Charming Facts About Lucas Hedges, Hollywood's It Boy

June 11, 2023 | Christine Tran

Charming Facts About Lucas Hedges, Hollywood's It Boy


Lucas Hedges is new to the Hollywood indie circuit, but he’s already secured a filmography that most actors will spend their careers attempting to cultivate. From his roles in Manchester by the Sea (2016) to Lady Bird (2017) and Boy Erased (2018), Hedges is quickly emerging as the "It Boy" of the small cinema. Of course, even Indie Hollywood networking is a little easier when one is born to a Hollywood family. Unroll the red carpet to these 42 charming facts about Lucas Hedges.


1. Born to Perform

Hedges comes from a show business family. His mother is the actress and poet Susan Bruce, while his father is Academy Award-nominated screenwriter and director Peter Hedges, who is best known for writing the Oscar-nominated screenplay for About a Boy.

lucas hedges

2. Runs in the Family

Grandparents on both sides of Hedges’ family also worked in entertainment. His maternal grandmother, Narcissa Titman, is a former theatre director and lecturer, while his father’s father is the former vice president of HBO.

Lucas Hedges facts Getty Images

3. Making the Cut

Wes Anderson spotted Hedges in a middle school play. Apparently impressed, the quirky director cast Hedges to play a bully named Redford in Moonrise Kingdom.

Lucas Hedges factsMoonrise Kingdom, Indian Paintbrush

4. One Pump Chump

Hedges continued to work with Wes Anderson in his next picture, The Grand Budapest Hotel. This role was considerably smaller, however: Hedges is simply listed as "Pump Attendant".

Lucas Hedges facts Getty Images

5. Hawkeye Jr.?

Do you see the resemblance? Someone else did, apparently. Among Hedges’ minor early roles is the part of Jeremy Renner’s son in Kill the Messenger, which is based on the Iran-Contra scandal.

Lucas Hedges factsKill the Messenger, Bluegrass Films

6. The Early Bird Gets the Gold

In 2016, Hedges’ career truly took off with his turn as Casey Affleck’s angsty orphaned nephew in Manchester by the Sea. Hedges’ performance attracted much critical acclaim. For his role, he received a Critics’ Choice Movie Award for Best Young Performer and even an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor.

Lucas Hedges facts Manchester by the Sea, Amazon Studios

7. Lights, No Camera, Action!

Playing a troubled teen again, Hedges made his stage debut in 2017’s off-Broadway production of Yen. Going for a "type" of character apparently worked out, as Hedges continued to be nominated for awards. For his work on the stage, he was nominated for the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Play, and he won the Theatre World Award for Outstanding Off-Broadway Debut Performance.

Lucas Hedges factsPixabay

8. Two Strikes, You’re In

In 2017, Hedges co-starred in two Best Picture nominees: Lady Bird and Three Billboards Outside of Ebbing, Missouri. Most actors are happy with one, but okay.

Lucas Hedges factsGetty Images

9. Who Needs a Name for It?

Hedges is reluctant to label his sexuality. In 2018, he said: "In the early stages of my life, some of the people I was most infatuated with were my closest male friends. That was the case through high school, and I think I was always aware of that, while for the most part I was attracted to women". He also added that he exists "on that spectrum: Not totally straight, but also not gay and not necessarily bisexual".

Lucas Hedges factsGetty Images

10. Lucas in Real Life

Hedges’ first dramatic role was technically in the Steve Carrell comedy, Dan in Real Life, which his father directed. He had just one line, and it was cut from the final draft. Thanks, dad.

Fyre Festival factsShutterstock

11. In It for Me

Hedges admits he got into acting for "purely selfish reasons". In his words, "I honestly just wanted to have an exciting life. At first, it was superficial. I didn’t see acting as an opportunity for me to be of service. That came later".

Lucas Hedges factsGetty Images

12. A Man of Many Faces

When Hedges gets noticed on the street, he decides whether or not he’ll confirm he is, in fact, Lucas Hedges. Sometimes, a bystander will ask "Is that you?" According to Hedges, he takes time to decide how he’s feeling. He often says, "No". Remember that the next time you see someone who says they aren't Lucas Hedges. Chances are, they're lying.

Lucas Hedges factsGetty Images

13. No Waterworks

Stage tears are an actor’s bread and butter, but Hedges is not fond of weeping in front of other folks. As a child, his parents wanted him to cry in front of them more (okay…). Ever the rebel, he apparently did not like it—and it followed him into adulthood.

