Get ready to meet the man who turned one-minute romance into a global phenomenon. Seth Edeen, ReelShort’s undisputed leading man with over 300 million views per hit series, joins The World’s Most Famous Podcast fresh from sold-out vertical shoots and his exciting leap into Hollywood features. The former college athlete who once cut down trees for a living now commands millions of hearts with a single glance. Today, Seth reveals the raw hustle behind his meteoric rise, the emotional craft that makes Gen Z binge entire seasons in one night, and why he’ll never forget the blue-collar roots that keep him grounded as the offers from major studios, and fashion brands keep pouring in.
LISTEN TO THE FULL PODCAST EPISODE HERE
Beverly Hills Magazine: Seth, I’m so excited to have you with us.
Seth Edeen: Hey, I’m happy to be here.
Beverly Hills Magazine: Yeah, wonderful. So, tell us, what first inspired you to pursue acting?
Seth Edeen: You know, so I was an athlete, like, my whole life. That was, like, my big thing was sports. And then once my athletic career came to an end, I was kind of searching for the next thing to kind of fill that void. And I went to college, and I graduated, and I worked as, I was, like, a civil engineer. I was doing that. I’m like, yeah, that’s not really for me. I moved out to California, and I signed to a modeling agency. And I was doing that. That also didn’t really fill that void. But everyone had always told me, like, you should get into acting class and try acting. I was like, okay. So, I finally hopped into acting class and was going hard at it for, like, three months. And I saw, I was like, oh, this is like a, this is a craft, sort of like, you know, I was football. So, it’s like, sort of like sports where you’ve got to always be practicing on it, and it’s something that’s never fully mastered, something you can always be working on. So, I started, I was in acting class for, like, three months. And then my roommate comes to me, and he’s like, dude, I just got hit up to do this show. They’re looking for someone to play the lead that looks exactly like you. They want, like, Edward Cullen-look guy. It’s like, Twilight meets Fifty Shades of Grey, and he showed me, like, a few clips on TikTok. I was like, what the hell is this? But I was like, all right, whatever, like, let’s give it a shot. It’s an opportunity to get paid to act, so let’s give it a shot.
And I did it. And then it came out, like, a month or two later. And once it came out, I just started consistently getting offers, like, regularly to do them. And here we are, too, a little over two and a half years later, I’ve done 28, and it’s like my full-time job now. And I love it. Acting has turned out to be very similar to, like, sports in the way. You go to your shoot, and you’re like, oh, that’s game day. And then you go to acting class, and it’s like, that’s practice. And then, you know, I’m always reading books and watching movies. There’s, like, all these things that I can always be doing to get better and get good at it. And I really enjoy it. And now that I’ve, like, kind of gotten in a groove with it, I understand just acting as a craft a lot better than I did at the start, for sure. So it’s fun. Very, very thankful.
Beverly Hills Magazine: Yeah, absolutely. It’s more like mental and emotional work and training, right?
Seth Edeen: Yeah, exactly. It’s, yeah, it’s a different type. It’s not the physical training anymore, but it’s still training hard, but just in a completely different way, which I love that.
Beverly Hills Magazine: How do you prepare for your current roles that you’re playing?
Seth Edeen: I just read the script, like, I don’t know, I’ll read it five, six, seven times. And the more you just kind of read it, the more you kind of get a feel for it and you get a vision in your head. And I just kind of spend my time, you know, breaking down, going, like, scene by scene. Well, first I, like, break down kind of what my own… And honestly, a lot of my characters have the same vibe, to be honest with you.
Beverly Hills Magazine: Yeah, right. Yeah, well, I think the platform kind of has a consistent feel and vibe to their shows. So it makes it probably pretty easy for you.
Seth Edeen: Yeah, I mean, they, because I’ve had a lot of, my two biggest shows, I basically played the same character. So they, people see me, so I don’t get, so each guy has a different type of, like, role, I guess that they do, or that they kind of get, like, dialed in on. You know, some guys are very good at doing the very seductive type of roles, like things like that. My roles that, where I found success is just being kind of, like, a sweet, goofy guy. No-man’s-land type. Yeah, like Ashton Kutcher type, like, silly, you know, easygoing type of guy.
Beverly Hills Magazine: And as as an actor, is that the type of genre you see yourself doing? Let’s say, fast forward five, ten years from now, where do you see yourself? Because I know you were in sports in the past. What about action films, or do you want to stick with the rom-com type, romance type genre? Where do you see yourself going?
Seth Edeen: I mean, I think, yeah, like, right now, this is, like, perfect for me, because I’m so new to acting. So I’m like, okay. And this character is just very similar to just how I am in real life. So now that I’ve, like, really got my grips on this character, I’m like, okay, like, now I know how to do that. As I progress forward, I would like to, you know, do more action films, more… I love doing the romantic, you know, shows, but it would be cool to play, you know, like a tough guy, like, in, like, a, I don’t know, like a Tom Hardy, like, tough guy role in, like, a mob movie or a mafia movie or something like that. Or in, like, a Western, like a cowboy kind of, or like a Billy Bob Thornton in Landman or something. Just like a boss.
Beverly Hills Magazine: Well, what’s amazing about the acting craft is that it is limitless. Like, you can explore so many different directions and different characters you can play. So like you said, you never really master it. You’re always growing and changing and exploring new parts of yourself and how to create these characters. It’s just incredible.
