Fast Five with Pan's Levi Miller
Meet the 13-year-old boy wonder from Down Under who takes on pirates in Pan.
1 Chosen one
Levi Miller's life has certainly taken a 360-degree turn.
From an unknown kid who was juggling school and some commercial work in his native Brisbane, Miller is now the face of a US$100 million-plus (S$142 million) Hollywood feature, Pan.
Miller beat out over 4,000 hopefuls to win the role of Peter, an orphan boy in 1940s London who is kidnapped by a band of pirates and whisked away to the magical world of Neverland where he befriends a not-yet-evil Hook (Garrett Hedlund) and warrior princess Tiger Lily (Rooney Mara) while trying to keep villain Blackbeard (Hugh Jackman) at bay.
2 Mother's love
A central theme in Pan sees Peter seeking his long-lost mother Mary (played by Amanda Seyfried) who has promised to reunite with him some day.
Miller told Variety that he was able to relate to Peter on that level because "I love my mother, a lot like him".
"I could understand his feelings and acting the sad scenes was sad for me too.”
3 Girl crush
Miller cherished the friendships he forged with his co-stars, particularly "big brother" Hedlund, 30, with whom he bonded immediately.
Jackman, said Miller to Collider, was "more lovely than people have said" and Miller now calls his fellow Aussie a "good friend".
However, Mara is "more than a sisterly-friend thing" as the young boy has developed a "bit of a crush on her".
The good-looking kid doesn't need to worry about attraction from the fairer sex.
At the London premiere of Pan, Miller arrived in style where he was flanked by two It ladies, models Suki Waterhouse and Cara Delevingne, who also plays a mermaid the movie.
4 Swashbuckling action
As we know from J.M. Barrie's beloved fairy tale, Peter Pan is a boy who can fly, and that meant Miller had a good deal of stunt work to accomplish.
Miller, who enjoys indoor rock-climbing and playing tennis during his free time, loved doing all the stunt work.
"Being on the wire and going up in the air, and down and forward and backwards, it was so much fun,” he said.
“Peter does a lot of falling before he gets the hang of it.”
5 Fashion model
Miller may yet to score another Hollywood feature film -- his next movie is Australian production Blue Dog -- but the photogenic 13-year-old will be fronting billboards as the new face of Polo Ralph Lauren childrenswear.
His first runway for the preppy spin-off line for parents who want their kids to look like mini-me versions of themselves was a Peter Pan-themed catwalk show at Central Park Zoo.
He said to the Evening Standard: "Not many people get to play the lead character in a gigantic film and model for Ralph Lauren, it’s amazing!
"Modelling for Ralph Lauren was insane! I met the man himself and he's such an inspiration. He spoke to me about how he wanted to be an actor when he was younger and how my life was his dream when he was growing up."
Watch the Pan trailer:
FACT FILE
Name: Levi Zane Miller
Born: Sept 30, 2002, Brisbane, Australia
Filmography: Pan (2015), Supergirl (TV series, 2015)
Get The New Paper on your phone with the free TNP app. Download from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store now