Josh Hutcherson

Actor

• Born: October 12, 1992
• Place of Birth: Union, Kentucky

Contribution: Josh Hutcherson has risen from an esteemed child actor known especially for Bridge to Terabithia, Zathura: A Space Adventure, and The Kids Are All Right, to a young superstar in the Hunger Games film series.

Background

Josh Hutcherson was born Joshua Ryan Hutcherson on October 12, 1992, to Chris and Michelle Hutcherson (née Fightmaster) in Union, a small town in north-central Kentucky. He has a younger brother, Connor. A precocious child, he knew he wanted to act before he was old enough for school. A screen test at the age of nine proved his natural talent, and his parents took him to Hollywood. Within the year, he was filling supporting roles in television movies and appeared on the television series ER (2002). To accommodate his schedule, his mother homeschooled him. When he was not acting, the two of them traveled back to Kentucky to spend time with the rest of the family.

Hutcherson’s first role in a feature film was as Robin, Batman’s sidekick, in American Splendor (2003). He also appeared that year in the made-for-television movie Wilder Days, for which he received his first of six nominations for fine acting from the Young Artist Awards. He then voiced the character of Hero Boy in the Academy Award–nominated The Polar Express (2004), earning his first win from the Young Artist Awards as part of an outstanding young ensemble in a new medium. He earned another Young Artist Award nomination for best feature film performance of a young ensemble cast for appearing in Motocross Kids that same year, although the movie was considered a flop.

Career

In 2005, when he was just thirteen years old, Hutcherson appeared in the leading role of Walter in Zathura: A Space Adventure. As the elder of two brothers who play a science-fiction board game that suddenly becomes real, he won his first Young Artist Award for best performance for a leading young actor in a feature film and garnered a Saturn Award nomination for best performance by a younger actor. The success of Zathura led to an audition for the screen adaptation of Katherine Paterson’s bestselling children’s book, Bridge to Terabithia (2007). He was cast in the leading male role of Jess Aarons, starring opposite AnnaSophia Robb as Leslie Burke, in this critically acclaimed, sensitive film about death. For his exceptional acting, he again won a Young Artist Award for his lead role, while the film won Best Family Feature Film in the Fantasy or Musical category.

Other award-winning roles at this time included Sean Anderson, the son of a missing geologist who goes on a fantastic adventure in Journey to the Center of the Earth (2008), and Laser, the son of a lesbian couple who seeks out his genetic father in The Kids Are All Right (2010), which was nominated for an Academy Award. The latter film won a Golden Globe for best motion picture comedy or musical and garnered nominations and wins from throughout the world.

The roles Hutcherson accepted reflected his maturation in real life, and as he entered his late teenage years he was cast in his first R-rated movies, including the comedy-horror-thriller Detention (2011), directed by Joseph Kahn. He also tried out a new role as one of the film’s executive producers. Although the experimental movie received many negative reviews, the experience of producing offered an important behind-the-scenes educational opportunity for Hutcherson.

Hutcherson then acted in a few more B-class movies in 2012, including The Forger and Journey 2: The Mysterious Island, and just when it seemed as if superstardom was falling out of reach, he was cast as Peeta Mellark in The Hunger Games. The first film adaptation of the trilogy of bestselling dystopian novels by Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games required Hutcherson to dye his dark hair blond and to gain fifteen pounds to play the part of an ill-chosen teenager who must fight for his life and the life of his teammate, Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence), in a surreal televised competition. In the lead-up to the film’s highly anticipated March 2012 release, Hutcherson became an international celebrity. The movie was one of the biggest box-office successes of the year and won several awards, including favorite onscreen chemistry from the People’s Choice Awards, a win Hutcherson shared with costars Jennifer Lawrence and Liam Hemsworth. Hutcherson reprised his role as Peeta in the Hunger Games sequels: The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013), The Hunger Games: Mockingjay—Part 1 (2014), and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay—Part 2 (2015).

The actor’s next major project was Epic, a computer-animated film released in May 2013. Hutcherson voiced the character of Nod, a young Leafman warrior who joins teenager Mary Katherine (Amanda Seyfried) and several other characters on a quest to save the queen of the forest. Epic’s starring cast includes Colin Farrell, Aziz Ansari, Chris O’Dowd, and Beyoncé Knowles. Hutcherson then appeared in such films as the crime dramas Escobar: Paradise Lost (2014) and In Dubious Battle (2016), as well as the biographical comedy The Disaster Artist (2017), about filmmaker Tommy Wiseau and actor Greg Sestero's creation of the cult classic film The Room (2003). In 2017, he began starring in the Hulu original comedy Future Man, about a video gamer who is recruited to travel through time in order to save the world from destruction. The series was renewed for a third and final season in 2019.

Between 2019 and 2023, Hutcherson voiced the title role in thirty-one episodes of Ultraman, an animated series that was aired on Netflix. During 2023 and 2024, he appeared in several films, including 57 Seconds (2023), Five Nights at Freddy's (2023), and the Jason Statham film The Beekeeper (2024). Several projects were scheduled for release in 2025 or later, including a sequel to Five Nights at Freddy's.

Impact

After proving he was one of the most versatile child actors in Hollywood, able to fill many different roles and work with a wide variety of directors, casts, and film genres, Hutcherson moved into the real-life role of superstar. The heartthrob of many young girls, he is well on his way to becoming one of the most recognizable, adored, and successful movie stars of his generation.

Personal Life

Josh Hutcherson lives in Hollywood Hills in a house known as the “Tree House” that was once owned by Heath Ledger. He enjoys outdoor sports and activities, including riding his Harley-Davidson Forty-Eight. He is also admired by his peers for speaking out in support of LGBTQ rights.

Bibliography

Collis, Clark. "Josh Hutcherson is reframing himself: 'I'm not the 18-year-old kid in Hunger Games'. Entertainment Weekly, 10 Jan. 2024, ew.com/josh-hutcherson-reframing-himself-the-beekeeper-five-nights-at-freddys-8422773. Accessed 16 Sept. 2024.

Edelstein, David. “Acting Trumps Action in a Games without Horror.” Rev. of The Hunger Games, dir. Gary Ross. NPR. National Public Radio, 22 Mar. 2013.

Katey, Rich. Review of Bridge to Terabithia, dir. Gabor Csupo. Film Journal International 110.4 (2007): 122. Print.

Hutcherson, Josh. “Josh Hutcherson Takes Us Behind the Scenes of His Upcoming Film, Epic.” Interview by Dana Mathews. Teen Vogue. Condé Nast, May 2013. Web. 22 Aug. 2013.

Hutcherson, Josh. “Let’s Talk: Josh Hutcherson.” Interview. Boys’ Life Mar. 2012: 10. Print.

Hutcherson, Josh, and Liam Hemsworth. “Josh Hutcherson and Liam Hemsworth Talk The Hunger Games, the Sequels, and More.” Interview by Christina Radish. Collider. Collider.com, 14 Mar. 2012. Web. 22 Aug. 2013.

Travers, Peter. Rev. of The Hunger Games, dir. Gary Ross. Rolling Stone. Rolling Stone, 21 Mar. 2012. Web. 22 Aug. 2013.