“The Only Thing You Need is an Unshakeable Belief in Yourself” Fighting the Bear with Suits Star Gabriel Macht‍

Many of you know him as Harvey Specter from the show Suits, a witty, charismatic, confident, but complex attorney who finds himself at the center of the hit legal drama. Gabriel Macht has portrayed a range of characters in numerous movies and TV shows before Suits, including Love & Other Drugs, The Others, and The Recruit. Riding off the success of Suits, and soon after Pearson, a short lesser-known spinoff series, Macht thought about his second career and asked himself, “what is that going to look like?”

In October it was announced that Macht would join Bear Fight Whiskey as a creative partner and equity stakeholder. One of America’s newest brands, Bear Fight Whiskey falls under the Next Century Spirits umbrella, starting with two unique and affordable whiskeys: an American Single Malt ($47) launched in 2022 and later Kentucky Reserve ($38), a Kentucky bourbon finished in Reposado tequila barrels. In early 2025 Macht will take center stage as the brand’s first commercial campaign debuts.

Admittedly fascinated by whiskey marketing and a fan of the show Suits, I was excited to speak with Macht about his new role with Bear Fight Whiskey. When it came to Suits, I asked him to refrain from any spoilers, as I am only partway through the series, to which he jokingly replied, “Harvey dies at the end!” While you might envision a conversation with Macht might be like a replay of Mike Ross’ interview with Harvey Specter in episode 1, chatting with him revealed his easygoing personality that’s quick to make you laugh.

So why whiskey? And why Bear Fight? “I wanted to continue to create…build a business," Macht told me. His history with whiskey is humble, like many of us. His story starts with his whiskey-loving great grandfather, Simon Curlenjik. Recounting how his great grandfather was known to drink a lot of whiskey, to which he said, “I guess you can say it’s in my blood.” Going on, he spoke about some of his first encounters with whiskey. “A college friend introduced me to Maker’s Mark,” among other common whiskey brands. “[At the time] we were drinking in those worlds,” he said. When he wrapped up Suits, Macht took a tour around south Scotland and visited a number of distilleries, tasting whiskey and learning about its history. He’s a whiskey drinker. So when the chance to join Bear Fight Whiskey presented itself, “it was a no-brainer” he said unequivocally.

Celebrity whiskeys are a dime a dozen nowadays; some are wildly successful, while others are flops. As with any venture, it seems that when a celebrity is invested - both financially and personally - the brand has a much higher chance of success. I pressed Macht about the details of his equity stake. He was unable to share figures, but shared some valuable insight. “I wanted to get in on the ground level. I’m definitely a partner, [and given the investment] it makes sense for me to put so much of my effort into building this brand.”

Macht knew Bear Fight Whiskey was a good match immediately. They started collaborating and connected on an idea. “When I was introduced to Bear Fight, it all made sense,” he said.

Notably, a key to his role involves taking the charismatic personality of Harvey Specter, whom he portrayed in Suits, and applying it to a brand that is trying to take a unique approach to marketing. Specter happens to be a persona that people naturally relate to the whiskey culture, and to that end, we talked about how much the two were intended to tie in together. “[Harvey Specter] became iconic because he is not real. He’s confident, smart, loyal…he believes in what he’s doing…although maybe he manipulates the system at times. I wanted to…”

Macht paused, searching for the exact word to use and our conversation sidetracked for a moment on the complexity of Specter’s character. Macht wants to inject a more complex version of that persona, one that is “a little bit more approachable…more grounded,” into the brand. “I’m not interested in pushing the Harvey Specter of this brand,” he said. “I wanted to make the brand approachable in lots of different lights.” Many of today’s whiskey brands are “traditional, stately…[they have a] woodsman” quality to them. “Whiskey resonates with character” Macht notes. The character of Bear Fight is “active,” it’s a “disrupter in so many ways.”

And given the brand’s price point, it’s affordable. A quality that is certainly unique among many new whiskey brands being introduced to the market today.

Macht’s core message revolves around the question, “What’s your bear fight?” What he's talking about is what you need to take on. “It could be anything,” he says with enthusiasm. Ultimately, it’s about confronting that next challenge, no matter what it might be. It’s about “raising a glass to the small victories.” Macht is interested in getting people connected to sharing their own story, and we talked about different ways they plan to go about that, of which there will be a big push on social media. “We’re definitely getting the conversation going on social media, [which is] how people can make connections. Sharing video…sharing stories.” There will be tastings, bottle signings, nightclub events, and more. “I’m really excited about it,” Macht said as we wrapped up, referring to everything that comes with his next venture.