In Christian Nilsson’s Westhampton, Tom (Finn Wittrock) returns home to a place haunted by traumatic memories with the latest film he’s made and finds a generally unwelcoming environment that isn’t interested in his take on where he grew up.
Awards Buzz spoke with RJ Mitte, who plays Fitz, a rare find who doesn’t have a bone to pick with Tom, about the relevance of genre and how he experienced the making of this film from his character’s point of view:
“I definitely find when making a movie, you really don’t know what it’s going to turn out to be, especially in this day and age. Making it, I always looked at it as a happy-go-lucky comedy from my character perspective. I think when you look at movies and films, the characters themselves are in their own genre oblivion of whatever that may be. For my character, he was very happy. Everything was moving forward. He was working and he got to see his idol, Thomas Bell, and any time it just brought light to his eyes, where Finn’s character was more introverted and like, please stop talking to me. I’m going through something. He had his version of drama. Beth, Roxanne’s character, and Amy’s, everyone had their own genre inside themselves. I think this film is more a reflection of the reality of this world that we live in versus just another movie to be made.”
He shared his affinity for the type of place portrayed in this film and the value of any experience in life:
“I’m a big believer in hometown community. I’m a big believer in small town community, and community nonetheless. I go back to the town that I grew up in. I’m actually in my grandfather’s hometown now, been working there for quite some time. I’m actually still friends with my high school people and still talk to some old kindergarten pals. I think everyone has regrets in their life. You can’t live making decisions from regrets. But think we all have things and challenges that we face in life that are beyond our control and that we don’t always think as a young person, the consequences of actions and how they impact our future self. But without those interactions, we wouldn’t be who we are today.”
Watch the video above to hear his appreciation at getting to play a character with a disability who isn’t defined by it, which also applies to a breakout role he still reflects back on with great positivity, Breaking Bad.
Westhampton is now playing in theaters in NY and LA.
