Source : the age
Josh Heuston wears his heart on his sleeve. “We’re so back, baby,” the 29-year-old Australian star of hot YA series Off Campus almost shouts. He is feeling romantic about the resurgence of the rom-com.
“I feel like it’s a DM, swipe-right culture now,” says Heuston, who is sitting on a hotel couch in Sydney’s Crown hotel. The actor has been working the media circuit since 6am and will continue into the evening with a fan event. “Someone buying someone a drink at a bar, or singing from the top of an ice skating rink to say, ‘I love you’, people are craving that,” the actor says.
Heuston has good reason to feel optimistic. His role in the eight-episode TV adaptation of Elle Kennedy’s steamy young adult novel has reached a viral level of fan attention since its release on May 15, with 39 million viewers. It’s also hit one of the streamer’s most coveted demographics: female viewers aged 18-34, who have made it Amazon Prime Video’s No.1 debut of all time. The series, which spotlights a very buff and often shirtless college ice hockey team, has even been touted as the heterosexual counterpart to Heated Rivalry, the gay ice hockey romance that became a streaming sensation and launched actors Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams to new fame.
Set at Briar U, a fictional Ivy League school, Off Campus follows music student Hannah Wells and ice hockey captain Garrett Graham as they strike a deal: she’ll help him study to raise his grades, and he will fake-date her to help her get the attention of her crush.
Heuston plays the crush, Justin Kohl – a quiet, sensitive muso type and the frontman of his band. The role involves plenty of singing on and off the show, with the fictional band After Hours even releasing a real-life album.
“It’s a running joke in my family that none of us are musicians and no one can sing,” Heuston says. “I had really good coaches to help me get good enough for the audition.”
In fact, Heuston lied about his musical capabilities just to get a foot in the door. For his audition, he sang and played guitar to Revelry by Kings of Leon; it was the first time he had ever done so in front of an audience.
“Suddenly, I was in a room of producers, writers, and various [auditioning] Hannahs, and I was just singing at each one,” he says. “It was terrifying, but it paid off. From there, I was given the most amazing music team.” (The team was so supportive that they all got matching tattoos of the lyric “Hot Snack” after wrapping the album.)
Music was central to Heuston’s process. While developing the character, he journaled as Justin and created a public Spotify playlist for him featuring artists such as Royel Otis, Dominic Fike, and Kings of Leon.
“We were picking what musicians he would be inspired by, and then we decided to make him Australian instead of American,” says Heuston. “Then I was like, ‘OK, those musicians need to be Australian as well as American.’”
The deviation from the book didn’t go unnoticed by eagle-eyed fans, as Justin’s character also changed from a football player to a musician. Adapting a bestselling romance book can be a tightrope walk to satisfy a passionate fan base. Heuston admits he felt the pressure, but says the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.
“I feel pressure anytime I make anything, so you add a book that’s been so beloved by so many people for so many years, and it heightens it,” he says. “At the end of the day, I’ve just gotta put the blinders on and try to do the best job I possibly can.”
Heuston’s breakthrough role as heartthrob Dusty in Netflix’s hit reboot of Heartbreak High shared similarities with Justin, but with a distinct bad-boy edge. Justin feels like a graduation, not just because Heuston has aged out of playing a high schooler, but because the role also comes with a larger international audience. “It’s nuts. I didn’t know if it was going to take off in the way it has,” Heuston says on the early popularity of Off Campus.
Heuston, who is half Sri-Lankan and grew up in Baulkham Hills in Sydney’s north-west, is happy to be back home after a whirlwind few months filming overseas, including wrapping season two of Dune: Prophecy, the TV prequel to the blockbuster films. His rising star has also been swept up in rampant rumours surrounding another BookTok series, Fourth Wing, with speculation Heuston could or should be cast in Amazon Prime Video’s upcoming adaptation.
After a long day of fielding questions about his involvement in other book adaptations (ahem, Fourth Wing), Heuston dismisses any fodder with a joke: “Yeah, the Rainbow Fish. Have you seen that? It’s a kid’s book.”
So, how does he feel about the heartthrob label?
“That’s a crazy sentence,” he says, laughing. “I have the same group of mates and the same family, obviously. I just go home and everyone bullies me, and I’m like, ‘Great, we’re back.’ And then I go away and live a crazy life that doesn’t feel real.”
Despite the hype, Heuston is – for the first time – in a position where he can make some decisions about what projects he wants to take on. “It’s a great position to be in. I haven’t really had that before,” says the actor.
He is also proud to be considered a role model for a new generation of actors. “Growing up, there weren’t a lot of people [of his background] playing the kinds of roles that I’m playing now,” he says.
It’s also not uncommon for him to be approached by dads at his gym asking him to chat with their kids who are struggling with their own identity. “They’ll be like, ‘My son is getting bullied at school’ – which is a massive thing that I dealt with as well – ‘and seeing you play these characters gives them a lot of confidence. Can you call him?’”
Heuston always jumps at the chance. The advice he imparts is a simple philosophy that was once shared with him. “Fall up,” he says matter-of-factly. “You know how people fall down? Just don’t do that. Fall up.”
Heuston fell up into acting with a stuff -of-fiction start to his career. He was scouted as a model while working as a bartender when he was studying a double degree in biomolecular science and commerce, which he never quite completed. His acting debut came in 2021, in the Network 10 teen thriller Dive Club.
When asked if he ever battles imposter syndrome amidst his rapid rise, his answer is immediate: “Yeah, every day. I feel like it’d be weird if you didn’t. You step into a fake world in a lot of ways. Even us doing this interview right now feels surreal. I’m always wondering, ‘Why is this happening to me?’ But I’m incredibly grateful that it is.”
Off-Campus was renewed for season two before the first episode was released. Each season will highlight the plot of one couple, similar to Bridgerton. The show has struck a chord with its young, mostly female audience, delivering a dose of romance in what can feel like a very unromantic society.
Heuston encourages feeding the delusion and embarrassment that can come with love. “When you fall for someone and you put your heart on your sleeve, you go for it, you’re supposed to look like an idiot because it’s irrational,” he says. “Take a risk. Go for love. Go tell them that you love them. Fall up.”
Off Campus is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
