Onwards and upwards, as they say. Rising star Oakes Fegley has worked with high-profile directors like the imaginative David Lowery and a little-known Oscar winner by the name of Steven Spielberg. The list of big-name collaborations only continues to grow, with Fegley’s new starring vehicle Adam the First co-starring David Duchovny. We watch with delight and hope as Fegley’s titular protagonist journeys across the country in hopes of tracking down his real dad. His character has a list of three names, so it’s the most epic process of elimination on the big screen we’ve seen in a while.
MovieWeb recently caught up with Fegley to learn more about his new movie, teaming up with Hollywood heavyweights and love for Oppenheimer.
Working With ‘Chill, Laidback’ Duchovny
Adam the First starts off with a bang. There aren’t any physical explosions, but rather, Adam’s world might have imploded when his father figure, James (played by Duchovny), reveals early on that he’s not Adam’s real dad. It’s an emotionally charged moment that both Duchovny and Fegley simply nail. Fegley says:
“Working with David was really cool. He’s got such a chill, laid back kind of energy. And sometimes it’s really nice to have people like that on set because it calms everybody down, and it gets everybody kind of level on set. And so it was cool to work alongside him and to work opposite him. And I think some of the scenes that we have are some of my favorite scenes in the film.”
“I think that our dynamic was really immediate and cool. And it just felt really natural, felt really good,” added Fegley. “So it was awesome working with him. And we were working at the beginning of the pandemic, and it was an experience, to say the least. It was difficult for everybody at that time, no matter what you were doing across what profession you were, you’re subject to these crazy new rules and situations that no one had ever really dealt with before.”
Another memorable performance that comes later in the film: T.R. Knight, who TV afficionados will recognize from Grey’s Anatomy and The Flight Attendant. “He’s a very different actor that I’ve worked with before,” Fegley told us. “So it was really cool to work alongside people who have different energy and a different way of working. And it brings something different to the scene. And so that scene was definitely challenging in a lot of ways, especially because of how it stands out across the rest of the piece. And so it was definitely different and challenging. It’s always challenging to jump into those heavy emotional scenes like that.”
Leading up to Adam the First, Fegley has had starring roles in other acclaimed projects, such as the acclaimed feature Pete’s Dragon. “David Lowery was an absolutely amazing director to work with,” said Fegley. “I mean, I was very young at the time, too, so it was a very different time for me in my life. But yeah, it was incredible. We filmed in New Zealand when I did Pete’s Dragon, so I mean, that was in and of itself such an adventure. I would love to entertain that idea at some point.”
And to work with David Lowery again would be amazing. I love his style and the atmosphere of his films, the way he creates his world. I think it’s phenomenal. And he surrounds himself with some really high-quality talent, the likes of which are kind of unparalleled, and so I’m very excited to see what he does in the future as well.
13 Movies Steven Spielberg Almost Directed
Steven Spielberg has gone on to direct some of the best films of the last century. This came at the cost of missing out on some great opportunities.
On Spielberg: An ‘Incredibly Genuine Person’
More recently, Fegley teamed up with another groundbreaking filmmaker: Spielberg himself, for The Fabelmans. “I worked with Steven right after doing this small project,” Fegley told us. “It’s definitely a different scale, definitely a different atmosphere. Steven commands his sets in such a unique way. It just makes the project come to life, and everyone feels the magic. And he’s very good at making sure things happen, how they need to happen, when they need to happen. He’s so experienced beyond anybody I’ve ever seen, to be honest.” He added:
At the end of it all, he’s one of the nicest people on set, and he’s congratulatory, and he’s really thankful for all the people and all the work that they put in everything. So he’s just an incredibly genuine person. It was really cool to work with him as well. And
The Fabelmans
‘ entire cast was incredible. All the crew were great.
17:36
Exclusive: David Duchovny on Life After The X-Files and New Film Adam the First
The Californication star speaks to MovieWeb about working with David Lynch, befriending Meg Ryan, and doing something different with his new movie.
The Fabelmans was a hot awards contender last year — and this year, there is certainly a front-runner that Fegley has his eye on:
Oppenheimer is such an
incredible cinematic piece
, and again, some really impressive performances from almost the entire cast. And so that was really, really awesome to see in a movie at that scale.
“And I also just watched American Fiction, absolutely phenomenal movie. I love the energy, I love the style. And again, the cast, these ensemble pieces with multiple strong performances from their actors, I love that. And it’s always cool as an actor to see that,” added Fegley. “I’ve worked with Jeffrey Wright in the past, and he’s an incredible person, again, a very genuine nice guy. I love the way he works, and I love what he brings to the screen. So it was really cool to see that. And I’m hoping for that one as well.”
Fegley undoubtedly has a bright future ahead of him, and based on our recent interview with the young star, it’s clear he has the right mindset for a career in Hollywood. “I love to work with everybody and anybody who puts something incredible in front of me,” he said. “I am always game for jumping into something, especially something new for me that I feel like I haven’t really dove into. And so that’s always something I look forward to, meeting new people and working on projects that are something different, something cool.”
From Electric Entertainment, Adam the First is now playing in U.S. theaters.
