David Boreanaz Talks His Philly-Famous Dad and Philly Sports
If you were a Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Bones, or Angel fan, you no doubt recognize Hollywood actor David Boreanaz, whose father just so happens to be veteran Philadelphia TV broadcaster Dave Roberts.
Boreanaz recently embarked on the seventh and final season of the military series in which he stars, SEAL Team, available on Paramount+. We caught up with him to chat about life at Malvern Prep, having a Philly-famous dad, and doing a JCPenney TV commercial with Bryan Cranston.
I grew up in ... Buffalo and then Villanova.
My worst subject at Malvern Prep was ... chem, without a doubt. I totally memorized the periodic table and still got a C- on my final. That's with a tutor! That's how bad it was.
I moved to L.A. in ...
The Philly sports team I follow the most is ... all of them, including the Union. 100 percent. Without a doubt. I'm totally obsessed. Last year, I was involved in putting together a team to try to purchase the Flyers .
The first big concert I went to was ... Barry Manilow at the Spectrum, 1978. I kept asking my mother what the smell was — I later learned it was marijuana — and she said just keep walking.
Growing up with a dad on TV was ... exhilarating but also humbling to watch him treat everybody the way they should be treated. He had no egotistical perspective. No "celebrity."
I was inspired to act ... after seeing Yul Brynner in The King and I in Philadelphia. That was in the sixth grade.
My first acting gig was ... Horace Vandergelder in Hello, Dolly! in eighth grade. My first paid gig was in a JCPenney commercial with Bryan Cranston , before he was famous. The commercial was all about clothes and being the "it" guy. And one of my first TV show jobs was on Married... with Children. I was Kelly Bundy's biker boyfriend , and Al Bundy beat me up.
My most extravagant material possession is ... my '68 GTO Mustang 500.
When people say, "Hey, weren't you that guy on Buffy the Vampire Slayer?" ... I laugh and say yes. That was a fun show. And I'm proud of my work on it.
The last time I was in Philly was ... just a few months ago. I was eating at the Saloon with Big Dom , the Eagles security guy.
One thing that L.A. needs that Philly has is ... real fans.
If you want to see me on TV these days ... look up SEAL Team. We're in our final season. I play the Bravo 1 special ops leader. As for my next project, I can't talk about that yet.
One classic movie I'd love to star in the remake of is ... Goodfellas. I would love to play the Ray Liotta character.
When people ask me for advice about breaking into Hollywood, I tell them ... slow it down, be present, and embrace the fear.
My secret talent is that I can ... pop and lock. From the '80s , baby. I can spin on a piece of cardboard too, though these days I might be sore the next morning.
Published as "One of Us: David Boreanaz" in the September 2024 issue of Philadelphia magazine.
