Interview with Sam Rechner: How Australian newcomer almost lost his role in Steven Spielberg’s new film
Sam Rechner went from Sydney boy to Hollywood star after meeting Zoom in 2020 that changed his life.
Australian actor joins Steven Spielbergnew semi-autobiographical film by Fabelman’s house and brought out of the shadows by the iconic director himself.
But the 21-year-old told 9Honey Celebrity that fairy tales don’t have a happy ending and he almost lost the role.
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“I had to get an exemption when I left the country, and I didn’t get it until the day before my flight,” Rechner said of trying to fly to LA during the COVID-19 lockdown.
“I didn’t feel like I had this role until I put myself on that plane and got to LA. So it was like a series of accidents that ended up getting me there and looking back, I should have been. It shouldn’t be.” over there.
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“I remember the producers saying, ‘You know, we fought so hard to get you here.’ And they were like, ‘maybe this is too much, maybe we must get rid of this guy’.
“So for it to actually happen is… I’m grateful.”
Fabelman’s house tells the story of Spielberg’s childhood and where his passion for filmmaking began, as well as showing the heart of his complicated family life.
Rechner plays a school bully who ends up being a hero in the eyes of Sammy Fabelman (played by Gabriel LaBelle).
The dream part came after a few auditions but it was Spielberg who gave the 19-year-old Australian the role of a lifetime – after getting him his first sweat.
“I got a callback for Zoom with Steven [Spielberg] and [co-writer] Tony Kushner and Kate Capshaw [actress and Spielberg’s wife] and then a bunch of producers and at 8 a.m. it was stressful,” Rechner recalled to 9Honey Celebrity.
“Then they jumped out of Zoom for 10 minutes after we auditioned and I was like ‘What did I do wrong?’
“Then they went back to Zoom and Steven was like ‘Sam, we think you’re brilliant. You’re in’ and then things got chaotic from there… so it was like ‘too much. good to be true’ kind of moment.”
The Australian actor said he stumbled on his career path when his professional Rugby Union dreams ended in high school, after too many head injuries and surgery.
“I had to find a different kind of passion and act like it jumped in front of me and it sounded cliché, but that was the case and I had a great teacher and mentor at school and then I was fell in love with it more and more,” he told 9Honey Celebrities.
The actor is now back in Sydney, spending time with family and friends over the holidays before Awards Season kicks off in January – whereFabelman’s house has been nominated for many Golden Globes.
“It’s amazing. I mean, it’s nerve-wracking to be a part of it all, but it’s also very exciting and thrilling… Really, it’s just an honor to contribute.”
But it wasn’t the glittering events that made the new Aussie the stars in his eyes about La-La Land, he said. It is being made with such co-stars Seth Rogen and Michelle Williamswhom he calls one of his acting “heroes”.
“She was so lovely, so warm and so caring,” he said of meeting the actress during filming.
“And then she went back to the scene and she said, this is just a change of character and it’s unbelievable to witness something like that.”
While he agrees that the Hemsworths have paved the way for Australians in Hollywood, the Sydneysider is eager to make his own mark in Los Angeles.
Rechner told 9Honey Celebrity: “Those people definitely open up opportunities for young Australians like me but in the end you want to forge your own path and find your own path in the industry.” .
“It’s an exciting opportunity to see how things work in LA…it’s both exciting and heartbreaking but that’s why it draws so many people there.”
The Fabelmans will hit theaters across Australia on January 5.
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