by James Fletcher
But unlike the threatening violence of IT, this time round, Hamilton gets to explore his more sensitive side, playing the recently deceased Chris Douglas, whose sudden death not only leaves him having to navigate the machinations of the afterlife, but struggling to watch those he left behind, especially his girlfriend Riley (Alexandra Shipp), cope with his unexpected demise.
“I’ll be honest,” reveals the Lismore native when asked what it was that attracted him to Endless. “It was probably one of my first straight-up offers that I’ve actually taken. And it was the first time that I read an offer that I really resonated with. To me, it felt like the film would work on two fronts… It could really resonate with people, or it could just be easy watching on an airplane or in the back of an Uber.
“I’m very used to diving into more intense kind of roles like in It or Captain Fantastic, with very full-on characters. So, it was nice to just be a part of something that might be an easy, enjoyable watch for someone.”
To date, Hamilton has carved a brief but effective career with complex supporting roles in films like the aforementioned Captain Fantastic, Stephen King’s It and The Dark Tower, and the local productions Strangerland, and the Kriv Stenders 2019 Vietnam War chronicle Danger Close. In fact, Hamilton’s status as a character actor has grown considerably since his 2013 Best Actor win at Tropfest.
“Obviously, with roles like Henry Bowers, it’s a character completely unlike me,” Hamilton muses while discussing his past roles. “And I get to just go outside my comfort zone, and become someone else, someone that’s entirely NOT me.
“But I do also love playing characters like Rellian in Captain Fantastic, or any of the other realistic roles that I’ve done. That is just me, there’s not much I have to change about myself to make the role good.
“So, it was a really fun thing to do Endless, where I could just be me as I would be in a relationship, going through the struggles and the emotional turmoil of the story.
“I think it’s actually one of the hardest things to do for any actor, maintaining that sense of realism in front of the camera. It’s a lot easier to overact, or underact, than just act like your normal self.”
Having just made its debut on home entertainment, it’s been a long and winding road for Endless to reach its audience, shot pre-pandemic and effectively delayed thanks to the corona-virus wrecking havoc across the entertainment industry. But Hamilton remains confident that the film’s core messages will find its audience, especially considering the times in which we find ourselves.
“There’s the obvious storyline…” he explains, hinting at the film’s supernatural themes. “… the plot between Riley and Chris and the way that their relationship progresses over the story. And the more mortal aspects of it, that make it more kind of fantastical and more of a teen drama.
“But if you took away that [supernatural] plot point, Endless would just be a story about a young relationship, trying to get through the struggle of the last year of high school, preparing for college, and the feeling of having to let go of your relationships, which might have only ever been destined to be short-lived, even though they feel like they should last forever.
“I think at the very core of it, that’s what it’s about.”
ENDLESS is available now across streaming services including Apple TV, Prime Video, Fetch, Foxtel Store, Google Play and Telstra TV as well as DVD
