Pop-Culturalist.com

Phillip Forest Lewitski is one of the industry’s most exciting fresh faces. He’s quickly gained international recognition for the dynamic characters he’s brought to life in projects like Utopia Falls and Vikings. But he’s probably best known for his breakout performance in Wildhood.

The coming-of-age drama follows two brothers who embark on a journey to find their birth mother after their abusive father had lied for years about her whereabouts; along the way, they reconnect with their indigenous heritage and make a new friend.

Pop Culturalist was lucky enough to chat with Phillip about his leading role in Wildhood.

PC: Tell us about Wildhood, your character, and what attracted you to this project.
Phillip: Wildhood is a journey of self-discovery and self-love. It’s a story that I feel like a lot of people can relate to. I’ve heard a lot of stories from people after they’ve seen it, and it’s been a beautiful journey. I came to find Link (my character) on a road trip with my mother actually. It was the first script we had ever read together. By the end of it, we were both in tears and had a really beautiful moment together. Everything happened from there. It felt very fluid and natural.

PC: Your character is dealing with so much within this story, and you handled it with so much nuance. How did you create the space for yourself to dive into those emotional moments?
Phillip: It was a combination of things that I would do at the beginning of the day. I had this little Link ceremony that I’d do with myself before I put the wardrobe on. At the end of the day, I’d separate the two. But a huge part of it was the connection that I had with the other cast members, the trust, and the space that was held by Bretten Hannam, our director. They made me feel very safe, and a lot of people had the same reaction. That helped me fall into the river of it all.

PC: It’s such a personal story to Brett. What was it like collaborating with them as you brought this story and character to life?
Phillip: It was scary because it is such a personal story to Brett, like you said. To have them trust me like that felt like a lot of pressure, but it was relieved and removed the second we started doing rehearsals and talking about the story. I felt like there was a special connection that I had with Brett that I’ve never quite experienced before with a director. It went from this really scary thing to this beautiful thing.

PC: When you’re working on a project that’s so intimate and tackling such tough subject matter, I imagine that requires a lot of trust amongst the cast. How did you and Josh [Odjick] build that bond while also filming during a pandemic?
Phillip: Filming during a pandemic was difficult because all of our rehearsals were done over Zoom. Typically, you’ll be in a room, and you’ll get to feel that other person physically. There’s a presence when you’re actually with a person in the room. But we had to do that all on video chat. Somehow we went there with each other, which was crazy. I didn’t think it was possible. Because we were quarantined for two weeks we used that time to rehearse and go through all the things before we filmed.

I remember the first time that Josh came to my place with my acting coach Claudia, who was on this epic journey with us. They both came over, and it was like I had known them my whole life. It was this instant connection. It was like they were in the room with me the whole time, even though they weren’t. That was a big part of it. It was a lot of deep conversations that Josh and I had. We knew all of the deepest, darkest things about each other, so nothing was a surprise when we actually went there on the day

PC: You deliver such a commanding performance on screen. Was there a scene in particular that you were really excited for audiences to see? Which was the most challenging for you to film?
Phillip: The water was freezing cold during the waterfall scene. That was difficult for a range of reasons. But a big part of the story as a whole was for my family. It has already had such a powerful effect on them, as well as on other people that I know. It was weird because the scenes that I thought were going to be scary and difficult turned out not to be. Then the ones that I thought were going to be easy turned out to be quite difficult and scary in the moment.

PC: This industry has made slow progress towards greater representation. What has it meant to you to be a part of a project that’s pushing these inclusive storylines forward?
Phillip: It’s been phenomenal. The feedback that we have had from people who have sent messages or people from around the world that we’ve met from traveling with this movie has been incredible. That’s a bow to Brett’s brilliance and this barrier that they’re breaking through and the effect that it’s going to have on filmmakers in the future and the stories that are going to be put out into the public eye in the future. To play a small part in this has been amazing. This has been a decade in the works for Brett. To have been a part of a tiny time in this project’s creation is quite an honor.

PC: This film is now available on Hulu, which will open it up to a more global audience. What do you hope audiences take away after they see it?
Phillip: I hope that audiences can find a piece of themselves in nature and the people they see on screen. Watch it with an open heart and allow yourself to look deeply within those things that you may have buried and love every bit of it—every gritty, dark piece of it from the outside. It’s all beautiful as long as you acknowledge it.

PC: What’s next for you?
Phillip: I’m not really sure if I can talk about it, but keep a lookout. Josh and I might be in something else together.

PC: This is such an exciting time in your career. As you look ahead to the next five to ten years, is there a dream role that you would love to bring to life on the screen?
Phillip: That’s a good question. I just strive to tell impactful stories that are going to resonate with people, whatever form of character or storyline that might take shape in. That’s what I hope to do.

To keep up with Phillip, follow him on Instagram. Watch Wildhood today.

Photo Credit: Benjo Arwas