Ray Nicholson Discusses Bond with Father and Acting Career

Ray Nicholson, 34, sat down with his sister Lorraine for Interview magazine to talk about his acting work, his love of sports and his family ties. He said sports, especially basketball, serve as a shared "love language" with his father, Jack, noting that while they do not discuss many topics, they can talk about the Lakers at length.

Nicholson recalled his high school football ambitions, which were halted by a severe staph infection that developed into MRSA and nearly required amputation of his arm. He described a turning point after the injury that led him to pursue acting, a decision he initially feared sharing with his father.

"I was really scared to tell dad, but I went to USC and learned to love everything about filmmaking," he said. "Making dad proud is high on my list, but this is a way of finding who I am. I feel I’m on the right path."

His recent appearance in the Netflix film The Mosquito Bowl, in which he portrays World War II Marine football player Tony Butkovich, follows his earlier comments to USA Today about how acting has shaped his family dynamics.

"I think I had every right to be a little trepidatious. I grew up around it. It was the thing that made my family different. It was the thing that took my dad away from my home, so I had different feelings about it," he told the outlet.

The Mosquito Bowl, directed by Peter Berg, is based on Buzz Bissinger’s 2022 nonfiction book and follows a group of elite college football players who enlist in the Marines during World War II.