Austin Nichols was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan, but moved to Austin, TX as a baby, and it was always his destiny. He tells Austin Lifestyle, “My dad is from Houston and went to UT. Then he transferred to a small college in Michigan to chase a girl, my mom.” Before his first birthday, they moved to Austin. But, his name wasn’t inspired by the city. “For a long time, Wild Turkey Bourbon was made by the Austin Nichols distilling company, so my grandfather joked that someone in the family should name their kid Austin, " he explains. "Then, the night I was born, someone let a wild turkey loose on the White House lawn. My parents thought it was an omen, and the rest is history.”
Although Austin initially planned to follow in his father’s footsteps and attend the University of Texas, acting would take him to Los Angeles. Roles in shows like One Tree Hill, Friday Night Lights, The Walking Dead and Ray Donovan and films like Wimbledon and I Know What You Did Last Summer would have him living for stints in North Carolina, Atlanta, Argentina and Uruguay, but working on Walker in 2020, he made his way back to Austin. He said he didn’t plan to necessarily ever move back, and admits due to the nomadic life as an actor, he has to stay open to the idea of one day leaving again, but for now he says, “Being back here, where I grew up, and making my first movie here, has been the most unexpected dream come true.”
Austin’s directorial debut, The Long Shot, premiered at the Austin Film Festival and will be released in April. He says it’s loosely inspired by Lions Municipal and the Save Muny campaign and follows Ray Mueller, a shaggy slacker golf pro and his band of misfits as they try to protect their quirky public golf course from development and extinction.
We spent an afternoon with Austin at Melrose River Club where we got him in the water, his favorite place to be (which is unsurprising being the son of a professional water skier) and between moments flashing his mastered movie star stare for the camera, we had a chat about the Austin of his childhood verse the Austin he returned to, writing, directing and more.
What were some of your favorite places or things to do in Austin when you were growing up here?
Malibu Grand Prix Go-Karts, I definitely had a birthday party there. We went to Matt's El Rancho every Sunday, the original location, where The Four Seasons is now, Austin Aqua Fest Water, ski tournaments on Lady Bird Lake, speed boats, the pier on Lake Austin, pulling your boat up to a dive bar with video games and live music. Someone needs to bring that back (wink wink Larry McGuire). And me and my sister would always beg our parents to take us to Amy's Ice Cream at The Arboretum. We would get our favorite flavor and sit on the cows down the hill, the site of the original Blues On The Green. And the movie theatre at the Arboretum had clouds and lightning in the lobby ceiling and it would flash and thunder before every movie started. As a kid, it was magic!
You lived in Tarrytown and then Lake Travis? We grew up in a house on Scenic Dr. that my parents purchased for $150,000 or something unbelievable. We had access to the boat club, and my parents built a dock illegally, separate from the marina. No one ever said a word. We had our own little swimming beach. Years later, after we moved, they ripped that dock out and my sister and I realized our parents were renegades.
What are some things Austin has now that you think make it even better than when you left? The Long Shot is all about the change and how we have sucked a lot of the soul out of this town. But to be optimistic and honest, there are some new things that I do enjoy. The food here was always good, but now, it's phenomenal. Places like Shokunin and their story inspire me. The comedy scene is massive, everyone comes through. The key takeaway is that all the things that I thought were just normal and boring as a kid have had a spotlight put on them and the world at large is now telling me how awesome my home is. I appreciate things I took for granted, like tubing the Guadalupe River. We got a huge group this summer and laughed for the entire 2-hour float!
You’ve said you like to get in the water most days? I have to get in the water every day. It's not ok. It's kind of weird. My love of swimming holes and water activities even found its way into The Long Shot. The script had our first scene at Barton Springs, but shooting there is a logistical mess. So, we quickly pivoted to Krause Springs, which is a gem I go to from time to time. It has a rougher charm to it, which I like, and less crowds. But Lake Austin has always been the epicenter for me. Long before the big houses and wake surf boats, we used to watch the mountain goats on the cliffs, and we had no idea how good we had it!
