Young and promising US actor Brad Renfro was only 25 when he passed away from heroin overdose,
leaving many wondering whether his rising star faded away too soon.
Film producers lined up to get him onset, girls went mad about him, while this good-looking
and gifted soon-to-be Hollywood darling was fighting his off-screen demons, which at
the end of the day prompted his premature death. The Tennessee native with zero acting experience
made his case in the industry at the age of 10 in the much-talked-about movie The Client. It was a
huge success! Both film directors and viewers immediately fell in love with Renfro on screen.
This was backed by several accolades that he received, including The Hollywood Reporter's
"Young Star" award and a nomination to join the list of PEOPLE magazine's "Top 30 Under 30."
Sadly, an early rise to stardom played a bad trick on Renfro, which is often
the case with many child actors, who are simply too young to handle fame and fortune.
So why didn't the success of a clearly gifted actor last? Did his off-screen
battles become too much to handle for the young star? Or could it be possible that
somebody else failed him, as rumours suggest? Stay here to know more. And in the meantime,
subscribe to our channel and click that bell button for more exciting videos from Rumour Juice.
Renfro got to Hollywood straight from a trailer park in Knoxville, Tennessee, where he lived with
his grandmother. Film director Joel Schumacher discovered him and invited him to play Mark Sway,
a young witness in a Mafia case, in his 1994 movie The Client. In the film, the newcomer co-starred
alongside acclaimed Hollywood stars Tommy Lee Jones and Susan Sarandon. The kid did not
have any specialised education, let alone acting background. But Schumacher was totally okay with
that, as he was looking for something special and surely found it - a rowdy kid with natural talent,
who became a star overnight. Renfro definitely had a knack for acting. He easily memorized his
lines and showed genuine interest in everything happening on set. While other child actors would
spend more time with their families in their trailers, this young gem would wander around
asking staff questions about set construction or costume design, his manager J.J.Harris recalled.
Renfro was really fun, charming, a little bit wild and amazing while performing scenes. He
had lots of energy, but sometimes he did have dark moods. There was more, however, to what set Renfro
apart from other child actors on set. At this point his apparent childhood traumas kicked in.
"This was a really emotionally abandoned person. He was just obviously screaming
for someone to establish some kind of boundaries for him, something
that never happened in his life," J.J.Harris said, commenting on his work with the kid.
He was radiating neediness, and one could tell right on the spot that he did not have any adult
guidance. People around him could not help but become his unofficial guardians. From costume
managers to electricians - crew members did their best to support him, producer Don Murphy recalled.
And that's not surprising. Renfro came from a flawed family. His parents divorced when
he was five. Shortly afterwards, his mother remarried and moved to another state, while
the kid was swiftly whisked off to Knoxville, where he was raised by his paternal grandmother,
who was a church secretary. She was trying her best to raise a kid who took advantage of
the situation and put a lot of stress on her. The soon-to-be Hollywood darling yearned for
mother's love and support that he never received in full. This resulted in dysfunctional behaviour
and subsequent substance abuse. In several interviews, Renfro confirmed that he smoked
pot for the first time at the age of nine, first got drunk at 11 and was expelled from school after
litting up a joint in front of a school official. His first heroin injection was at 12. One of
Renfro's friends shared that it was his mother, in fact, who enabled her son's use of heroin.
So is it the family history that sent the life of a promising kid downhill or something else?
Renfro's former defence attorney Blair Berk, who dealt with numerous charges against his client,
including stealing, drug possession and drunk driving, was devastated upon hearing the tragic
news about Renfro’s death. He put the blame on Hollywood for failing the kid, which eventually
led to his untimely death. "As critical and prescient as you become in this town, all I did
was cry when I heard the news," Berk confessed. "I feel in some respects like we all failed."
What exactly did Berk refer to? It's clear that Renfro was a problem child.
And even despite his troubling background, he managed to make a career in Hollywood.
But the thing is that Hollywood does not appear to be a safe place for such kids.