Seth Edeen: Yeah. I’ve learned so much about myself during this journey as well, because, like, playing sports is, like, the complete opposite. Like, you cannot have any emotion, like, overtake you at all. Like, you have to stay calm. It doesn’t matter if someone on the other team’s, you know, talking crap or, you know, spitting on you. Like, people are dirty in sports and you can’t let it get to your head. Versus acting is the complete opposite. You have to let, you have to be the most sensitive, like, side of yourself. And for someone like me, who’s never been that my entire life, it’s been a journey and a challenge to let that sensitive side of myself, you know, let my guard down, I guess, and let, you know, things, different types of things affect me and all that stuff.
Beverly Hills Magazine: Yeah, absolutely. Well, I’m a Christian and the Bible says that God laughs at man’s plans, but ultimately the destiny we do end up walking is what’s best for us and what is for our highest and best growth. You know, like you probably never in a million years dreamed you would be delving into these emotional aspects of your being and let alone displaying them on camera. But here you are and you’re becoming a better man because of it. And you’re growing and doing things that you never imagined. And how beautiful is that though, right?
Seth Edeen: It’s amazing. So I’m very grateful for that.
Beverly Hills Magazine: Absolutely. So how do you stay motivated during intense shoots or long, long days on set?
Seth Edeen: Man, you know, it’s tough sometimes. I always am very quick to remind myself how lucky I am to be able to do what I do because I grew up working, you know, very, you know, like blue collar type jobs, you know, I remember I used to cut like trees down all day, like we’d go around and we’d just be trimming trees all day or even my career before I moved to LA, I worked in construction. I was a project engineer for a construction company and I was working 12-15 hours a day in the heat in Arkansas and it’s just not the most glorious life and it was really hard. So anytime I’m on set and I’m like, you know, tired or like, man, I just want to go home, I think back to those moments growing up and it reminds me how lucky and grateful I am to be able to do what I am now and I do have to remind myself like, this is freaking awesome. Like not many people get to make a living full time as an actor and the conditions aren’t always the best, but I’ve gotten better, you know, taking the frustration or emotion or whatever and channeling that just back into the project, into the work and just redistributing that emotional type of energy into whatever area I need to.
Beverly Hills Magazine: Yeah, absolutely. That’s the most effective way to do that. So I think though the humble beginnings is a beautiful thing. I’ve always believed that, the more humble we are, the greater the heights God will take us to. And I think it’s so important not to forget our humble beginnings. Like you say that you’re not and it’s so important. That’s kind of what is going to keep you grounded as your career continues to grow and let’s say you become more and more famous and well known, you know, because I think there’s going to be temptation, so to speak, to become more prideful and kind of change who you are, the heart of who you are and where you come from, you know? And I think if we always remember our humble beginnings, we won’t ever let that overcome us, you know, and we kind of stay true to who we are, no matter how successful we become.
Seth Edeen: Yeah. And I attribute that to not only like the way I was raised, my mom and dad did a great job of raising me. They’re the best parents ever, but it’s a team sport, so the culture of football is like you can never get too high. You always have to, you know, take the highs with the lows and never get too high, never get too low. So I feel I do a pretty good job of kind of keeping a chip on my shoulder, for lack of a better term, things might be going good, but there’s always more I want to do and I can always be better, you know, be better at what I’m doing. So, yeah, I definitely will not, won’t let it get to my head.
Beverly Hills Magazine: Yeah, absolutely.
Seth Edeen: Yeah. Gotta stay humble.
Beverly Hills Magazine: Yeah, we do. Of course. Well, again, being a Christian in the Bible, God says He resists the proud, but He gives grace to the humble. So I think as we stay more humble, more opportunities will come our way because it can be taken away from us like that.
Seth Edeen: I was fortunate enough to win an award at a vertical shorts, like film festival, like my first year of doing it. It was for my role in Breaking the Ice. And it was so weird because I’m like, it’s not like there’s so many things that go into a project. It’s not just me, like even as like the best actor, I can only be the best actor if I’m working with other great actors, like my co-star on that show, Nicole, like I’ve done a lot of shows with her. Anyone who’s seen me or knows about me knows that Seth and Nicole were like the most iconic co-star couple in verticals. And her in particular just like brings the best out of me. And so it’s people like that, that, you know, or also respond, like, it’s not just me, it’s a whole team. It’s her, the director, all the other people, everyone involved. Like it’s not just me, it’s like a group effort.
Beverly Hills Magazine: It’s so true. It’s still a collaboration, still a team effort. Maybe it’s not a game, but it’s a different team environment, but for sure.
Beverly Hills Magazine: Seth Edeen, thank you for your raw authenticity, your relentless work ethic, and for proving that a former athlete can become one of the most beloved leading men of our generation. The sky truly is the limit for you.
Seth Edeen: Jacqueline, thank you so much for having me. This has been incredible, and I’m so grateful for every step of this wild ride.
From football fields to phone screens to the red carpet, Seth Edeen proves that authenticity, relentless discipline, and a heart wide open to growth can turn the wildest pivot into destiny. With two feature films already locked, more ReelShort blockbusters in the works, and an unshakable loyalty to the platform that launched him, Seth isn’t just riding the vertical wave—he’s steering it straight into Hollywood’s future. One thing is crystal clear: whatever screen size the world watches next, Seth Edeen will be the face we can’t swipe away from.
