# Kevin Sorbo
**Kevin Sorbo** (full name Kevin David Sorbo) is an American actor, producer, and director, born in 1958 in Mound, Minnesota, best known for playing the title role in the syndicated series *Hercules: The Legendary Journeys* (1995–1999) and Captain Dylan Hunt in *[Andromeda](https://www.edgepedia.org/andromeda-tv-series)* (2000–2005).[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/kevin_sorbo) • [2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/sorbo-kevin-1958) After those two series ended, he built a parallel career in independent, faith-based films such as *God's Not Dead* (2014) and *Let There Be Light* (2017).[3](https://billygraham.org/decision-magazine/articles/kevin-sorbo-from-hollywood-action-hero-to-outcast)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1958, Mound, Minnesota; son of Lynn, a junior high school biology and mathematics teacher, and Ardis, a nurse[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/sorbo-kevin-1958) |
| Signature role | Hercules, first in five made-for-TV movies in 1994, then *Hercules: The Legendary Journeys* (syndicated, 1995–1999)[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/kevin_sorbo) • [2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/sorbo-kevin-1958) |
| Second series | Captain Dylan Hunt in *Andromeda* (2000–2005), 110 episodes; also a producer on the show[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001757/?showAllCredits=true) |
| 1997 health crisis | Three strokes and an aneurysm in his shoulder while promoting *Kull the Conqueror*, leaving permanent blind spots and physical weakness[5](https://www.avclub.com/kevin-sorbo-true-strength-1798170042) |
| Faith-based milestone | *God's Not Dead* (2014), in which he played an atheist philosophy professor, took over $140 million in theatrical, streaming, and DVD sales[3](https://billygraham.org/decision-magazine/articles/kevin-sorbo-from-hollywood-action-hero-to-outcast) |
| Family | Married actress Sandra "Sam" Jenkins on January 5, 1998; children Braedon Cooper, Shane Haaken, and Octavia Flynn[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/sorbo-kevin-1958) |
| Recognition | Saturn Award nomination, best actor on television, 2001, for *Andromeda*[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/sorbo-kevin-1958) |
## Early life and modeling years
Sorbo grew up in Mound, Minnesota, on the western shores of Lake Minnetonka, and attended St. John's Lutheran Church with his parents and four siblings.[3](https://billygraham.org/decision-magazine/articles/kevin-sorbo-from-hollywood-action-hero-to-outcast) He has said the acting bug struck at age 11, when he saw *Oklahoma!* and Shakespeare's *The Merchant of Venice* at Minneapolis's Guthrie Theater and told his parents he would be an actor.[6](https://www.hallmarkfamily.com/the-santa-suit/cast/kevin-sorbo) • [7](https://www.thechristianfilmreview.com/sam-kevin-sorbo-interview-let-there-be-light/)
His accounts of his college education differ between interviews: the Los Angeles Times reported in 1994 that he attended the [University of Minnesota](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-of-minnesota) and majored in marketing,[8](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-11-06-tv-59138-story.html) while later profiles describe a degree in marketing and advertising with a minor in drama from Minnesota State University Moorhead.[3](https://billygraham.org/decision-magazine/articles/kevin-sorbo-from-hollywood-action-hero-to-outcast) • [6](https://www.hallmarkfamily.com/the-santa-suit/cast/kevin-sorbo) After college he moved to Texas to study acting, then followed a girlfriend to Europe, where he spent three years as a model and commercial actor in cities including Milan, Munich, Paris, and London, followed by commercial work in Australia.[8](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-11-06-tv-59138-story.html) • [6](https://www.hallmarkfamily.com/the-santa-suit/cast/kevin-sorbo) Back in the United States from 1986, he worked as a bouncer and bartender before commercials for [Budweiser](https://www.edgepedia.org/budweiser), BMW, Diet Coke, and Lexus put him on screen; in one interview he estimated about 150 commercials in total, and in another 57 spots in the three years before *Hercules*.[8](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-11-06-tv-59138-story.html) • [9](https://indiefilmhustle.com/kevin-sorbo/) • [6](https://www.hallmarkfamily.com/the-santa-suit/cast/kevin-sorbo) He was also under contract to [Jim Beam](https://www.edgepedia.org/jim-beam), playing "the Jim Beam guy" in commercials shown everywhere except the United States.[8](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-11-06-tv-59138-story.html)
