Running down the street in your underwear isn’t for the faint of heart, even when you’re acting in a film. First of all, there’s the running part – a challenge in itself, let alone when you have to rinse and repeat for the camera. But it becomes even more difficult when you’re being chased by George Clooney and Brad Pitt.
This is what was required of Austin Abrams when filming the opening scene in WolfsJon Watts’ new crime caper. Austin plays Kid, a sweet, if slightly chaotic, er, kid, who finds himself in the centre of what we’ll call a Very Messy Situation. As a result, he’s forced to join forces with Jack (Clooney) and Nick (Pitt), two professional, rival fixers who’ve been tasked to clear up after a supposed murder. Manslaughter. Accident. Whatever you want to call it.
“It was a surprisingly traditional audition process,” Austin says, half-laughing, calling in from a comfy looking armchair in Los Angeles. A 2001: A Space Odyssey poster hangs above his head. “Jon and I knew each other a little bit; I think he trusted me. I laid down a couple tapes, which was super daunting after I’d seen everyone’s names on the sheet. I wanted to do some kind of chemistry [read] to see if I had it in me.”
Reader, Austin did have it in him. To be fair, the 28-year-old is a pretty seasoned actor. Growing up in Sarasota, Florida (“an artistic part of the state, for some reason”), his love of movies soon led him into theatre (“I got paid in tickets, which I pawned for lollipops”), then film roles. Over the years, he’s bagged some good ones, namely in Euphoria as Ethan Daley (Kat’s too-nice-for-his-own-good boyfriend), followed by the popular high school rich-kid Max in 2022 comedy Do Revengealongside Maya Hawke.
So, he’s come a long way from being paid in theatre tickets and, by proxy, lollipops. But he’s still feels a buzz when he steps on set. “There’s a different type of excitement now,” he says. “Working with a director who’s inspiring, a character who’s inspiring… It’s fun waiting for what’s going to pop up next.
“It’s a little like gambling, these things coming out of the ether. You’re living your life and, suddenly, you’re doing this new thing that feels amazing and you feel so lucky.”
