Beacon Bay homeboy on brink of big time
Acting opportunities coming thick and fast
WHEN TV, film and stage actor Scot Cooper was in Sub A at Beaconhurst Primary school he took to the stage as a cat.
Now he is in hot demand to play villains, romantic leads and action heroes in both local and American movies.
Cooper, 34, has appeared in Season 4 of the hit TV series Homeland and shared a scene with former Bond girl Olga Kurylenko in Momentum, which stars Morgan Freeman and opens in the US next month.
He left East London for Cape Town when he was 12 after completing Grade 6 at Hudson Park Primary and taking part in every school play possible.
“I just knew I enjoyed acting, but I thought I wanted to be a street sweeper when I grew up, until my sister said I’d have to work in the rain,” laughed Cooper, who went on to study at the South African School of Motion Picture and Live Performance (Afda) and take drama classes at the William Esper Studio in New York.
And while the acting jobs keep rolling in, the blue-eyed actor bolsters his income by shooting TV commercials for brands like Pepsi and BMW which are flighted the world over.
“I have been in 40 commercials and already shot 12 this year, which is a record for me.
“I recently shot a DStv commercial with Gabriel Macht [of US television series Suits fame] as well as an FNB commercial, both of which will flight locally soon.”
Cooper’s CV is impressive. One of his latest starring roles is in the South African movie Reconnect, a family drama filmed in the North-West province which premiers in Klerksdorp on Friday and goes on circuit in mid-October.
At the same time, Momentum, the US film starring Morgan Freeman, will hit the American movie circuit.
“I filmed a scene in Cape Town with Bond girl Olga Kurylenko and Morgan Freeman shot his scenes in LA.
“It was a small role, but a role nevertheless.”
And, while the East London born actor would like to divide his time between South Africa and Hollywood, there is plenty keeping him busy in the Mother City.
He shot a scene with Homeland actor Rupert Friend for the last episode of the series’ fourth season in Cape Town.
“The local film industry is going strong, but also more and more international projects are getting shot here and South African actors are getting opportunities.
“Homeland is one of the top TV shows in the world and I am really thankful I got it. It’s really big for my CV,” said Cooper, who still has family in East London, including his sister, La Crumb & Son Bakery owner Lee-Anne Mogridge.
While he loves to visit his hometown to see family and down a Friesland milkshake, the next few months are looking busy for Cooper.
“I’m shooting another SA movie next month called Bypass starring Natalie Bekker, and next week am going to be performing the one-man show I wrote called Henry and the Sand, which opened at the National Arts Festival.”
Cooper, who has a manager in Los Angeles, said that although fame is not his driving factor, his ultimate goal is to work “with the best in the industry”.
“I would love to be in a scene with Daniel Day-Lewis or be directed by the Coen Brothers or Woody Allen, and it would be great to direct one day.” —