Small television parts followed in *Santa Barbara*, *Cheers*, *Murder, She Wrote*, and *The Commish*.[6](https://www.hallmarkfamily.com/the-santa-suit/cast/kevin-sorbo) • [10](https://www.metacritic.com/person/kevin-sorbo/)
## Hercules: The Legendary Journeys
In 1994 Sorbo was cast as the Greek demigod in producer [Sam Raimi](https://www.edgepedia.org/sam-raimi)'s *Hercules and the Amazon Women*, the first of five made-for-TV movies made for Universal's Action Pack; their audience success earned the character a syndicated series slot.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/kevin_sorbo) • [6](https://www.hallmarkfamily.com/the-santa-suit/cast/kevin-sorbo) He won the part after seven callbacks with Raimi.[6](https://www.hallmarkfamily.com/the-santa-suit/cast/kevin-sorbo)
The series ran from 1995 to 1999 and became one of the most successful television productions of the mid-1990s, drawing an unusually large international audience.[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/sorbo-kevin-1958) • [11](https://herculesproject.leeds.ac.uk/publications/the-modern-hercules-part-2/solomon-abstract-hercules-the-legendary-journeys/) At its peak it was reported as the most-watched syndicated television series in the world.[9](https://indiefilmhustle.com/kevin-sorbo/) • [3](https://billygraham.org/decision-magazine/articles/kevin-sorbo-from-hollywood-action-hero-to-outcast) Scholarly accounts attribute the success partly to the first intense use of computer-generated animation on television and to a deliberately family-friendly, campy tone; Sorbo described his Hercules as a hero who never threw the first punch.[11](https://herculesproject.leeds.ac.uk/publications/the-modern-hercules-part-2/solomon-abstract-hercules-the-legendary-journeys/) At 6 feet 3 inches and a former model, he presented a leaner, long-haired romantic hero rather than the muscle-bound Hercules of 1950s and 1960s cinema.[12](https://journeytothewestresearch.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Emma-Stafford-Herakles-2012.pdf) The show spawned the spin-off *Xena: Warrior Princess*, on which Sorbo guest-starred as Hercules, and he also directed and co-wrote some *Hercules* episodes.[9](https://indiefilmhustle.com/kevin-sorbo/) • [4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001757/?showAllCredits=true)
During this period he took his first leading film role, in the fantasy feature *[Kull the Conqueror](https://www.edgepedia.org/kull-the-conqueror)* (1997).[9](https://indiefilmhustle.com/kevin-sorbo/) While promoting that film in 1997, he suffered three strokes and an aneurysm in his shoulder, which left him with permanent blind spots, physical weakness, and difficulty tolerating prolonged stimulus; he and his fiancée Sam Jenkins hid the extent of the injuries from the public, and he dropped out of the film *Black Dog* and returned to *Hercules* on a reduced schedule.[5](https://www.avclub.com/kevin-sorbo-true-strength-1798170042) He later wrote about the episode in his 2011 autobiography *True Strength: My Journey From Hercules To Mere Mortal And How Nearly Dying Saved My Life*.[5](https://www.avclub.com/kevin-sorbo-true-strength-1798170042)
## Andromeda and later television
Sorbo left *Hercules* at its end and told television critics he had initially wanted to pursue a film career, but accepted the lead in *Gene Roddenberry's Andromeda*, an ensemble science-fiction series built from concepts the late *Star Trek* creator had never used, produced with his widow Majel Barrett Roddenberry.[13](https://www.deseret.com/2000/9/5/19527204/sorbo-quit-hercules-not-tv) He played Captain Dylan Hunt, a Systems Commonwealth officer thrown 300 years into the future after being trapped near a time-dilating black hole, and served as a producer; the series ran five seasons and 110 episodes from 2000 to 2005.[14](https://www.space.com/entertainment/space-movies-shows/the-10-best-sci-fi-tv-shows-of-the-2000s) • [4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001757/?showAllCredits=true) His performance earned a Saturn Award nomination for best actor on television in 2001.[2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/sorbo-kevin-1958)
Through and after *Andromeda* he took guest and recurring parts, including *Dharma & Greg*, *Two and a Half Men*, and a recurring role as Frank Atwood on *The O.C.* (2006–2007).[6](https://www.hallmarkfamily.com/the-santa-suit/cast/kevin-sorbo) • [2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/sorbo-kevin-1958) Later television work included *Hawaii Five-0*, *Key & Peele*, and *Supergirl*, in which he played [Lar Gand](https://www.edgepedia.org/lar-gand).[10](https://www.metacritic.com/person/kevin-sorbo/)
