‘Captain Fantastic’ Scene Stealer Takes the Lead in ‘Eli’

By Farah Cheded

Young Charlie Shotwell will star in Ciaran Foy’s upcoming psychological horror.

Last awards season saw a whole raft of young actors break out as audiences adored and critics raved about the likes of Lucas Hedges, Saniyya Sidney, Sunny Pawar, Ashton Sanders, and Sanders’s co-star Alex Hibbert. Another of these up-and-coming stars is Charlie Shotwell, the 9 year old who shot to fame after portraying the adorably cheeky Nai, the youngest of Viggo Mortensen’s brood in Captain Fantastic.

As Deadline reports, that scene-stealing performance is translating into bigger, more diverse job offers. Ridley Scott already snapped him up to play J. Paul Getty III in his upcoming thriller All the Money in the World, and now Shotwell has just secured his first lead, in the upcoming psychological horror film Eli.

The plot, from the film’s IMDb page, reads: “A boy receiving treatment for his auto-immune disorder discovers that the house he’s living isn’t as safe as he thought.”

It’s hard to predict much about Shotwell’s character based on this scant information, but from what we know about the young actor, it’s likely he’ll pull off whatever’s asked of him. In Captain Fantastic he shines amidst the movie’s ensemble, displaying a knack for timing beyond his age and an easy chemistry with the rest of his cast-mates (a natural ability of his also on show in Man Down). Shotwell’s performance bolsters Captain Fantastic‘s credentials, and ultimately helped earn it the SAG nomination it picked up for best ensemble.

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