"The Adam Project" is chock-full of established actors, including Ryan Reynolds, Mark Ruffalo,
Jennifer Garner, Zoe Saldana, and Catherine Keener.
But even among so many Hollywood heavyweights, talented newcomer Walker Scobell manages to
steal scenes.
Scobell stars in the film as 12-year-old Adam Reid, and he proves to be a stellar screen
partner for Ryan Reynolds — as Reynolds' younger self, no less.
"So, when does all this happen, and does everybody skip leg day in the future?
Does it happen in college?
Oh, wait, do we get a lot of girls in college?"
"Adam!"
Here's a look at all of "The Adam Project" moments that prove Walker Scobell was the
perfect casting choice for young Adam.
"Suppertime, spanky."
"Nope."
From the very first second Scobell appears
on-screen, it's impossible to ignore him.
We're introduced to him on the run from a pair of school bullies, and even then he's
full of charm.
"Oh no.
I am so sorry.
That's my bad…hi."
"No."
"Okie doke. Bye."
Even more endearing is his reaction when the bullies finally catch up to him.
And Scobell doesn't miss a beat in setting the
tone for Adam's fearless personality.
"No more jokes?
Oh, I'm gonna enjoy this."
"Who talks like that?
Did you order like a bully starter kit on Amazon or something?
I mean, do you even hear yourself?
Chuck, we talked about this."
"I didn't say anything."
"Shut up, Chuck."
Walker Scobell's knack for mile-a-minute dialogue
delivery isn't just essential to establishing who Adam is as a character.
It also makes him a unique screen companion for Ryan Reynolds, who's basically the king
of lightning fast one-liners and hilarious deadpan.
The first time the two Adams collide in the 2022 timeline is a perfect showcase for just
how well these actors mirror each other in the film.
"You knew how to get in my dad's garage, you knew how to close the fridge, you knew how
to time my breathing, we have the same scar, and you're wearing my dad's watch.
This watch."
"This watch."
"You're me.
Holy sh–" "That's classified."
Scobell's ability to make the character vulnerable, exceptionally resilient, and curious is completely
on point, and helps set the stage for so much to come.
As if coming face to face with the future
version of himself isn't enough of a thrill, things get even more action-packed when elder
Adam's evil boss, Mya Sorian comes crashing into the timeline with a ship full of soldiers.
Adam handles all of this with remarkable poise, even as a literal life-or-death battle unfolds
in his backyard.
"You want to see something cool?"
"That's a lightsaber, dude."
"Quiet now."
In fact, little Adam is even quicker to accept this unusual reality than the older Adam is,
especially when the wife he thought was dead, Laura, comes barging in to lend a hand during
the battle.
"That was awesome."
But perhaps the best moment that shows how willing young Adam is to leap head-first into
this confusing new reality is when he learns that it may lead to the chance to see his
dad again.
"You're gonna find dad."
"No, we're gonna find dad."
"So are you in or are you —"
For both versions of Adam, the constant use of sarcasm is really just a defense mechanism
to cope with some very deep feelings that eventually come bubbling up to the surface.
And as clever and funny as Walker Scobell's portrayal of young Adam is, when he gets the
chance to lift the veil on the character's true emotional experiences, he nails it just
as well as any punchline he delivers throughout the picture.
There's a moment, for example, when he has a heart-to-heart with the older version of
Adam ahead of their fateful reunion with their late father.
Although Reynolds does most of the talking in the scene, Scobell's crestfallen face says
more than words ever could.
"Let me do the talking in there, okay?"
"We have to tell him what happened."
"We say nothing."
"He doesn't have to die."
"We say nothing, okay?
Only what he needs to know.
Everything else, we can't.
I want to hear you say it.
I won't tell him.
Say it.
Say it."
"I won't tell him."
Throughout "The Adam Project," Walker Scobell delivers a performance that's absolutely hilarious
and completely devastating in equal measure, proving he was the perfect choice for the role.
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