## Faith-based films
From the 2010s Sorbo concentrated on independent films with Christian and family themes, a field he said he chose deliberately.[7](https://www.thechristianfilmreview.com/sam-kevin-sorbo-interview-let-there-be-light/) In *God's Not Dead* (2014) he played the atheist philosophy professor whose classroom debate drives the plot; the film became, by one account, the most successful independent faith-based movie ever, with over $140 million in theatrical, streaming, and DVD sales.[3](https://billygraham.org/decision-magazine/articles/kevin-sorbo-from-hollywood-action-hero-to-outcast) He produced, directed, and starred in *Let There Be Light* (2017), co-written by his wife Sam and screenwriter Dan Gordon, which ranked in the top four family-genre movies of 2018 by the same account.[3](https://billygraham.org/decision-magazine/articles/kevin-sorbo-from-hollywood-action-hero-to-outcast) In 2023 he directed and starred as Rayford Steele in *Left Behind: Rise of the Antichrist*, based on the apocalyptic novel series by Jerry B. Jenkins and [Tim LaHaye](https://www.edgepedia.org/tim-lahaye).[3](https://billygraham.org/decision-magazine/articles/kevin-sorbo-from-hollywood-action-hero-to-outcast) His highest-rated film on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes is *Soul Surfer* (2011), in which he appeared.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/kevin_sorbo)
## Public profile
Sorbo has been an outspoken political and religious commentator, supporting Donald Trump in the 2016 election and saying in interviews that he noticed a large drop in calls from major studios over the following decade.[15](https://www4.wng.org/WORLD_Apr-14-2018_2021-04-15-135443.pdf) He chairs and serves as spokesperson for the youth mentoring program A World Fit for Kids! and was national spokesperson for the Afterschool Alliance from 2005.[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001757/?showAllCredits=true) • [2](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/sorbo-kevin-1958) His screen credits span more than 90 movies and TV shows, and he continues to work steadily in independent film.[3](https://billygraham.org/decision-magazine/articles/kevin-sorbo-from-hollywood-action-hero-to-outcast)
## References
1. [Kevin Sorbo Movies & TV Shows List, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/kevin_sorbo)
2. [Sorbo, Kevin 1958–, Encyclopedia.com](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/sorbo-kevin-1958)
3. [Kevin Sorbo: From Hollywood Action Hero to Outcast, Decision Magazine (Billy Graham Evangelistic Association), February 2023](https://billygraham.org/decision-magazine/articles/kevin-sorbo-from-hollywood-action-hero-to-outcast)
4. [Kevin Sorbo, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001757/?showAllCredits=true)
5. [Kevin Sorbo: True Strength, The A.V. Club, October 19, 2011](https://www.avclub.com/kevin-sorbo-true-strength-1798170042)
6. [Kevin Sorbo as Drake Hunter on The Santa Suit, Hallmark Family](https://www.hallmarkfamily.com/the-santa-suit/cast/kevin-sorbo)
7. [Sam & Kevin Sorbo Interview – Let There Be Light, The Christian Film Review](https://www.thechristianfilmreview.com/sam-kevin-sorbo-interview-let-there-be-light/)
8. [WITH AN EYE ON . . . : Kevin Sorbo's Hercules is strong stuff but not exactly his serious side, Los Angeles Times, November 6, 1994](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-11-06-tv-59138-story.html)
9. [IFH 459: Hercules, Hollywood Accounting and Indie Films with Kevin Sorbo, Indie Film Hustle, April 17, 2021](https://indiefilmhustle.com/kevin-sorbo/)
10. [Kevin Sorbo, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/person/kevin-sorbo/)
11. [Jon Solomon, The Convergence of Family Values, Computer-Generated Monsters, and Cleavage in Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, The Hercules Project, University of Leeds](https://herculesproject.leeds.ac.uk/publications/the-modern-hercules-part-2/solomon-abstract-hercules-the-legendary-journeys/)
12. [Emma Stafford, Herakles (2012), chapter on modern popular culture](https://journeytothewestresearch.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Emma-Stafford-Herakles-2012.pdf)
13. [Sorbo quit 'Hercules,' not TV, Deseret News, September 5, 2000](https://www.deseret.com/2000/9/5/19527204/sorbo-quit-hercules-not-tv)
14. [The 10 best sci-fi TV shows of the 2000s, Space.com](https://www.space.com/entertainment/space-movies-shows/the-10-best-sci-fi-tv-shows-of-the-2000s)
15. [WORLD magazine, April 14, 2018 print edition](https://www4.wng.org/WORLD_Apr-14-2018_2021-04-15-135443.pdf)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › American actors: 1970s to 1990s › Surnames Sm to Su*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license