David Boreanaz may not be an A-list movie star, but he is definitely a household name
for fans of genre television.
He's been a fixture on television screens for decades but how much do you really know
about him?
Here is his untold truth.
It may surprise some fans of David Boreanaz to realize that the prolific actor is not
actually classically trained.
In fact, according to a report written in Fuse, a publication from his alma mater Ithaca
College, the "Angel" star only took one acting class when he attended the school, Introduction
to Acting.
During his time at Ithaca, he seemed to be much more focused on what went on behind the
camera, graduating in 1991 with a degree in cinema and photography.
Upon graduation, Boreanaz decided to give Los Angeles a try, working various odd jobs
as he attempted to break into the film industry in some way.
"I didn't do - I didn't get into the, the, the ca- the bartending so to speak but I did
have a catering job where we had to sell gourmet foods door to door."
Eventually, he landed a guest stint on "Married...With Children," though doors didn't really open
up for him until he was discovered in sort of an odd way.
Boreanaz was able to catch a break in 1997, when he was cast as Angel in Joss Whedon's
"Buffy the Vampire Slayer."
While the role was originally only supposed to be a guest-starring gig for a few episodes,
Whedon and fans apparently liked him so much that he was soon promoted to a series regular.
Whedon also realized during one of the earlier episodes Boreanaz shot that he could be a
leading man and carry his own show.
The director told Entertainment Weekly -
"I watched David very emotionally, unabashedly, and poetically playing a woman, and in that
moment was like 'This guy can anchor a show.'"
The actor told Parade that he owes all his success to one of his old dogs, Bertha Blue.
While walking her, Boreanaz was discovered by talent manager Tom Parziale, who still
represents him as of summer 2021, so he thanks his dog for his success.
Boreanaz told Entertainment Weekly that he only had a day to get to know Angel before
he was scheduled to start shooting his scenes, saying -
"They were kind of pressed against the hour to cast this character because I would have
been shooting, I think, the next day.
The day after they cast me, I remember being thrown into this world of complete chaos."
He recalled at New York Comic Con that he wasn't sure if he was going to jive with the
character, as Angel didn't really talk in the first few scenes.
But he said the character was described as a quote, "prizefighter, like Joe Louis" which
Boreanaz said resonated with him, per Entertainment Weekly.
When asked about his first day on the set of "Buffy," Boreanaz recalled -
"I waited and waited to shoot, and when I went to meet Sarah, she was in the middle
of some sort of fight sequence.
I was like 'Okay, that was a quick meeting.'"
The actor said they didn't end up shooting until 4 a.m. and it went so fast that he didn't
really have time to think, which helped him get into character.
His ability to hit the ground running seemed to impress the right people, though.
Those who are fans of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and "Angel" know that neither of those shows
ended in quite satisfying ways.
While "Buffy" fans were fairly divided on how that series finale ended, the "Angel"
finale was a disappointing experience for many who enjoyed the series.
It ended on what most thought to be a cliffhanger, though show creator and writer Joss Whedon
didn't believe that to be the case, and for his part, David Boreanaz agrees with Whedon,
saying to Entertainment Weekly -
"I'm so proud of what we all accomplished.
There's such strength in all of these characters; they struggle and they do find redemption
somehow."
He also said he has no desire to return to the character of Angel, telling Parade -
"I work in the now."
Although Boreanaz has made a career of playing intense and self-assured men, he himself wasn't
nearly as confident in his early career.
When discussing his first day on the set of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," he said it happened
so fast that he didn't have time to think until he got home after filming.
At that point, he told Entertainment Weekly -
"[A]ll of the insecurities came out: Did I mess it up?
Did I do something wrong?"
Of course, those insecurities were unfounded, but his success as Angel on "Buffy" didn't
mean they went away immediately.
In fact, he told E! when he got the phone call that Joss Whedon wanted to talk to him,
Boreanaz thought he was going to be fired.
"He said, 'It's not a bad thing, just come in the office.'
But he didn't tell me over the phone, so I'm like, I had a night of ... ugh, clawing and
angst."
Fortunately for the "Angel" actor, Whedon had a spinoff offer for him and even said
he could return to "Buffy" if "Angel" was unsuccessful.
Indicative of his anxiety though, Boreanaz recalled to Entertainment Weekly that he was
more concerned about shooting a scene as Angelus when Whedon told him about the spinoff.
In response to Whedon, Boreanaz said,
"And I'm like 'All right,' but I'm concerned about my accent that I'm supposed to do in
the scene."
While Boreanaz has definitely made a career out of acting, it seems like he also has a
passion for being behind the camera.
He graduated with a college degree in cinema and photography, and he has used those skills
to step into the director's chair.
In fact, his first stint behind the camera was slightly hampered due to him having reconstructive
knee surgery to fix an old football injury, as Boreanaz recalled to Entertainment Weekly
-
"I remember having knee surgery and literally directing with 50 percent of my knee gone
... so it was a challenge, but I loved it."
Boreanaz first directed an episode of "Angel" in 2004 and has continued to direct episodes
for "Bones" and "SEAL Team," including directing the series finale of "Bones," per IMDb.
"It's very - as you know - very difficult cuz you have so many things you're thinking
about and you just kinda have to throw it all out the window and let it evolve."
Boreanaz has also expanded his career beyond the entertainment industry.
