Josh Hutcherson Interview

Courtesy of Disney

By: Sindy

From Polar Express and Howl's Moving Castle to R.V. and Bridge to Terabithia, Josh Hutcherson is making a name for himself in Hollywood. The rising star took time to chat to us about acting, friendship and keeping his head on straight in the entertainment industry.

Sindy: Can you tell me a little about Bridge to Terabithia?
Josh Hutcherson: It's about this friendship that forms between these two kids and it totally changes both of their lives. They create this imaginary world that only they can get into. And what happens there is that anything they can possibly imagine comes to life.

Sindy: How did you get your start in acting?
Josh Hutcherson: I started acting when I was about nine. I always wanted to get into acting since I was really little but my parents would never let me because they'd heard all the bad stuff about being in the business as a young actor and stuff like that. And I'm from Kentucky - so that probably doesn't help either. So, finally when I was about nine years old, I'd bugged them and begged them enough that they finally let me get a local agent in Cincinnati, which is close to where I live. They decided they'd take me on, and I met an acting coach and he said we should go to California for pilot season. I was so excited but my parents were like, "Oh, no." I begged and begged and begged and they finally agreed to take me out to California and had some auditions and got some great parts and it just went from there.

Sindy: So now that you're working a lot, is it hard to have a normal childhood?
Josh Hutcherson: No, really - surprisingly enough. I still live in Kentucky, like I always have. And I have my old friends and everybody and I'm on a soccer team at home. I'm a pretty normal kid, except for the fact that I happen to make movies.

Sindy: So what do your friends on your soccer team think about you being in movies?
Josh Hutcherson: They think it's cool. They ask questions like, "What was it like working with so-and-so." They like it.

Sindy: Who is the coolest person you've worked with so far?
Josh Hutcherson: Oh, [kwlink]Robin Williams[/kwlink] (on R.V.), I think. He was so great. He's so much fun. And JoJo was awesome too.

Sindy: Who would you like to work with in the future?
Josh Hutcherson: I'd really like to work with Jake Gyllenhaal because I love the way he's taken his career and the kind of jobs that he's taken and that's kind of how I'd like to go about my career.

Sindy: Besides your own, what are your favorite movies?
Josh Hutcherson: Oh man, I have so many. I like the Pirates of the Caribbean - the first one.

Sindy: What advice would you give to other kids who might want to become actors too?
Josh Hutcherson: I think just to make sure that you love doing it because it's going to take a lot of time and effort and heartbreak - and, if you love it, you have to put up with that stuff. But if you don't love it, you really shouldn't put yourself through all that. And that's another thing - you've got to be able to accept being turned down and being turned away from a job because it's going to happen all the time.

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