Devon Sawa has been an acting force for decades — and now he’s sharing what it was like growing up a teen heartthrob.
“As a teen idol, it was weird seeing my face on magazine stands. It never felt normal,” the Chucky star, 44, exclusively reveals in the latest issue of Us Weekly.
Sawa rose to fame in 1995 with notable roles in Casper and Now & Then, both opposite Christina Ricci, earning him a coveted place in ‘90s teen heartthrob history. After a string of beloved flicks to his name, the Canada native ultimately decided to take a break from show business.
“At 25 years old I stepped away from the business for five years and most of the time didn’t know whether I was going to come back or not,” Sawa previously told Us in September 2017. “I had done a series of four or five indie movies that I wasn’t necessarily proud of. Some were horror movies. After Final Destination everybody wanted me to do horror movies and some weren’t as good as others. I was just burnt out.”
The Wild America star — who started acting at the age of 11 — eventually decided to return toacting years later, booking roles in the likes of The Fanatic, Hacks and Chucky.
“I showed [my kids] the Chucky trailer and they’re not having it,” Sawa told Us in September 2021 of son Hudson and daughter Scarlett’s reaction to his SyFy character of Logan Wheeler. “I gave it a shot! They weren’t having the Chucky show, so I don’t think there’ll be watching that either.”
While Sawa’s children — whom he shares with wife Dawni Sahanovitch — remained wary of Dad’s horror role, the actor is more enthused. “I remember renting the first Chucky on VHS,” he recalled at the time. “When the audition came through to me from my agents, it was a no brainer. I jumped on it. They were, like, ‘Hey, we got this thing. It’s Chucky. What do you think?’ I’m like, ‘Oh, my God, I have to do this. I absolutely have to. I’m a huge horror guy.’”
Scroll below to learn more about the Now and Then star:
1. My favorite places to travel to are Vietnam and the Philippines. Both are totally different, with the most amazing people and culture.
2. Chucky the doll is by far the most high-maintenance “actor” I’ve ever worked with.
3. As a teen idol, it was weird seeing my face on magazine stands. It never felt normal.
4. Having [my] kids growing up Yankee has made me realize the subtle differences in the way Canadians talk. My kids correct me when I tell people they’re in “grade one” and “grade three.”
5. I’ve always wanted to do some sort of period mob stuff. I’ve also wanted to revisit Anton Tobias from Idle Hands.
6. The one thing I miss about the ’90s is the video stores.
7. My mom told me at a young age I had a gift for peeling potatoes, and I’ve been doing it with great pride ever since.
8. My favorite thing to cook is BBQ!
9. Sony gave me the monster truck from Idle Hands. It turned out I couldn’t keep it because it wasn’t street-legal.
10. My first car was a Honda CRX when I was 16.
11. I worked with an acting coach named Harold Guskin when I was 18. He changed my life. It was advice I needed to hear that wasn’t easy.
12. I never take anything home from set. Truth is, at the end of a project, I’m done.
13. The most famous name in my contacts is John Travolta.
14. I’ve been mistaken for The Rock. Often.
15. My favorite movies are Aliens and Goodfellas.
16. My favorite way to decompress after a long day after a long day of filming is with comfort food. A dozen Krispy Kreme doughnuts fixes everything.
17. My most starstruck moment was [meeting] Dr. Dre.
18. There’s different things for different ages when it comes to what fans say to me. However, the log truck scene from that Final Destination movie — that I’m not in — comes up a lot.
19. My celebrity crushes growing up were Elisabeth Shue and Alyssa Milano.
20. My father was a mechanic and my uncles were longshoremen. I probably would’ve gone in those directions for an alternate profession.
21. I do something embarrassing every day while shooting.
22. My proudest career moment was the Emmy submission by producers/HBO for Hacks. I was on cloud nine.
23. My first onscreen kiss was with that young lady [Christina Ricci] from that ghost movie I did [Casper]. She’s a big star now.
24. Mariah Carey’s “Hero” brings back the best memories. Christina Ricci and I danced to it for a couple days on repeat. They eventually went with a different song — but I’ll never forget it.
25. You could have a 200-page issue where I break down all the reasons [my kids] make me want to get out of bed in the morning.
