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Both comfortable in front of the camera, Skylan appeared in 2010's "Our
Family Wedding" and on hit TV shows like "iCarly," while Ethan has been cast
on series such as "How I Met Your Mother" and "Grey's Anatomy." But this is
the first time both have had leading roles. "They hold the movie together," says "Mister & Pete" executive
producer Alicia Keys, who also scored the film. To help endure the eight-hour shooting days, Skylan took his younger
co-star under his wing, helping him stay on target between takes. "We'd play
games like rock, paper, scissors to keep our energy up," Skylan recalls. But when it came time to shoot his first kissing scene with Sparks, it
was Skylan who needed a dose of moxie. "We did 12 takes," he admits, his
head down as he tries to hide the fact that he's blushing. "He still gets
nervous when he sees her!" teases Ethan. Back at school, the boys are the envy of their friends. "People
don't realize how hard it is to be an actor," says Ethan. "We get
rejected every day." But as "Beasts of the Southern Wild" did for
Quvenzhane Wallis -- she appears in the upcoming "12 Years a Slave"
and will star in the remake of "Annie" -- the performances of Skylan
and Ethan in "Mister & Pete" could line them up for their own Oscar
attention. But that seems to be the furthest thing from their minds. "I don't love
acting because of the money or popularity," Ethan declares. Nodding, Skylan
adds, "If there is something else out there for me other than acting, I'll
definitely find it. But you always have to give it one more go."
[Associated
Press;
AP Music Writer Mesfin
Fekadu contributed to this report.
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