH: That’s a fantastic question. I have noticed that one percolating around. It comes down to culture, and art imitating life. And where are we now. The 1970s was the pinnacle of cinema, and all that. I don’t know.

I sure hope so.