Jersey Boys’ Andy Karl Exposes His Obsessions with Game of Thrones, Spiked Sneakers & Temporary Wallpaper

Broadway stars know what’s hot in entertainment, fashion and pop culture, so Broadway.com decided it was high time to tap in to the after-hours obsessions of our favorite stage actors. Jersey Boys star Andy Karl, who is set to star in the Broadway revival of Rupert Holmes’ musical comedy The Mystery of Edwin Drood opposite Stephanie J. Block, Jessie Mueller, Will Chase and Chita Rivera, shared his passion for Words with Friends, tennis players Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, Tom Hardy, dragons, magic and more.

TV SHOW: Game of Thrones
“I don't usually jump on the ‘I'll watch whatever everyone else is talking about train,’ but I recently watched the entire first and second seasons of Game of Thrones in one sitting...f-yeah! That show is like a Dio album come to life! Dragons and magic. Battles won and lost. Heads on spikes! And that kid who plays Joffrey...I wanna kill him!! Which is a testament to his character.” 

STAGE SHOW (OTHER THAN MY OWN): Tommy
“If we're talking 'obsessed,' it's gotta be The Who's Tommy. I saw that show at least 12 times. It's the reason I moved to NYC. Some kid told me Altar Boyz was his reason for coming to NYC and I thought ‘full circle.’ Is that right? No, wait...‘karma’? Whatever, it was interesting.”

SONG OR SINGER: "This Is the Song" by The Punch Brothers
“I'm still in awe of the Punch Brothers’ ‘This Is the Song.’ The group’s mastery of their instruments and the poetic sad lyric and vocal makes me stop what I'm doing every time I hear it.” 

ATHLETE: Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer
“It's a toss up between tennis greats Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. Nadal's strength and quickness are unparalleled, and the artistry of Federer’s racquet is incredibly skilled.”

  VACATION SPOT: 
“Who has time for vacations?"

APP: Words with Friends
“Words With Friends has every moment I'm not doing something else.”                                                                                      

RANDOM OBSESSION: Temporary Wallpaper
“Temporary wallpaper had me for a brief moment. The fact that there's a covering you can cut and put up on your walls that peels off when you're sick of it is just a wonderful, brilliant idea to me. But mostly writing funny and sometimes inappropriate songs to make people laugh.”

CELEBRITY: Tom Hardy
"Tom Hardy is my current favorite actor. I rented Warrior a while ago not knowing it was him playing the part as the emotionally damaged and fierce MMA fighter until halfway through the film. I was asking myself, 'How did they get a real fighter to act so well?' Then it hit me. He's that convincing and such a bad ass. I'm a huge fan."

FASHION DESIGNER: Rock & Republic
"Umm...I'm pretty fashion stupid. Bought some Rock & Republic kicks with spikes on them recently."

BEAUTY PRODUCT: Colgate Total
"Colgate Total with whitening. Makes my teeth feel mmmm clean.. "

MOVIE: Three Amigos
“I'm obsessed with Three Amigos. It’s actually a cure all for any bad thing. I regrew a severed foot once watching the 'Singing Bush' scene.”

Book: Atlas Shrugged
“If I could read, and I don't, I would spend hours of time with Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged.”