Currently crushing on Walton Goggins

A feature in which I obsess over someone + explain why I want to live in their skin 😍

Current Crush: Walton Goggins

If Walton Goggins—and don’t you dare call him Walter—looks familiar to you, that’s because he’s everywhere. Name a hit show and he’s in it. White Lotus. Fallout. Righteous Gemstones. Justified. The Shield.

I also need to come clean that Goggins is a relatively new crush for me, even though he’s been a successful actor for years. I simply hadn’t been in his demographic (men who love police/cowboy/testosterone-fueled Tarantinoesque content)…but Brad has been a fan for years. All that to say, I don’t want Brad claiming “stolen valor” on this, since yes—technically—-he saw Goggins first, but goodness me. He is stupid-talented.

The phrase “character actor” gets a bit of a bad wrap; it implies that they couldn’t carry a movie or show as a leading actor…so instead, I’ll say Goggins is a *scene stealer* in everything he touches. Even when he’s not the center of attention and just ‘uh-huhing’ through Sam Rockwell’s NSFW monologue in Episode 5 of Season 3 of The White Lotus, I cannot take my eyes off Goggins.

He’s often type-cast in cowboy, sheriff, or other southern-accented roles (the accent comes easily to him because he’s from a small town in Georgia with one stop sign) but whatever he’s doing, he’s shining. A little Jim Morrison and a little Jim Carey…he can sing. He can move. He can be terrifying. And hilarious. He has charisma oozing out of him every which way. I could watch this man forever.

Also why does he kind of remind me of my friend & colleague, Steve Barone?

You might know him from:

• The White Lotus, Season 3. From his hairline to his printed vacation shirts to his grown-man look and little boy/sad orphan Big Feelings, he is perfect. No notes.

• Fallout (of which I refuse to post a photo because his character is traumatizing)

• The Shield

• Justified

• Django Unchained

• The Hateful Eight

• Vice Principals

• Righteous Gemstones…Baby Billy Freeman is an insane character and I am here for every deranged detail.

His favorite things:

• His wife, his son, and his dog

• Traveling and filling up his passport

• Clogging (his mother was a clogger and he took clogging classes as a kiddo in Georgia)…he’s also a really good singer. It’s annoying how good he is at so many things. EGOT this man immediately.

• His Red Smith Stetson cowboy hat gifted to him from his bestie Sam Rockwell

• Fireplaces and lighters

• Books and reading (especially loves the authors: W Somerset Maugham, Hermann Hesse, Ernest Hemingway)

• Orange Sharpie highlighters for his scripts (travels with dozens of them; something about the color gets him all excited to remember his lines)

• Danny McBride (”the funniest person I have ever met”)

Danny McBride + Walton Goggins 4Eva

• Quentin Tarantino (“my favorite filmmaker”)

• Photography and taking photographs

• Taking naps (takes one every single day and uses a fan app)

• His vintage Rolex that he wants to hand down to his son, Augustus

• Playing backgammon

• Western movies (both watching them and acting in them) - especially loves Stagecoach, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, Rio Bravo

Walton Goggins Mood Board:

Why I love him:

He’s a chameleon.

Goggins has a surplus of talent and charisma. He can be funny, cutting, cruel, and downright terrifying all with a twitch of his eyebrow. Is he a good guy or a bad guy? WHO KNOWS (although probably both). He’s masculine and strong, but vulnerable and fragile. Indignant and naive. He probably smells like pine, coffee beans, and cigarettes—peak masculinity.

He’s got style IRL.

Walton Goggin’s Architectural Digest tour is absolutely unreal. Total eye candy with stories, history, and purposeful design sprinkled throughout. Maybe one of the only celebrity homes that actually looks warm and inviting?

His voice is a balm to my soul.

There’s a reason this man is narrating a new sleep story on the Calm app (I let my subscription lapse, so someone will have to tell me how it is) His voice is rich and dynamic. It can sound soft and cozy…or rough and curt. It can also be deeply southern. I love all of it.

He’s not afraid of an accessory.

Goggins can rock a hat / watch / ring / scarf / novelty belt buckle like no one else.

He’s earnest + sincere + takes his craft seriously.

This man is an artist and I love to see it. Sure, he’s funny and has excellent presence and comedic timing, but he is doing the work. And he takes NONE of this for granted. Goggins told GQ: “I don’t believe in playing dramas or comedies, I see them the same. I think there’s a different tonality to all of it, but any person I’ve been given the opportunity to play, has to be rooted in life. They have to exist in the world in my mind. I’m not playing an idea of someone.” A little scary. A little sweet. Wildly unhinged. Goggins is just the right amount serious and ridiculous. His characters are always a total wild card.

He literally does it all.

Check out my past “Currently Crushing On” piece here.