SUPER 8'S Joel Courtney lands roles in TOM SAWYER and THE HEALER

Joel Courtney made his acting debut in J.J. Abrams' Super 8, and is now in negotiations for two independent films, Tom Sawyer & Huckleberry Finn and The Healer. He really did a wonderful job in the lead role opposite Elle Fanning in the Super 8 so I am interested in seeing how far his range can go.

Variety reports, that Jo Kastner is writing and directing the adaptation of Mark Twain's classic story, in which Courtney is set to play Tom Sawyer, "a mischievous troublemaker in search of endless adventures in 1850s Missouri." The film will be produced by Kastner and Marcus Weinhart, which is scheduled to shoot this August in Bulgaria. That makes no sense for something that is supposed to take place in my home state of Missouri!?

After that wraps, Courtney will move on to star in The Healer, which will be written and directed by Giorgio Serafini (Game of Death). The story is about "an ailing father who takes his two teenage kids into the woods to renew the bond they shared before a divorce. The trio are soon swept into a supernatural adventure in a haunted forest." Courtney will once again play rebellious youth "who has grown up resenting his father. Just as he begins to warm up to his estranged dad, an apparent tragedy threatens to separate them forever and he's left trapped in limbo between the living world and the afterlife." The Healer is being produced by Susan Johnson and Giuseppe Pedersoli, which is slated to start production this September in North Carolina.

It is amazing to think that Courtney just went to audition for Super 8, while visiting his brother in Los Angeles. This is the kind of story that is inspiring and wonderful to think about. Let's hope that he continues to shine both on and off screen.

What are your thoughts?