The cast of “Beautiful Creatures” may be dotted with Oscar and Emmy and Tony winning actors, but at the film’s center are a pair of young stars who you may not have heard of yet. Don’t worry. You’re gonna hear more about them.
Alice Englert and Alden Ehrenreich play the couple at the center of the young adult romance. He’s Ethan, a motherless dreamer who wants nothing more than to escape his South Carolina hometown. She’s Lena, a young witch — Sorry, “caster” — counting down the days til her true nature is revealed, dark or light.
For now, chances are good that unless you were a big fan of “Tetro,” the best way to ID Ehrenreich for you is from that Natalie Portman Dior commercial. And while Englert has generated strong buzz for the indies “Ginger & Rosa” and “In Fear,” it’s still coolest to think of her as Jane Campion’s daughter.
I sat down the two stars to talk about the challenges to forging their “Beautiful Creatures” chemistry on the fly after Ehrenreich was a late addition to the cast. And since “fate” and “destiny” play a major role in the movie, I asked about how those forces impacted their career choices.
You can also check out my interviews with “Beautiful Creatures” co-stars Jeremy Irons, Viola Davis and Emmy Rossum.
“Beautiful Creatures” opens on February 14.