“We are doing well,” he said about life during quarantine. “When quarantine hit, they closed the beach, so we decided to go back to Colorado.”
Torkildsen is known for his portrayal of Rick Forrester on The Bold and The Beautiful, which he played from 1999 to 2006. “That was an absolute treat and a pleasure. It is such an honor to have worked there for such a long time and having the pleasure of winning an Emmy, and essentially, getting those storylines. Playing Rick was definitely one of the best roles of my career,” he said.
“Winning the Emmy Award was such a surprise. I will always remember that night because I was truly shocked. At the time, I was still new to the show and I was getting my feet wet. I had some amazing scenes with Adrienne Frantz, and it is still one of the most exciting nights of my life,” he said.
While on The Bold and The Beautiful, he shared that he loved working with actor Sean Kanan. “Sean and I became really good friends and I loved Studio City, the new series that he created. When I heard that he put it together, I watched it right away. It was so cool to see all the actors on that series. The daytime world is a small community and it was great to see what he put together,” he said.
On being an actor in the digital age, he said, “It’s very interesting. For me, I’m excited since I took a self-imposed hiatus for a while, and I am ready to go back to work again. The digital age has changed so much and there are so many outlets for creativity, which is exciting.”
For young and aspiring actors is to “not give up.” “It’s a tough business but it’s worth it when it pays off. I fully believe that with dedication and effort, you will get your opportunity. It’s how you seize that opportunity that will create the rest of your career.”
“My favorite thing about acting is working with different people and experiencing different stories, seeing different points of view. Every actor is going to come to a character from a different perspective,” he said.
On the title of the current chapter of his life, he said, “Re-emergence.” “I am entering the middle part of my life and I am really enjoying it. I like it,” he said.
He revealed that he is a car enthusiast and he likes building bicycles. “During this pandemic, I took up building bicycles. I don’t know why,” he said with a sweet laugh. “I am really into cars and I have been working on a car show, so I’ve had some time during the lockdown to refine where I want to go with it, which is really nice. I’ve enjoyed that. Also, I’ve gotten better at cleaning and organizing during this quarantine.”
Torkildsen defined the word success as “contentment” in life. “Success is sitting back and saying ‘I really love my life.’ That’s success to me,” he said.
For his fans and supporters, he concluded, “The fans are the best, especially the fans of The Bold and The Beautiful. There are a lot of people that have still stuck with me after all of these years, and they have supported me. It’s an honor and a blessing to have these people in my life. They have been amazing.”
To learn more about Emmy winner Justin Torkildsen, check out his IMDb page, Facebook page, and follow him on Instagram.
