Taylor Swift reveals why she chose Dylan O’Brien to star in All Too Well: The Short Film. O’Brien has always had a massive following due to his breakout role on MTV’s Teen Wolf. He played Stiles Stilinski, best friend to protagonist Scott McCall (Tyler Posey). Remaining in the spotlight, O’Brien then went on to star in the film adaptations of the Maze Runner series. After an injury on the set of The Death Cure, O’Brien stepped away from the Hollywood spotlight for the next five years. His popularity did not waver, however, with his status as an “internet boyfriend” never fading alongside the likes of Timothée Chalamet and Angus Cloud. Since then, his acting abilities and popularity seemed to have caught the attention of Taylor Swift.
Over the last year, Swift has worked on re-releasing her older albums after the masters were sold to celebrity manager, Scooter Braun. Her re-recordings are differentiated by the “Taylor’s Version” added to each title with her first two albums reaching the Billboard 200. With her heartbreaking single from the Red (Taylor’s Version) album, “All Too Well,” she decided to accompany the ten-minute version of the song with a short film written and directed by herself and starring Stranger Things’ Sadie Sink and O’Brien as the love interest.
In a profile with cast O’Brien in All Too Well: The Short Film. She and O’Brien had never met beforehand, but the talent of the young actor caught her eye. Swift said he was her first choice and that she believed he could bring nuance to the character she was trying to portray. Great things have been said about those who worked with O’Brien and Swift couldn’t agree more by the end of the production. Check out her quote below:
Dylan was my first choice for the ‘All Too Well’ short film because he has that versatility I was looking for. I’d seen his work and heard nothing but wonderful things about him as a person. Ultimately I want to work with people who love what they do and come at it with enthusiasm, because that’s how I approach creating things too. I had a feeling he would be great at ad libbing and adding nuance to his character, which enriched the story tenfold. He absolutely blew me away and I feel really lucky that I gained such a great friend from the experience too.
The All Too Well short film was shot over the course of two days in New York. It was released on YouTube on November 21 and has since reached over 62 million views. The short film had a limited theatrical release and was praised by critics and audiences alike for its direction, cinematography, and for performances of Sink and O’Brien. The short acts as a step in a new direction for O’Brien with new projects premiering later this year.
O’Brien will star in The Outfit, directed by Graham Moore in his directorial debut alongside Zoey Deutch. He will also Deutch in Not Okay, directed by Quinn Shephard. Currently, he is in production on an M. Night Shyamalan produced film titled The Vanishings at Caddo Lake, directed by Celine Held and Logan George. The charismatic actor has won over the hearts of many with his previous works and will continue to capture more with his new films later this year after taking back the status of Internet Boyfriend in the All Too Well music video.
Source: Bustle
