Actor David Charvet, who is best known for portraying Matt Brody on “Baywatch,” has revealed why he left acting for two decades. The now 53-year-old actor was one of the most recognizable faces on television screens in the 1990s but largely disappeared at the turn of the millennium.
Now, Charvet has detailed exactly why he chose to step back from acting, following successful runs on “Baywatch” and “Melrose Place.” According to Charvet, he chose to essentially retire in order to spend more time with his family. He shares two children with his former wife Brooke Burke.
He is now set to return to television screens later this month, but in a different role. Charvet is one of the 15 celebrity contestants taking part in the latest season of “Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test.”
David Charvet Walked Away to Raise His Children
In an interview with People ahead of the new season, Charvet explained exactly why he decided to move away from acting. “I’ve been out of the game for 20 years,” he said. “I kind of retired to be a dad, so they never saw that, and I thought it’d be kind of fun for them to see their dad go at it one more time.”
He subsequently switched careers, focusing on construction and real estate, giving him more time to spend with his children. The former actor also revealed that he has no regrets about stepping back, saying he wanted to be there for his kids.
But he also felt pressure to make sure that he performed well on his return to television. That was multiplied when he was warned by his son not to let his two children down. Charvet explained, “My son also said to me, he’s like, ‘Dad, don’t disappoint us. Please, do not disappoint the family. We’re on a fitness journey right now, so please show up.’ So I did.”
As for why he chose to make a return to television for “Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test,” Charvet revealed he wanted to experience the challenge of such a difficult show.
“For me, it was really the show itself, the challenge aspect of it,” Charvet said. “Also, my children have never seen me on television. But it was an incredible experience.”
Charvet Trained Hard For ‘Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test
Understanding how hard his appearance on “Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test” would be, Charvet spent a huge amount of time preparing. “I trained in our studio, called BUILD, with my son every day, and we had LED red light and infrared heat, which was about 105 degrees,” Charvet reveals. “It was a great way to prepare.”
He went on to explain that the mental aspect of the show proved harder than the physical side.“The mindset is probably the hardest aspect in this whole show, to be able to go in day in and day out and do all the tasks and to deal with the [directing staff] and deal with different personalities was a really, really tough aspect,” he shares.
He added, “But there’s one thing that we could not prepare for: the mind games and what you endure. That was very telling of what kind of person you are and what can you endure.”
