Alex Pettyfer brings his romantic streak to Endless Love
Young actors built ‘ chemistry’ to be believable as teen sweethearts
Alex Pettyfer refuses to rush during his acting journey. That’s why fans don’t see him as often in films as his peers.
“I enjoy my craft and what I do for a living,” said the 23- year- old at a Minneapolis hotel promoting Endless Love. “These are early days for me, and I don’t want to get into the habit of piling on things.”
Making room in his schedule for a role in the remake of Franco Zeffirelli’s romantic drama Endless Love seemed like the right thing to do.
In the film, Pettyfer plays David, a working class senior in high school who falls for his introverted classmate Jade ( Gabriella Wilde) just as they graduate.
Still grieving over the loss of her older brother, Jade is privileged and slated to follow in her physician father’s footsteps until David shows up. So the father ( Bruce Greenwood) tries to end the love affair.
Joely Richardson plays the doctor’s long- suffering wife. Robert Patrick is David’s mechanic dad, but it is Pettyfer and Wilde who provide the spark.
“This isn’t as dark as the original,” said Pettyfer of the 1981 film. “I don’t mind dark but we wanted to remind people what it is like to fall in love again.”
After all, the theme is not only perfect for Valentine’s Day but it suits his attitude. “I felt like I could be David,” he admitted, “because I am quite the romantic, as well.”
The cast was another attraction. At the insistence of director Shana Feste, Pettyfer rehearsed with Wilde for a month before filming the love story, which helped them connect on camera.
“If we didn’t have that chemistry, our love might seem disingenuous on screen,” he said.
“In a lot of our scenes it was all about what we didn’t say — a look or a touch. And those were probably our most effective moments.”
The former model focused on the task at hand. It’s been a trademark since his professional debut as the title character in the British TV production of Tom Brown’s Schooldays.
He made his film debut playing Alex Rider in 2006’ s Stormbreaker. He also co- starred in Wild Child with Emma Roberts.
High profile parts followed with I Am Number Four ( where he met former girlfriend Dianna Agron), Beastly, Magic Mike and last year’s The Butler.
As he suggested, he’s been patient and selective, refusing to rush from one film job to another.
“Some actors are able to do that,” Pettyfer said, “but it just doesn’t work for me.”