Meet Ruby Barnhill, the girl who enchanted Spielberg and conquered Hollywood in BFG
12-year-old Ruby Barnhill stars as Sophie in new BFG movie and is tipped to be the new Drew Barrymore
AN unknown schoolgirl from Cheshire is the toast of Hollywood – thanks to a starring role in director Steven Spielberg’s latest blockbuster, The BFG.
The legendary director’s eight-month search to find the perfect Sophie for his big-budget adaptation of the Roald Dahl kids’ book ended when he saw ten-year-old Ruby Barnhill.
Despite her scant acting experience, Spielberg believes she is as massive a discovery as when he cast a seven-year-old Drew Barrymore in E.T. That 1982 sci-fi epic set Drew on the path to international stardom.
But whereas she came from a famous acting dynasty, Ruby’s only brush with the profession is through her father — who has had some low-key theatre roles and once played a copper in Coronation Street.
Now, in her first ever newspaper interview, Ruby reveals that her dad Paul and mum Sarah only sent her to The BFG audition to put her OFF a career in acting.
Ruby, now 12, says: “Mum and dad actually had a plan, neither of them wanted me to become an actress.
“My dad is an actor and he didn’t want me to go through the sort of things he went through and he said to Mum, ‘Why don’t we get Ruby to do an audition? She won’t get the part and she will learn about rejection’.
“Well that really backfired.”
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Her parents got the surprise of their lives when casting director Nina Gold called to tell Ruby the part of Sophie was hers.
First Nina asked how old she was and, when Ruby said she was only ten, continued: “Well, that’s a really big shame because you’re not going to be able to drink champagne when everyone else is celebrating — because you got the part.”
Ruby, who had done drama classes in the local village hall near her primary school in Knutsford, says the news left her “jumping for joy”.
Her only previous acting credit was a part in CBBC show The 4 O’Clock Club, so she was intimidated about working with the renowned director and Oscar-winner Mark Rylance, who plays the Big Friendly Giant.
Recalling her first day on set she says: “I was really nervous, I didn’t speak to Steven at all.
“I didn’t avoid him but I was so shy I didn’t know what to do. What if I said something wrong? But Steven has become such a lovely friend to me and obviously so has the lovely Mark.
“The biggest thing Steven taught me was not to worry about making mistakes.
“I was quite paranoid about doing that when I started filming, I kept apologising for silly things.
“Steven taught me about concentration. On set I could get quite giddy and he’d say, ‘Sophie let’s get ready now’. Whenever they said ‘Let’s roll!’ I got into that world.”
She adds: “I like the idea of becoming a director but not a famous one like Steven.
“I’d prefer to do something smaller, like TV or maybe theatre or to become a drama teacher. I want to do something smaller than being a huge Hollywood director.”
After just five auditions Ruby won the part of orphan Sophie, who befriends the BFG. Suddenly her modest life was a whirl of private jets, luxury hotels and red carpet events.
The BFG debuted at the Cannes Film Festival in May, where celebrities including Victoria Beckham, Kate Moss and Blake Lively took to the red carpet. Ruby was pictured at the premiere alongside Mark and Spielberg, as well as co-stars Rebecca Hall and Downton Abbey’s Penelope Wilton, who plays the Queen.
The BFG, which is in cinemas on Friday, was shot in London and Vancouver and was two years in the making. Throughout the duration, Ruby’s parents and her seven-year-old sister Darcey were with her.
Despite the globe-trotting, Ruby says she is not fazed by all the glitz and glamour and reckons she will not let the fame go to her head.
She says: “I had never even been on a flight longer than three hours before — now I’ve been to Canada and Hawaii. But it is so important for me to continue my normal life. Obviously before this I did school and went to acting classes.
“The main thing for my family and I is that none of us become big-headed about everything.
“Fame can be very scary. When people think of fame they think of red carpets, flashing lights and cameras, beautiful clothes and all things like that.
“But it’s not like that — it’s more about being appreciated by lots and lots of people. My message to everyone is don’t slip into the trap if you do happen to land a role like I did.
“You need to stay patient and smile, remember everyone else is going through it, too.”
In the fantasy film, her character Sophie is plucked from her bed in a London orphanage by the BFG and whisked off for a magical adventure in Giant Country.
An unlikely friendship develops between the young girl and the timid giant, who makes up “gobblefunk” words and catches pleasant dreams in jars for sleeping children.
But not all giants are so friendly. The pair end up enlisting the help of the Queen and the Armed Forces to defeat the more fearsome giants who eat “human beans”.
With Spielberg at the helm of her career, Ruby herself is experiencing something of a fantastical adventure.
To mark her recent 12th birthday, the Jurassic Park, Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Indiana Jones director gave Ruby a Tiffany necklace. She says: “Steven bought me a beautiful homemade birthday cake too.
“I started crying it was so amazing.
“I spent the rest of my day at Kensington Roof Gardens with my family.”
Spielberg has now become a friend of the whole family and has also given her father’s acting career a boost. Paul, 45, who has worked with the Royal Shakespeare Company, was given a small part in The BFG and Spielberg has since asked him to appear in his upcoming science fiction film Ready Player One, which will also star Wolf Hall actor Mark Rylance.
Despite The BFG catapulting her to overnight success, Ruby is determined to keep her options open.
She says: “I’m not sure I want to do any more films.
“Now I have had my taste of them I would like to do something different, though I may change my mind.
“Luckily I’m only 12 so I have some time to decide.”
Much like the character she plays, it seems Ruby is happy to take on the world one “whizzpopping” adventure at a time.