Asa Butterfield simply won me the heck over with HUGO. It’s one of those discoveries where I’ve come to find a cove of other gem’s from the young actor after experiencing his Scorsese fantasy. I had not seen THE BOY IN THE STRIPED PAJAMAS or the NANNY MCPHEE sequel before HUGO. In watching them subsequently, I could imagine what Scorsese must have felt upon seeing him for the first time. He’s a really strong screen presence.
Every once in a while you hear about a casting announcement that kind eases your mind about the production. “Ah, well that’s taken care of. You know team can rest easy with them on board.” That was my impression upon hearing Asa’s casting as Ender in the Orson Scott Card adaptation. He’s exactly the formidable presence required for a very young warrior. In our sit down Asa geeks out over what he loves about all things Sci-Fi, THE MATRIX and even VALVE video games. He also discusses the idea of revisiting a character years after first living with them (as Ender’s journey spans thousands of years in the books).
You can check out Asa’s Sci-Fi adventure, ENDER’S GAME, this Frady.