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 Dakota Goyo. |
Nothing says ‘bragging rights’ quite like landing a big $80-million movie role opposite Wolverine ... and robots.
Especially if you’re a 10-year-old Toronto boy who beat out more than 2,000 other young hopefuls to win the part of Hugh Jackman’s son in the futuristic boxing movie, Real Steel.
For Dakota Goyo, who previously played the role of Josh Hartnett’s son in 2007’s Resurrecting the Champ and can currently be seen opposite Woody Harrelson in Defendor, getting the gig wasn’t exactly a slam dunk.
His Canadian agent had sent in an audition tape to DreamWorks, which also held open casting calls in New York and Chicago, looking for the perfect Max, described as a “complicated, strong-willed and resourceful boy.”
DreamWorks’ people liked what they saw and had Goyo send over another tape, before bringing him down to Los Angeles to read with director Shawn Levy (from the Night at the Museum movies).
Then Goyo returned home to Toronto and got called again, this time to do a screen test with Jackman.
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Was he nervous?
“Not really, because I knew if something bad happened, it would just be a good experience and I learned a lot from it,” says Goyo, with the sort of seasoned outlook that comes with acting before even learning how to crawl — as he scored his first commercial when he was just a few weeks old.
“I thought the screen test was going really good, because I didn’t mess up my lines and they seemed to like me,” he adds.
And as for Jackman?
“He’s taller than he is in the movies, and more muscular,” reports Goyo. “He’s a nice guy and a great actor.”
In Real Steal, based on a short story by Richard Matheson (I Am Legend, Duel), Jackman plays an ex-fighter who becomes a promoter for 2,000-pound boxing robots and, in the process, bonds with the son he had never known.
In real life, Dakota and his tight-knit family — including two older brothers Dallas and Devon (“they were both into acting, but they quit,” Dakota says) — are currently spending spring break in Florida.
Goyo will be spending his entire summer vacation in Detroit, where Real Steal is set.
Guess in the future, all those laid-off auto workers will be able to put their robotics know-how to good use.
And, according his mom Debra, Dakota is almost as psyched about spending his Aug. 22 birthday on set as he is about being around Hugh and those robots. The last time he was working on his birthday, his fellow Resurrecting the Champ cast and crew presented him with a big cake, with artwork from the movie printed across it.
Who knows? Maybe this time an actual boxing robot might do the honours.
In the meantime, Goyo — who can also list Samuel L. Jackson, Christopher Plummer, Susan Sarandon and Alan Alda among his previous cast-mates — is looking forward to adding Max to his impressive resume.
“I like playing characters because it’s fun to do different things and meet people and learn about the set,” Goyo says. “Sometimes the crew lets me look in the camera at different angles and all that stuff, and it’s really fun.”
If things go according to Dakota’s plan, this remarkably grounded child would like to celebrate many more birthdays on a set.
“Yeah, I want this to be my whole job,” he declares. “I might go into directing when I’m older, but I’m young right now.”
A profile of Dakota Goyo
AGE: 10
BORN: In Toronto
LIVES: In Toronto
ATHLETIC INTERESTS: According to the Internet Movie Database, he’s into swimming, boxing, martial arts, golf, snow skiing, gymnastics, equestrian.
FIRST ACTING JOB: In a commercial when he was only weeks old
PREVIOUS MOVIE APPEARANCES: Resurrecting the Champ, Defendor
NEXT UP: Just beat out 2,000 other young hopefuls to win the part of Hugh Jackman’s son in DreamWorks’ 2011 Holiday movie Real Steel