Inspired by a true story, Amazon original movie Everybody’s Talking About Jamie follows the story of Jamie New (Max Harwood) and his journey in pursuing a career as a drag queen. In the trailer, Jamie comments that becoming a drag queen is all he ever dreams of, and when he closes his eyes, it’s all he can see. YEM had the opportunity to sit and talk to Max Harwood himself about how taking risks can lead to amazing opportunities.
Prior to Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, the British actor had never been in a movie before. Max Harwood’s role as Jamie is his debut feature film. During the audition process, which was “lengthy and extensive” according to Max, the entire experience was completely new to him.
“I had to do lots in this – drag and singing and dancing – so I had to jump through lots of hoops to get this role,” Max said. “I also hadn’t auditioned for a professional musical, so doing a dance call was new. It was all new, and it was all crazy.”
After about seven rounds and from an open call with no agent, the director asked Max if he wanted the role of Jamie. Max’s response? Gleeful screaming, jumping, and calling his mom to share the exciting news of being cast as the main character in a movie.
“To be honest with you, I didn’t think that I was going to get the role,” Max said. “I just used the whole experience as an opportunity to learn and develop rather than end-goaling and feeling like I was going to get the role.”
Filming opened up a new world for Max. He commented that he realized filmmaking is a lengthy process, and that was something that he hadn’t thought about before becoming an actor himself. While filming did come with its own new sets of challenges, Max said he learned how to navigate his schedule on set and connections to his castmates and crew members.
“I was on set everyday working 12-hour days, and I had to make sure to keep myself fit and healthy. It was challenging,” Max said. “However, my castmate Richard taught me to be really generous, and Sarah taught me all about slowing down, being with each other, and listening.”
The interview with Max (which you can watch below) is inspiring because it shows that taking chances and seizing opportunities can lead to amazing outcomes that you wouldn’t expect. And through the process of being a part of the movie, Max found that he loved the musical numbers the most.
“The musical numbers were really fun to shoot,” Max said. “They’re filled with so much joy.”