Lucas Hedges factsPixabay

14. School of Hard Pretenses

While Hedges was born to a showbiz family, the actor was also trained to entertain. He attended the University of North Carolina's School of Arts and Northwestern University’s Cherubs Theatre Program at their National High School Institute.

Lucas Hedges facts Wikipedia

15. A Runway High-Five

Supermodel Gigi Hadid was the first person—outside of his family, of course—to congratulate Hedges for his first Oscar nomination. The two were at a photoshoot together soon after the new dropped.

Lucas Hedges factsGetty Images

16. The Cutest Coffee Runner

Hedges would frequently visit his father's film sets as a child. Is that early enough for an internship?

Lucas Hedges facts Shutterstock

17. Can't Even Celebrate With a Drink

At just 20 years old, Hedges became the eighth youngest person to be nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the Academy Awards. If he had won, he would have been the youngest winner ever in that category (alas, he did not).

Lucas Hedges factsGetty Images

18. Be Like Jake

When Hedges was nominated for his role in Manchester by the Sea, he became the first actor under the age of 25 to be nominated for acting at the Oscars since Jake Gyllenhaal was nominated for Brokeback Mountain in 2005.

'Okja' Red Carpet Arrivals - The 70th Annual Cannes Film FestivalGetty Images

19. Only 90s Kids Will Understand

In 2017, Hedges and his Best Supporting Actor co-nominee, Dev Patel, became the first 1990s-born kids to be nominated for acting Oscars.

Lucas Hedges factsGetty Images

20. A Little Life

Hedges is very protective of his privacy and cites this as a reason why he prefers indie films. In smaller productions, he says, "…I get to remain in my life. I get to remain within the worlds that I want to be a part of".

Lucas Hedges facts Getty Images

21. My Sister, My Co-Star

Judging by Hedges' filmography alone, Hollywood is a small place. In both Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri and Ben Is Back, Hedges acted as the on-screen brother of characters played by actress Kathryn Newton. Coincidentally, Newton also had a role in Lady Bird. At least this time, she and Hedges were not playing siblings (as far as we know…).

Lucas Hedges factsGetty Images

22. Tragedy vs. Musical

Hedges continued to go for raw and prestigious film performances by playing a victim of gay conversion therapy in Boy Erased. For the role, he was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Actor, but he lost to Rami Malek’s turn in Bohemian Rhapsody.

Lucas Hedges factsGetty Images

23. Small-Screen, Big Future

In 2015, Hedges had a supporting role in NBC’s The Slap, a TV miniseries about the aftermath of a neighbor slapping a child who wasn't his. These days, the show is mostly remembered as the subject of some pretty good memes. However, to Hedges, this short-lived foray into television was "great practice" for being in front of the camera in more serious projects.

Lucas Hedges factsGetty Images

24. Eat, Pray, Act

To get in the headspace of playing Julia Roberts’ son (a tough act, we know) in Ben Is Back, Hedges went "method". Julia Roberts invited both Hedges and his on-screen sister, Kathryn Mockler, to be guests at her Thanksgiving dinner.

Lucas Hedges factsPixabay

25. No One Does It Better Than Mothers

Hedges brought his mother as his date to the 2017 Oscars. She gave him a kiss on the cheek before all the cameras.

Lucas Hedges factsGetty Images

26. Another Me?

Thanks to their many career intersections and parallels, Hedges admits it’s okay if you get him mixed up with fellow young actor Timothée Chalamet. To quote Hedges, "I honestly don’t know. Every time I see him, I think, ‘Wow, we’re actually pretty similar.’"

Timothée Chalamet factsGetty Images

27. Backhanded Direction

Lucas Hedges bit hesitant to say he was the "perfect" fit for his Oscar-nominated role in Manchester by the Sea. From what Hedges says, director Kenneth Lonergan never really made him feel secure: "I wasn’t the obvious fit. He said he didn’t find that person and so he picked the person he most wanted to watch in a movie. I don’t know if that’s true. But that’s what he told me. So that’s what I am walking around believing in my head".

Lucas Hedges factsGetty Images

28. Just Like Magic

In 2017, Hedges found himself at a crossroads: either go back to school or do this little film called Lady Bird. It was the chance to work with Saoirse Ronan that helped him make the decision. While Ronan was not in Harry Potter, she occupied a similar space in his "childhood brain" as a "far-off, magical place. The idea of getting to play her high-school boyfriend was a big pull away from school. She was somebody I was nervous to meet".

