Alex
Russell (left) with Michael B. Jordan and Dane DeHaan in a scene from hit film Chronicle.
Picture: AP Source:
AP
Maria Lewis, The Daily Telegraph, reports
Meet Alex Russell: Australia's next big thing.
Since his debut as a charismatic bully in Wasted On The Young, the 24-year-old's career has been rocketing forth in leaps and bounds.
Quite literally.
Russell made had a Hollywood breakthrough earlier this year as highschool student who develops superpowers in Chronicle.
Directed by first time filmmaker Josh Trank, Chronicle became a surprise hit - debuting at No.1 at the US box office and grossing more than $127M worldwide.
"It’s the dream come true," says Russell.
"The amazing thing about Chronicle...as a young, male actor it was stimulating, really gritty material that you could sink your teeth into.
"Then by the same token you got to live every dream you had as a 10-year-old (being a superhero)."
A commercial and critical success, it's no surprise screenwriter Max Landis is hard at work on a sequel which Russell says he will "absolutely" return for.
"Max is working hard on that right now. He’s dropping hints here and there all over the world. He loves to keep people sweating.
"I talk to Max and he tells me some things, he doesn’t tell me a lot.
"I’m really excited to see what he’s got ready to pull out of the hat because Chronicle was such an incredible thing and he wrote that in only two weeks."
Russell's performance in the genre flick has made Hollywood stand up and take notice.
The NIDA graduate has been cast in acclaimed director Kimberely Peirce's remake of the Stephen King classic Carrie.
Russell says he will be playing Billy Nolan - "he's the one responsible for the pig's blood" - which is the part that first brought a young John Travolta to the attention of international audiences in 1976.
But Russell isn't worried about the big shoes he has to fill.
Instead he's worried about getting "nervous" around his A-List co-stars Julianne Moore and Chloe Moretz, who are also cast in the film.
"The original is a classic but the way Kimberley Peirce is playing everything...I feel like her spin on it is going to be so different," he says.
"It’s a very valid, justifiable remake of a classic. It’s a thing that’s really going to stand on its own."
Like all aspiring movie stars, Russell is currently based in L.A but says he's dying to get back Down Under for local projects.
"I’m not going to lie, I’m very home sick."
It may happen sooner rather than later for Russell, who is currently developing feature film Sons Of Salt, which he describes as “a gritty look at Australian beach culture”.
"It's very, very cool and something I've been looking forward to getting off the ground for a long time," he says.
Russell expects to shoot at the end of this year.
He and his business partner are also developing their first TV series - Campus - which follows life for first year university students.
Add to that his next movie - 3D shark thriller Bait - and you have one busy man.
Chronicle is out on DVD and Blu-ray Wednesday, June 13.
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