In one of his interviews, Fernando Altschul, who got to know Renfro as the first assistant
editor onset of the Apt Pupil movie, confessed to feeling like the movie industry failed children
like Brad in some ways. "Maybe there should be someone who says a person in his situation
isn't psychologically ready to be in such a volatile place as a film set.
I don't know how you make that judgment, and if you're offering somebody money,
[how] they're going to say no to it," he said. Renfro was surrounded by film directors,
producers and actors on set. But did they always work in his best interest? Well,
there are reasons to doubt that. Hollywood is a multi-billion-dollar industry where people focus
on making money. And managers involved in the business make sure that every dollar is accounted
for. Other than a parent or guardian, there is only one other person with true authority to set
clear boundaries on behalf of an underage actor on set - and that is the studio teacher. Since Renfro
had only his grandma to take care of him, whom he apparently showed little respect, his destiny and
capacity to cope with the production schedule were up to his teacher. It is the teacher who
could have discussions with the movie crew about the alternatives if some scene seemed unsafe or if
the trainee was behind his schooling curriculum. Renfro, unfortunately, did not happen to have
such a person on set. The thing is that teachers frequently experience a conflict of interest when
it comes to negotiating with the bosses, who are actually paying their salaries. This results in
child actors working overtime, getting exhausted and eventually booted out from the industry.
Renfro was killing it on set. During his short career he managed to get roles in 21 movies
under his belt. And it was not only his talent, but his unquestionable charisma and good looks.
And Hollywood producers did not shy away from exploiting it. The actor was frequently asked
to be filmed topless, apparently in a bid to catch girls' attention. And they did hit the jackpot. As
Renfro's popularity skyrocketed, he quickly became a hot item, being literally bombarded with gift
cards from girls. Once, film director Peter Horton described the young actor as a guy with, quote,
"tremendous charisma and sex appeal". And he was not lying. At the age of 13, Renfro was already
sexually active and dated a girl who was years older than him. Some alleged that the teenager
apparently felt abandoned and was looking for a motherly figure who could potentially replace
the one that turned him down as a toddler. It was not widely publicized, but Renfro was
a father, which got out only after his death. The name of his son who was raised by his mother in
Japan was mentioned in his obituary. Maybe Renfro really was unfortunate,
and this could have worked differently for him if only he had someone in the industry
to protect him. But some were quick to blame the child actor himself for his early demise.
"I think he was troubled before he got to Hollywood," director Bryan Singer said
after Renfro's death. He believes when there's enough drugs involved, it has less to do
with Hollywood's pressures and more with the pressures of life. Maybe he's got the point.
Pot, heroin, a series of arrests, admission into a substance abuse treatment program - all this
smells like trouble. But Renfro was a smart kid and seemed to understand where all this
was going. In one of his interviews, he made a shocking confession saying he was actually glad
he got arrested since it taught him a lot. "I've had several months of being sober – I
wouldn't have it any other way. I'm glad it happened when I was 16, not 36," he said.
Little did Renfro know that his 36 would never come. The actor realised though, that such a
pattern could easily send him into a downward spiral and warned teenagers against doing drugs.
"If you've never done it, don't. If you have done it, pray. Then get some good sober time.
Once you have that, you'll have a natural high." Renfro's death surely shocked and threw into
mourning the people, who were close to him. But for many it did not come as a surprise.
Some folks in Hollywood had tried to help him out, but his addiction went too far
and torpedoed his relationships and career. Years into his tragic passing,
many were still wondering if his death was a sign of the times, referring to the legacy of the
turbulent 90-ies. The Client star joined the ranks of tragic deaths of young and promising actors,
alongside Hollywood sensation River Phoenix. At the funeral, Renfro's great-uncle,
Michael Earl, said his nephew had problems just like anyone else has trials and tribulations
that they were destined to go through. And it is hard to disagree. Everyone has their lows,
but for some, they result in a tragic finale. We can't tell if things could work differently for
Renfro. But what we know for sure is that neither family traumas, nor his addictions did him good.