Lucas Hedges factsLady Bird, Mission Films Production

29. Childhood Crushes Do Come True

Growing up, Hedges believed Saoirse Ronan was "the most beautiful person [he] had ever seen on film or TV".

Lucas Hedges facts Getty Images

30. Coming Out of His Shells

After wrapping up Lady Bird, Hedges held onto his character’s c. 2002 puka shell necklace. I guess you can take the past with you—at least in fashion.

Lucas Hedges facts Lady Bird, Mission Films Production

31. Will This Number Be on the Exam?

Lady Bird’s director Greta Gerwig gave her actors specifically tailored pop cultural homework to embody their characters. Hedges' listening/watching list included "Seasons of Love" from Rent, "Save Me" off of Aimee Mann's Magnolia, and Merrily We Roll Along and Sunday in the Park with George by Stephen Sondheim. Sign me up for that kind of syllabus!

Lucas Hedges facts Getty Images

32. After Hours

Hedges participated in on-set dance parties during the filming of Lady Bird. He even attended a "really emotional" private party with Saoirse Ronan in Greta Gerwig’s apartment.

Lucas Hedges factsShutterstock

33. Too Cool for School

Since beginning his prestigious film career, Hedges has since dropped out of the University of North Carolina. I mean, he’s already getting jobs, so it makes sense.

Madonna FactsShutterstock

34. Off-Screen Chemistry, On-Court Coercion

In February 2019, Hedges confirmed that he was dating actress Taylor Russell, his co-star in the upcoming film Waves. It was speculated they were an item since the two were seen kissing at an NBA game in December 2018 (though one magazine reported that they only kissed because the cameras made them. Ok, sure).

Lucas Hedges factsGetty Images

35. Off the Grid

Unlike almost everyone else in his generation, Hedges isn’t on any social media platforms. Not even Facebook or, God forbid, Snapchat. He cites it was way too addictive for his lifestyle.

Lucas Hedges factsShutterstock

36. No Poker Face

The actor is fond of "Gaga" dance classes. No, not "Lady Gaga" dance, but rather the language of artistic movement founded by the Israeli artist Ohad Naharin.

Lucas Hedges facts Pixabay

37. The Prodigal Son Returns (to Set)

In 2018, Lucas Hedges and his father Peter teamed up for Ben Is Back, a movie about a teenaged drug addict’s return to his estranged family. In the film’s early production stages, Peter had no intention of casting his son in the lead role. Leading lady Julia Roberts was the one who insisted that Lucas be cast, because she was impressed by his performance in Manchester by the Sea.

Lucas Hedges factsGetty Images

38. You Will Remain Anonymous

To embody a recovering drug addict in Ben Is Back, Hedges attended Alcoholics Anonymous meetings with a man he will only describe as someone who "played a pretty significant role in [his] life".

Lucas Hedges factsBen Is Back, Black Bear Pictures

39. Generational Angst

Ben Is Back was a deeply personal project for Hedges and his father because his grandmother (Peter's mother) was an alcoholic (though for anyone getting ahead of themselves, she is not who Hedges followed to AA meetings in preparation for the film).

Lucas Hedges facts

40. "Chalamet"? More Like, "Shall I See You Out"?

In a twist of fate, Hedges lost the role of Tom Cooper in Interstellar to his future Lady Bird co-star, Timothée Chalamet. Hedges got his "revenge," however. In 2016, Hedges would beat out Chalamet his eventual Oscar-nominated role in Manchester by the Sea.

Lucas Hedges factsGetty Images

41. Mind the Gap

While filming Manchester by the Sea, Hedges asked his co-star, Anna Baryshnikov, to be his prom date. For very good reasons, she said no. At the time, she was 22 while Hedges was only 16.

Lucas Hedges factsShutterstock

42. Exit, Stage Left

Hedges messed with the Queen of Pop and lived to tell the tale. At one point, Madonna was holding a "no cameras" Oscars party. Somehow, Hedges missed the memo and took a picture, which almost got him kicked out of the festivities. To quote Hedges himself: "I completely forgot so I took a photo and this bodyguard rushes over to me and I've never been so scared in my entire life. I was like, 'I'm so sorry. I'm deleting—look, I'm deleting the photo right now.' And then they had eyes on me for the rest of the party, like, everywhere I went. I was so paranoid and scared".

Madonna FactsGetty Images

Sources1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22


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