A lot of actors have relocated to Austin, and many of you come together to work on independent projects. Who are some of your frequent collaborators? So many actors and writers and directors live here. The business has changed so fast when everyone realized they can live anywhere. Jared Padalecki helped change the course of my career by bringing me on Walker to direct two episodes. That led to The Long Shot and I was able to bring a lot of that crew to my movie. And my old friend from Friday Night Lights, Adrianne Palicki. I’ve been blessed to have great friends show up for me. The dream is to keep making movies and TV here, and I hope I can keep calling up my friends to come play.
You directed a couple of episodes of Walker, but The Long Shot is the first film you directed, tell us about that. It’s really a love letter to Austin. It’s a group of funny people who work at a golf course who are trying to protect their way of life. Everything is changing and their favorite places are getting demolished and turned into condos, so it’s about protecting your identity and your home in a vastly changing world.
Did you always aspire to direct one day? Yes, but when you're busy acting, it's really fulfilling and it's a lot, and you don't really feel like you need to do anything else. But when things slow down, you start to think, ‘I want to do more. I want to do something else. I want to be busy.’ The other thing about acting, even when you're the lead, you never feel like the painter, you never feel like the author. Directing gives you the feeling of being the captain of the ship and being the painter and the canvas is yours. That’s fulfilling in a new way that I've never felt before as an actor, and it's an incredible feeling. I go home every night and I fall into bed so tired, and smiling. It's just incredible to go to a place every day and have a hundred people killing themselves for the thing you want to make. It's really beautiful. You feel really responsible for the piece and you really want people to love it and get something out of it in a different way.
So you’d like to do more directing? Yes, 100 percent. I'm so addicted.
What are some other projects you have coming up in 2026? I will appear in the new season of Virgin River on Netflix, and we’re starting to put together our next movie, to be filmed here in Austin.
Any news on the One Tree Hill reboot? I don't, except that fans are thirsty and I wish I could do more to get them new episodes.
You have a degree in English. Do you also write? Yes, my degree at USC was English with a creative writing emphasis. I've been writing since I was a kid. It took a back seat to acting for a while, but it came back strong about 13 years ago. The most special thing about writing is that I don't need any money or permission to do it. You can sit alone, anywhere in the world, and write and let creativity flow. It can be an art form with vast freedom. That freedom all goes away the second someone wants to make your story. But in the act of writing, there is a blissful, transformative, almost divine flow, where ideas and words and characters can materialize in a way that makes you feel like you are simply a conduit, allowing something larger to break through.
QUICK FIRE
Favorite Austin Brunch Spot I’m a big fan of Phoebe's, Arturo's and Paperboy for big brunchy vibes. But, most days I get breakfast tacos at a Veracruz truck.
Favorite Austin Restaurant I don't know if I have a favorite, my favorite thing is to try new spots. But, places I keep going back to are Loro and Clark's.
Favorite Theater My favorite is the Paramount. But usually we go to Alamo South Lamar – because food.
The Perfect Austin Sunday Walk the trail with a big group of friends. Go to the Carpenter Hotel for a coffee to-go, then walk to Barton Springs and make everyone jump in. Especially those who don't like cold water.
Favorite Book Play it as it Lays by Joan Didion
Favorite Movie I have 30, but If you make me pick one, Being There starring Peter Sellers, one of the most perfect movies ever made!
Last thing that inspired you The last thing that inspired me was Matthew Rhys’ performance in The Beast in Me.
Favorite Quote My friend Kelvin Yu is a great writer and a great friend. He gave me the Tao Te Ching many years ago. He said, ‘Just read one a day. And really soak it in. Digest it.’ And I did. There are many quotes from this famous work. One I love is, ‘He who knows others is wise... He who knows himself is enlightened....’
If could have a superpower… It's taken me 45 years on this planet to realize that I will never attain a superhero's power, but I uncovered my superpower is the ability to remain positive and find joy in the agonizing and mundane moments of life on Earth.
"Directing gives you the feeling of being the captain of the ship and being the painter and the canvas is yours. That’s fulfilling in a new way...and it's an incredible feeling."
"I uncovered my superpower is the ability to remain positive and find joy in the agonizing and mundane moments of life on Earth."