The wonder of it all
Jacob Tremblay is calling on the phone from Boston. He’s a young man in demand for his starring role in “Wonder,” one of this year’s surprise box-office hits. He’s already traveled across the country, to Toronto and to London promoting Stephen Chbosky’s crowd-pleasing drama, but this morning he’s taken aback by some breaking news.
He’s just been informed that the new trailer for “Avengers: Infinity War” has been released, and like any other 11-year-old, he simply can’t contain his excitement.
“Really? That’s crazy. I’ll be sure to watch that today. That’s amazing. I’m so excited for that! I thought the next ‘Avengers’ movie wasn’t coming out for a while.”
In the Lionsgate film adaptation of R.J. Palacio’s celebrated young-adult novel “Wonder,” Tremblay plays Auggie, a young boy born with Treacher Collins syndrome, which results in facial deformities. He’s been home-schooled by his mother (Julia Roberts) for most of his life, but with fifth grade looming she believes the time is right for him to experience more of the real world by attending a prep school and interacting with kids his own age.
The movie focuses on bullying and preaches a simple and timely motto, “Be kind,” that has resonated with audiences. “Wonder” has already grossed over $73 million domestically and should easily pass $100 million either this weekend or in the days to come.
Tremblay, who had a featured role in the 2015 movie “Room,” discussed the long hours it took for him to get into makeup, his anticifilming pation over his next two releases, and what he’s learned from watching his Oscar-winning costar on set.
Why do you think “Wonder” is such a big hit?
I don’t really know. I think it might be because it’s such a great thing to take your kids to a movie about being kind. I think that’s probably why it’s doing well, maybe?
What about playing Auggie did you like the most?
What better character to play? He’s brave. He’s true to himself, and he’s kind. That’s what really stood out to me.
Had you read the book before you got the script?
I didn’t really read the book, but my sister read it and studied it at school, but then during filming I read it with my mom. It’s a really good book, and it’s really entertaining.
Did you know before filming that the makeup process was going to be as intense as it was?
I had never done prosthetics before, ever. So I didn’t know what to expect. I didn’t know if it was going to be comfy or itchy. But when we went to L.A. to try the prosthetics on that was a fun process because they put slime all over my face. I’m not gonna lie, it was challenging, but I would do it again in a heartbeat.
What made it uncomfortable? Was it hot underneath?
It was itchy and it was hot because we filmed in the summer in Vancouver. But after a while of I kind of got used to it.
Are you still on the road with “Wonder”?
I’m still promoting “Wonder.” I actually have two other movies coming out: [Xavier Dolan’s] “The Death and Life of John F. Donovan” and [Shane Black’s] “The Predator,” which I’m really excited for.
I was reading up on “Predator.” This is another tough role. You’re playing a character with autism, right?
Correct.
When your characters have a genetic disorder like Auggie does or autism, do your parents help you do research?
Actually, when me and my parents were researching facial differences online to learn about it, we found a group of children from Sick Kids Hospital in Toronto. So we reached out to them and I asked if they could send some letters about their experiences or anything they wanted me to know. And then later I got a bunch of letters and I put it in a binder that I had with me on set. And I would read this binder before I did some scenes that were difficult.
What acting tips did you pick up from Julia Roberts?
I saw how focused she is and how attached she is to her character, but most importantly I saw how kind she is to everyone. That taught me that no matter how famous you are you can always choose to be kind.
You’re from Vancouver, right? Was it easier to shoot this movie because you weren’t in some location far from home?
Well, I’m not sure it helped, but I thought it was nice to shoot in my own hometown because I get to go home to my own bed, which was pretty nice.
Was there one scene that was much harder to shoot or you thought was really challenging?
One of the challenging ones was when Auggie comes home from school and gets in a fight with his mom. It’s a big crying scene, and I think that one was difficult. But I like to call crying scenes the real acting scenes where you get to do your true acting and pull out all your techniques. Like I have music that I’ll listen to and I’ll put on the headphones and it will block out sounds because a set can be really noisy.
You use that to focus?
Yeah. I listen to sad music, and I’ll think about my character, and I’ll think about my scenes, and I’ll read the letters I had.
You’ve made a bunch of movies over the past few years. What do you love about acting?
I love to be different people. I like traveling and meeting new people as well. I think acting is one of the most fun things a person can do.
Did the movie make you cry?
Even though I filmed it I still get emotional. Especially with the bullying that Auggie goes through. But I managed to hold it together, but my mom just bawled.