Ella Purnell is "disappointed" not to play the younger version of acclaimed actresses anymore.
The 20-year-old actress previously portrayed youthful incantations of Angelina Jolie’s ‘Maleficent’ character, Margot Robbie’s alter ego in ‘The Legend of Tarzan’ and Keira Knightley in ‘Never Let Me Go’ and has learned a lot from working with the successful older women.
She said: "My agents tell me I can’t play the kid versions of these actors anymore, which is disappointing.
"I didn’t go to drama school, so I always liked saying to these incredible, successful women, ‘Teach me how to be you.’ "
Ella took her first leading role in ‘Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children’ and had been a big fan of director Tim Burton for years thanks to his movie ‘Edward Scissorhands’.
She said: "I love movies that are super-stylistic, and I was a creepy kid too.
"A guy with blades as hands? That’s much cooler than some prince."
Ella began acting as a part-time hobby, landing her first role in a commercial at the age of nine, and can’t believe how far she’s come.
She told Vanity Fair magazine: "It was like I blinked and this was my life. I’m an actress now."
The young actress can next be seen starring in London play ‘Natives’ as a social media-obsessed young girl, known as A, who defines her life by how popular her Instagram posts are and she thinks it was an appropriate subject to tackle.
She said: "We all deal with this now, so the role has been super-liberating."
Ella Purnell’s young role disappointment
