'LITTLE FIRES EVERYWHERE’S' GAVIN LEWIS ON ACTING, HIS CHARACTER MOODY, THE 90s AND MUSIC

Actor Gavin Lewis currently plays the character of Moody Richardson in Hulu’s limited drama series Little Fires Everywhere opposite Reese Witherspoon and Kerry Washington. In the show, he’s one of the 4 children of Elena (Witherspoon) wrapped in the dynamic suburban family drama and controversies in Shaker Heights, Ohio.

With parents both working in theatre, Gavin never realized that he would actually catch the acting bug. At a young age, Lewis have already completed several acting projects under his belt. He can also be seen as Prince Emil in Netflix’s multi-camera comedy Prince of Peoria.

In this interview, we sat down with the young actor to chat about his experiences in Little Fires Everywhere, his character Moody, being a type-1 diabetic, music, living in different cities and Nick Jonas’ influence on him.

How was the audition process like for Little Fires everywhere?

It was pretty quick. It was about a week from my first audition to when I found out that I’ve gotten the part. It was a quick turnaround. It was great because we actually got to read the book during the audition process and that made it really fun.

What was your reaction when you first read the book?

I liked it. Honestly it’s not really written for my demographic but I enjoyed it. It’s a really interesting story and I was hooked pretty quick.

Tell us about your character Moody Richardson. How was it like, playing him?

It was a lot of fun. It was fun because it was different from a lot of the other roles that I have done. He was pretty quiet, introverted, judgmental, and moody.

You played a character that exists in the past. What kinds of preparations did you do to effectively portray this character living in the 90’s?

Loads of research. The internet is very helpful. There is a show I watched from the 90s that I watched a lot. I listened to a bunch of music. I listened to Nirvana for character study. It was really fun. Because it was the first period show that I’ve ever done.

So the music really helped?

Yeah. Music helps a lot.

What can the audience expect from the show?

A lot of drama. The show is really about relationships and how people’s actions affect others and the relationships ultimately being jeopardized in some way.

Now let’s talk about you as an actor. How did you get into acting?

My parents are both in theatre. I grew up around acting. But when I was little, I actually wanted nothing to do with acting. I think I’ve been overexposed. But as I got older, an opportunity came through a friend of a friend. I just happened to be right for a film that a friend was doing. He was like, Hey, do you wanna audition? And I was like, Sure I will try it out. And I did it. I guess the difference was that it’s film. Theatre wasn’t my gig. I moved over to film and I loved it. I realized this is what I want to keep doing. Little 9-year old me decided that it would be good idea to talk to the lead and figure out how to get representation in LA. I don’t even remember this now, but it kind of snowballed from there.

Which film was it?

It was called In Searching.

You’ve been in quite a few shows already. Out of all the roles that you did, which one is your favorite and why?

The most fun was probably Prince Emil in Prince of Peoria. I really enjoyed comedy. It was great and also totally different. I get to do an accent which was fun to play around with. It was just super energetic which was great. Multi-cam is always fun. It was a load of fun being on-set. There was a basketball hoop right off set that we would play around with after takes.

But as far as the actual work, it would be Moody [Little Fires Everywhere] because I had so much fun delving into research and figuring out his background and motivations.

You met Nick Jonas a while back, do you look forward to meeting him again?

I do. I hope at some point I get to meet him again and be like, Remember the little 6 year-old boy who was so shy? Nick was a big inspiration in acting and also for being a type-1 diabetic. He inspired me to get a pump and to pursue acting. I think he was the reason why I had so much fun with the filming of the first movie. He inspired me to try it out was because I saw what he was doing. And I think he also inspired me to get into music. He was a big inspiration. He inspired me to get into music, acting and to deal with my diabetes in a new way.

That’s amazing!

Yeah!

Who else inspires you?

I am a big fan of Benedict Cumberbatch. I think he is an amazing actor. I’ve used him as a reference and studied him for acting before. It’s gonna be a cliché, but there’s a list of big names- Robert Downey junior is amazing, Allan Rickman, and a lot of other British actors. I think they’re really good.

How was it to move in different cities a lot?

I’ve always liked it. I’ve been homeschooled my whole life so I was bouncing around going to different homeschool groups and making new friends so I like moving around. We live in Arizona for a few years, which I had fun with, and had some good friends. It was a little hot for me so we moved. I’ve been in Salt Lake City, which was too cold for me. I think we’ve settled in a good place out here (California). But it’s actually been a lot of fun because now I got good friends from a lot of places.

And now you guys are in LA where the weather is nice.

Yes it is. Down by the beach. It is my favorite.

If you were a book, what book would you be and why?

The Shining just because I’m kind of a quiet guy with some crazy bits in the middle.