Callan McAuliffe Talks Playing Young Jay Gatsby in ‘The Great Gatsby’

Callan McAuliffe, who is known for his roles in Flipped, and I Am Number Four, is now leaping into stardom as young Gatsby in Baz Luhrmann’s upcoming adaptation of The Great Gatsby. Leonardo DiCaprio is portraying adult Gatsby, with major Hollywood stars including Carey Mulligan, Tobey Maguire, Joel Edgerton, and Isla Fisher, joining in major roles. Callan chatted with Collider.com about his upcoming role. Fun fact: Page to Premiere actually interviewed Callan about his role in ‘I Am Number Four,’ a while ago! We’re so happy for him, and I’m sure he’s going to be very successful.

Question: What’s it like to take on such a classic American story that’s as iconic as The Great Gatsby is? Was it a novel that you had read and were familiar with, or did you read it because of this role?

CALLAN McAULIFFE: At least for me, whenever I read something in school that a teacher tells me to read for a school assignment, I absolutely hate it. I loathe it. Amongst other books, Gatsby was one of the ones that teachers would tell us to read for a school assignment, and I hated it. I ended up reading it, of my own accord, outside of school, and I absolutely loved it. I guess, whenever a teacher tells you to do something, you automatically dislike it. I’ve read it a couple of times since then, and I’ve enjoyed it.

Is this version of it still the classic story that people know and love, or does it also have some changes that you think will surprise people?

McAULIFFE: I think there are going to be some changes that surprise people. There’s a fairly essential change that I think people will appreciate, compared to some of the other Gatsby films that have been made. But, overall, it’s the classic Gatsby.

What can you say about your role in the film?

McAULIFFE: I play the young Jay Gatsby, so I’m not on camera as much as everyone else. They’re quite a ways through the principal photography, and I do my shooting in the next couple of weeks. So, it’s a relatively small part, in the scheme of things, but it’s a fantastic part for me to have and I’m looking forward to it. I play the young Gatsby, and it’s about the guy who helps Gatsby come from an impoverished little kid and become the rich bastard that he is, in the end. It’s the first time he says, “Old sport,” as well. It introduces that catch phrase that Gatsby has.