YOUNG ADAM TRASK WAS JUST 14 WHEN HE STEPPED ONTO THE EAST OF EDEN SET — AND HIS UNFORGETTABLE EXPERIENCE WITH FLORENCE PUGH IS NOW MELTING HEARTS. Asher Whitehead was still balancing school and acting when he landed a role in Netflix’s ambitious adaptation. Suddenly, he found himself working alongside Florence Pugh, a Hollywood star he had previously watched in Marvel movies. But the experience turned out to be far more personal than simply meeting someone famous. Looking back, the young actor shared a touching memory of their time together that reveals what made those early days on set so special.

I’m eternally stunned by young actors, people like Adolescence star Owen Cooper who tackled serious topics at such a young age. Another example is Asher Whitehead, who played a young Adam Trask in the new Netflix miniseries, East of Eden.

“My friends often laugh a lot about how much time I get off school,” he told Sunday Morning before the show came out. “To be honest, I’m not sure whether they truly believe I’m in it. They’re really supportive, and my school’s amazing.”

Young Adam’s actor shared what working on East of Eden was like

It’s got to be quite intimidating stepping onto set with the likes of Florence Pugh, Christopher Abbott, and Mike Faist, but for young Adam’s actor, Asher Whitehead, those Hollywood legends made him feel right at home on the East of Eden set.

On working with Florence specifically, who he knows as “Yelena from Marvel”, he shared: “She was kind, thoughtful, and super-duper focused, super professional. That was definitely something that stood out. It was honestly out of this world. Like, you can’t describe it.”

The show, which is shot mostly in Thames and Kumeū in New Zealand, saw the young actor treated like a king. Of course, he loved it.

“The food – oh, my gosh, you would come in, you’d get breakfast, and oh, my gosh, that bacon and those cinnamon rolls were absolutely delightful, I gotta say,” he added. “When I was filming, in between takes, what they would do is, if I was in the sun, they’d have someone with an umbrella to shade me from the sun and to bring me water.”

But what’s next for the 14-year-old? Only bright things, it seems.

Alongside 60 other budding performers, Asher was selected to receive a Broadway Dreams scholarship this year. He’ll travel to New York City in November to take part in a showcase where hungry talent scouts are ready to snap him up.

“Personally, I’d rather just leave now [school] and just commit to full-time acting and stick to that, but they definitely want a side job,” he explained.

“Hopefully, I’m going to try and convince them [parents] that there’s enough roles around the creative space that I could fall back on something like that, but still in progress of trying to convince them, I’ve got to say.”

I mean, if your first project is with MCU legends and the guy from Challengers, I’m pretty sure you’re booked and busy for the near future at least.