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Addiction is a powerful disease. And unless you’ve experienced it first hand, or with someone you know, you may have a hard time wrapping your head around it’s messy, devastating grip. Ben is Back is Peter Hedges’ way of peeling back the onion of addiction and letting us peer into the lengths parents go to to save their kids, and how desperately addicts wish their disease would go away.
Peter has written some incredible movies like About a Boy, Dan in Real Life and The Odd Life of Timothy Green, which he also directed. I was so thrilled he took the time to talk with me about this latest project. He tells me this story about a boy named Ben who’s young life has been ravaged by addition to opioids and other drugs has nearly destroyed his family. His mother, played beautifully by Julia Roberts wants to believe he is getting better when he shows up on their doorstep at Christmas, but has been burned by a false sense of sobriety before.
To add an even more personal touch, Ben is played by Peter’s son Lucas Hedges. I interviewed Lucas recently for his other film Boy Erased and found him to be very deep and thoughtful for a 21-year-old man in Hollywood. And after talking with his father, now I can see why.
Peter shares with me why he wrote this film and why he’s immensely proud of his son. It’s not just because Lucas is one of the most in-demand actors in Hollywood right now, but because he and his older brother are roommates, and best friends. As a parent, you can only hope that your kids grown up to be successful in their career and stay grounded and never have to deal with addiction.
To hear more of what it was like working with Julia Roberts and watching his son play a role with so much depth, listen to this episode on iTunes, Stitcher or PlayerFM. Ben is Back opens in theaters on December 7th.