As reported by Cosmopolitan, he, his wife Jaime Bergman, and two of their friends developed
Chrome Girl together, a nail polish line that debuted in 2013.
While the line was popular, it stopped production in 2018.
Though Boreanaz still seems interested in diversifying his career, he appears focused
on his family and his television shows as of now.
Currently, David Boreanaz is married to model and actor Jaime Bergman.
The two tied the knot on November 24, 2001 in a small, intimate ceremony at Ingleside
Inn in Palm Springs, California.
They were originally supposed to marry on September 22 but delayed their wedding in
respect of the September 11 terrorist attack.
The delay didn't seem to dampen their spirits or hurt their relationship though; the two
are still married as of this video.
Bergman, a former Playboy playmate and an actor who starred on FX's "Son of the Beach,"
and Boreanaz met at a Valentine's Day party at the Playboy Mansion and married just 10
months later.
The couple has two children, Jaden and Bella.
But his marriage to Bergman wasn't the first time Boreanaz has walked down the aisle.
He first tied the knot to Ingrid Quinn, a social worker-turned-screenwriter, reported
E!.
The two started dating in 1994, back when Boreanaz was a struggling actor and married
in 1997.
They eventually divorced in 1999, citing irreconcilable differences.
However, there was speculation that Quinn became jealous of some of the relationships
Boreanaz had formed on the set of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and "Angel," and would frequently
head to set to check up on the actor.
David Boreanaz hasn't always kept his nose clean.
In fact, in 2010, the actor had to deal with two separate scandals involving his romantic
relationships.
Per People, Boreanaz admitted he cheated on his wife while she was pregnant with their
daughter, saying to the outlet -
"Our marriage has been tainted with my infidelities.
I just want to be open and honest.
I was irresponsible."
Boreanaz came clean about his infidelities because he claimed he was being extorted by
the woman he had an affair with.
Per HuffPost, the actor had an extramarital relationship with Rachel Uchitel, the same
woman with whom Tiger Woods cheated on his own wife.
However, while Uchitel admitted to having an affair with Boreanaz, TMZ reported that
she denied extorting the actor for any money.
The affair didn't seem to adversely affect Boreanaz's and Bergman's marriage, though,
with the actor telling TV Week that the fling was, quote, "a bonding experience, in the
long run."
Their relationship also appears to have weathered another scandal Boreanaz faced in 2010 — an
allegation of sexual assault.
According to CNN, an extra who auditioned for "Bones" filed a harassment suit against
Boreanaz, claiming that he made, quote, "unwanted sexual advances while offering her a role
on his TV series 'Bones.'"
Ultimately, however, CBS News reported that the lawsuit was settled out of court for an
undisclosed amount, with the lawyer for the alleged victim filing to dismiss.
After spending decades on network television, David Boreanaz's latest show, "SEAL Team,"
is going to be shown on the streaming platform Paramount+, after four seasons and the first
four episodes of Season 5 airing on CBS.
Boreanaz gave an interview to TV Insider where he discussed just how excited he was to be
on a streaming platform now, as he felt the show could finally explore some things they
weren't able to do because of the constraints of network television.
Boreanaz pointed to the lower episode requirement of streaming as a good thing, due to networks
wanting a large number of shows.
"Network television is about quantity and it's no disrespect to that at all […] I
think the challenge of network television is being able to push the boundaries and be
creative in that aspect.
And our show really has gone above and beyond."
In 2020, Ray Fisher accused Joss Whedon on Twitter of creating a, quote, "gross, abusive,
unprofessional and completely unacceptable" workplace environment on the set of "Justice
League," and was recently fired from "The Flash," per Variety.
As a result of his firing, a number of stars took to social media to support him against
Whedon and share their own stories.
One such star was Charisma Carpenter, who starred as Cordelia Chase on "Buffy the Vampire
Slayer" and "Angel" before getting fired at the end of Season 4 of "Angel."
In a lengthy Instagram post, Carpenter accused Whedon of inappropriate workplace comments
and abusive behavior that has caused her, quote, "a chronic physical condition."
Numerous members of the "Buffy" and "Angel" cast have stepped up to stand with her, including
Boreanaz.
He took to Twitter shortly after Carpenter made her statement to write a message for
his old co-star, saying -
"I am here for you to listen and support you.
Proud of your strength."
It seems like this isn't the first time the "Angel" actor has supported Carpenter, as
she tweeted back -
"I know you're there for me, David.
I appreciate all you've done to demonstrate that support privately as well."
While Boreanaz seems to be fairly lowkey in his support of Carpenter, he appears to have
done all he could to help her through the tough times she's faced throughout the years.
Boreanaz has gone on record stating that he grew up Catholic, telling Parade that he went
to a Catholic high school and, quote "was just a fun lovin' good Catholic boy."
However, when talking about his character on "Bones," Boreanaz told The TV Addict that
he wished he was more like him in how he practiced his faith, describing himself personally as,
quote "not very religious."
In an interview with Variety, Boreanaz admitted that there were certain parts of his faith
that he really didn't believe in.
Boreanaz posted a since deleted photo to Instagram of him wearing a purple GLAAD T-shirt in support
of their Spirit Day for LGBTQ youth, and said he ended up turning off the comments because
so many people, quote "were so rude and so angry."
He told the publication that the reason he posted the photo was to stand up against bullies,
saying -
"We're all people, so live in love, man."
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