Brooklyn native Lucas Hedges comes of age, 1 film at a time
With the pressure of the lead role on him for the first time, Lucas Hedges was hearing voices. Vivid movie-critic voices.
“I would hear reviews in my head that were like: ‘It appears as if Hedges has nothing going on in his inner life. In what should be a very rich…'” says Hedges, writing the imaginary hatchet job in his head. “It was like: I’m never going to work again. The stakes felt very high.”
The reviews, like just about everything the 21-year-old actor has done, including his Oscar-nominated breakthrough role in “Manchester by Sea,” have turned out quite the opposite for Hedges in his first starring role. The acclaimed gay conversion therapy drama “Boy Erased,” out Friday, is the latest in a string of disarmingly natural performances by Hedges, even if during the film’s shoot, he felt like he was drowning.