- Before he became a million-million Star Wars star, John Boyega was pretty much broken– Spent $43 of his final $60 to meet JJ Abrams for dinner, acting as if he was waiting for other offers. Playing hard is a move you’ll normally see on dates, but in this case it helped him get a breakout role for the rogue Stormtrooper Fin.
Before John Boyega became the name of Rogue Stormtrooper Finn Star Warshe was a struggling actor for just 45 pounds. [$60] When director JJ Abrams invited the 33-year-old actor to dinner, he went to his name.
At the time, Boyega was not enough to cover his trip to meet Abrams. However, the British actor wanted a big break, so he emptyed a small left into his bank account, dropped everything and trekked through London. And now, on a panel at the Comics & Entertainment Expo in Chicago, he said, “I will never forget that day.”
“He says, ‘Where is he?’ And I’m at this art show in Greenwich. He says, “Well, I’m at Mayfair. [at a] restaurant. I need to talk to you now. And we’ll talk about something important,” Boiega said. It reminded me of the exchange with JJ Abrams. Following a few auditions.
“And then I’ll go, ‘Okay, OK, I’m going to be there right there’… 33 pounds and 83p reached math to reach JJ. ”
After paying for the fare, Boyega arrived for less than £12 [$15] His account and everything you get. If there was nothing else, he thought at least the meal would be free.
“Each step I took, I was nervous,” he continued. “I was like, ‘It’s okay, cool.’ JJ is an incredible nice guy and if he told me I couldn’t get the role, he would still feed me. ”
Boiega played hard, but it worked.
Before landing the role, Boiega already had 10 years of experience; Whale, the Empire’s dream, and Half of the yellow sun. But since then, work has been running out. The role wasn’t caught up in, but Boyega didn’t want Abrams to know about it. After all, the legendary action director – behind-box office hits like that Star Trek, Super 8, and Mission Impossible– There is a possibility of launching a young actor into stardom.
So he pulled the page out of an old dating playbook.
“I had auditioned for a long time, so it felt like he had taken away a bit of my dignity, so I decided to pretend I was busy,” Boiega said.
“It all felt very surreal,” he recalled. “And this just puts a Star Wars stamp: [the movie’s co-writer Lawrence Kasdan] Going out, he said, “Kid, this movie is going to change your life.” And that’s the Hollywood sh-t. ”
Within hours, Boyega had become a golden salary from Lucasfilm due to financial uncertainty.
It is estimated The actor earned between $100,000 and $300,000 in his role Star Wars: The Force Awakens In 2015, it won over $2 billion in Box Offices around the world. He also continued to reprise the role. Star Wars: The Last Jedi and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker In 2017 and 2019, both were raked with $1 billion in theater revenue. The discussion with Abrams at Mayfair Restaurant was the faintest light of his career.
Boiega’s career advice for the next generation
While Boiega’s ultimately worked out, adopting the “fake, until you make it” mindset, he advises Gen Z to open his eyes wide and enter his dream job.
“It’s important to understand the types of industries you are involved in, the opportunities available, and the different ways you can join and participate in something,” Boiega said. Behind the scenes 2020 Podcast Episodes.
Star Wars The graduates also said young people should carefully watch how people like them are treated as they walk through the door. Boiega himself has it It’s open About his complaints about his portrayal of black characters, including himself, in the Lucasfilm franchise.
“Train hard, become a fan of what you like and study other people who have struggled just as hard as you have,” Boiega added. “It’s all about calibrating and trying to find what’s specifically motivating you. You know that your freedom doesn’t have rules that can limit you as creative.”
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com.
