“They just keep laughing and saying, ‘No, that’s not true. Keep looking, keep looking,'” Goggins said of his wife and son watching the Grinch practice.
Walton Goggins praises castmates on 2025 Emmy Awards red carpet
Walton Goggins shares who among his castmates on ‘The White Lotus’ are the ultimate mood-setters and who he texts every day on the Emmy red carpet.
On top of Mount Crumpit, Walton Goggins’ Grinch listens to jazz and wears a knitted scarf.
In a new commercial for Walmart’s holiday campaign, Goggins plays a lonely but sophisticated Grinch who is as eager as possible to inform Foodies about Walmart’s Black Friday sale. In the ad, “Lindy Lou” and the Grinch plan to sneak into “NewWhoVille” by placing the gifts they bought on Black Friday under a tree.
Dr. Seuss’ Grinch is known for his strict personality and twice-small heart, but director Goggins told USA TODAY his Grinch is a little different.
“He just walks around like he’s part of the Rat Pack or something,” Goggins says with a laugh, referring to a group of entertainers, including Frank Sinatra, who were popular for performing in Las Vegas in the ’50s and ’60s.
The holiday campaign is an extension of Goggins’ work with major retail companies. The actor, known for his recent roles in “The White Lotus” and “Fallout,” also appeared in a Walmart commercial over the summer and fall.
Watch Walton Goggins as the Walmart Grinch
Watch Walmart’s “WhoKnewVille” commercial in its entirety below.
The history of Walton and Walmart goes back a long way.
Goggins shares his name with Walmart founder Sam Walton, but has no family ties to the company. But his relationship with the company goes back almost 40 years.
“It started with a shortage,” Goggins said.
Goggins, who was preparing to begin classes at Georgia Southern University, received a federal Pell grant and maintained good grades, but did not have the funds to cover all of her tuition.
“Someone told me that Wal-Mart offers grants to go to college. All you have to do is write down what you want to do with your life. I wrote this essay, submitted it, and won,” Goggins said. “And that money made a huge difference in my life at the time.”
Goggins attended Georgia Southern University for one year, then moved to Los Angeles to pursue acting full time.
How many times can you read “How the Grinch Stole Christmas”?
The Grinch is an undeniably iconic character of Christmas, but Goggins was still serious about “becoming the character.”
“They came to my house with some books, and I wasn’t home, so my wife opened the package and said, ‘I bought a copy of Dr. Seuss, and it came in the mail,’ and I said, ‘Oh yeah, I’m looking into it,'” Goggins says with a laugh. “Then I took this book with me on the plane, and for three weeks before that, every time I went on a plane…people would just watch me read it.”
Goggins said he practiced playing the Grinch for his wife, Nadia, and son, Augustus, before arriving on set.
“They just kept laughing and saying, ‘No, that’s not true. Keep looking, keep looking,'” Goggins says with a laugh.
When it came to that actually Goggins said it took the make-up and costume department three hours to paint her completely green, including facial prosthetics, to get into character.
Reminisce about your favorite holiday memories
Goggins, who grew up with her mother in rural Georgia, said she didn’t have many material possessions as a child. But when he thinks back to his favorite holiday traditions, spending time with his family is paramount.
“Sometimes we all went to get presents,” he says. “We literally walked into the store with like $15, me, my mom, her three sisters, and my cousin. And we walked down the aisle and were like, ‘Wow, we have leg warmers, toothbrushes, bobby pins.'” Then we go home and wrap it up. It made me happy and I get emotional thinking about it. It was like, “We’re all in this together.” Let’s go buy something that expresses love. ”
This togetherness is what Goggins values most about the holidays with Nadia and Augustus.
“It’s never about the gift, right? It’s just the form. It’s about love,” Goggins says.
Greta Cross is USA TODAY’s national trends reporter. Story ideas? Email her at gcross@usatoday.com.
