FROM FASHION TO BBC DRAMA DEBUT
Malaysian mum proud 8-year-old son given a shot at acting career
EIGHT-YEAR-OLD Aaron John Ansari missed an opportunity to become a fashion model for a high-end label because of height restrictions, but he is now setting his sights high as an actor after starring in a new BBC series Years and Years.
Aaron, of mixed Malaysian and British-Afghan parentage, plays Lincoln Lyon, the half-Chinese son of Rosie Lyon in a story described as “an epic saga that takes an ordinary family and catapults them through the next 15 years”.
“I love the challenging role that I was given,” said Aaron who lives in Hull, a port city in East Yorkshire, about a two-and-ahalf hours’ train journey from London.
The Thoresby Primary School pupil, who loves playing with model planes that he collects while travelling as well as reading, had been on the books of a modelling and talent agent for some time but found his luck after two rounds of auditions for the part of Lincoln.
“The audition was amazing. I went through two stages (of callbacks) before I was confirmed the role. I was given a few lines to read during the auditions,” said Lincoln, who professed that he had always loved acting and gets involved in his school plays every year.
Although Aaron’s character Lincoln was written for the first episode, which premiered on May 14 on BBC One, Aaron is not seen until the following episode next week.
The six-part drama series has been receiving rave reviews, one of which stated that it was “funny and heartbreaking… showing one family’s determination to survive the future”.
According to a review, as Lincoln grows up he watches the Lyons family changing around him. His story spans over 15 years and is set to be the most radical and exciting of all.
His mother, Wan Nor Azreen Wan Mohamad Isa, who hails from Ipoh, drove Aaron and stayed with him during rehearsals and filming in Manchester and Liverpool over a period of three months, where he was also offered tutoring on location.
Azreen gave up her job as a teaching assistant at Aaron’s school to support her son’s interest in acting and modelling.
“Aaron loves to pose, and about 18 months ago, I registered him with an agency. Versace loves his look, but his height is 1cm above the requirement. In Years and Years, Aaron was involved from episode two to five and the process took three months to finish. As my husband is working abroad, I had to drive him to the rehearsals and filming,” said Azreen.
She said Aaron is the eldest of her two sons.
According to Azreen, Aaron’s acting stint became more challenging as he was also given a second character to play in the series.
She says the family in Malaysia was already excited and proud of Aaron for landing the part in the BBC drama.
For Aaron, Lincoln is just a start, and he is hoping for more.
Years and Years was written by Russell T. Davies, whose works include Queer as
Folk, The Second Coming and the 2005 revival of the Doctor Who. Years and Years include renowned cast like Emma Thompson, Russell Tovey, Rory Kinnear and T’Nia Miller.