Interview: James Freedson-Jackson on Playing the Manipulative Younger Brother in The Strange Ones

Directed by, Lauren Wolkstein and Christopher Radcliff, The Strange Ones debuted earlier this year at SXSW and tells the tale of two brothers who make their way across the wild. The journey is anything but a normal story of two brothers spending time together to bond. At the heart of it all is a dark and complicated truth that all begins with the death of their father.

James Freedson-Jackson plays the younger but not so innocent brother Sam. I had the chance to briefly talk to him about the film. Read our conversation below:

How has it been for you?

I’ve been so busy with The Strange Ones. It’s a special film and it’s significant in its own way and it’s bringing attention to it in ways that I’m really happy with. It was a great film to be a part of and I’m working on my career, figuring everything out and working on new projects.

How did you manage to channel the complexity that is Sam?

That is really true, he is a really complex character. He’s very manipulative. He manipulates a lot of the situations he gets into based on his feelings and he has a lot at that time. He’s going through puberty and is going through a lot. He’s a thinker and thinks about everything. You see it’s not always verbal. You can see what he can do in situations.

What did Lauren and Chris say about Sam?

They told me about Sam and I thought it would be a good idea to play because it was this case of Sam reacting and doing what he wants to that person in a manipulative way and it would be so much fun to play. They were great to work with because they both loved what I thought of the character Sam and my idea of him. If I had an idea they would see how it played out.

He’s not one of many words.

Exactly. The trick to that is knowing your lines 100% and you can do whatever you want with the script and your character. You think about what you need to do to make that character more realistic. He said this, and I react like this. He’s all about feelings and I had to get that across.  When you watch Sam in the movie, you can see he’s up to something so it was all about working on expressions.

What was Alex like to work with?

He was super fun and I think of him as my older brother and I look up to him. He was an incredible actor to work with. He puts his heart and soul into his work.

That diner scene I mentioned also to Alex was great because it’s a shift in who we’ve seen.

Previously to that scene you see Sam crying and he pulls himself together and I think he goes there being stronger than ever, and it’s not manipulative Sam anymore. It’s an act of vulnerability.