Caleb McClure as Ollie in the series “Underbelly” shot by Brett Cox
While he is only 15-years-old, Australian actor Caleb McClure has proven himself to be an exuberantly talented and dynamic performer capable of taking on immensely challenging roles with impressive emotional depth.
In 2013 McClure dazzled international audiences with his performance in the sixth season of the crime series Underbelly, which aired on Australia’s Nine Network, one of the highest rated networks in the country.
Based on real life events, each season of the series tackled a different chain of criminal events in history and the perpetrators involved, with the sixth season surrounding the life of notorious mobster Joseph “Squizzy” Taylor.
With Underbelly: Squizzy being set between 1915 and 1927, McClure transforms himself to fit a character from a different time in the role of Ollie, one of the lead picket-pockets in “The Bourke Street Rats,” a gang of street kids Squizzy sends out to do his dirty work on the streets of Melbourne while he plans high-level heists.
“I wore clothes from that era like woolen socks, which were very itchy and uncomfortable, and braces with a cap hat and thin shirts, so most of the time on set I was cold, dirty and itchy, which made me feel like I was actually living in that era,” explains McClure. “I also researched the era in order to better understand what the people had to go through and how hard living conditions were back then.”
In the series Underbelly, which received an impressive 27 awards including several Australian Writer’s Guild Awards and Logie Awards, McClure acts alongside Jared Daperis (Small Time Gangster, Blue Heelers, Holly’s Heroes), Luke Ford (Animal Kingdom, Red Dog, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor) and Andrew Ryan (Lemon Tree Passage, Not Suitable for Children, The Black Balloon).
McClure has displayed a unique capacity for tapping into characters from past eras on multiple other occasions over the years as well. Recently he took on the pivotal role of Nick Conigrave in Neil Armfield’s (Twelfth Night, Candy) film Holding the Man.
The film, which garnered rave reviews upon its release in Australia in August, as well as an Augie Award from the Australian Writer’s Guild, is based on Timothy Conigrave’s 1995 memoir of the same name and centers on the long and challenging love affair between Tim Conigrave and John Caleo.
The film explores the highs and lows of their relationship through the 70s and 80s, a tumultuous time for gay men and women, with McClure’s character Nick, Tim’s younger brother, bearing witness to Tim’s struggle.
About taking on the role, McClure recalls, “I had to research my character, as he was a real person with his own story and that made the experience really amazing. It was also interesting knowing that this love story took place during a time when there were a lot of negative feelings towards gay people.”
In addition to Holding the Man, McClure also costars in the upcoming film The Legend of Ben Hall, which takes the actor back in time once again, this time to the mid to late 1800s.
The film revolves around real life events that occurred between August 1864 and May 1865 following Ben Hall and his gang, as they reemerge from hiding, and perform several robberies leaving two policemen dead and leading them to become the most wanted men in Australia.
In the film, McClure masterfully portrays Frederick Nelson, the son of one of the gunned down policeman, who is left no choice but to watch as father dies in his arms after being shot by John Dunn.
“The costumes were amazing. Transforming into another era and becoming this character was great, and as this was based on a true story it was like taking a step back in time,” says McClure. “Being Australian it was easy for me to relate to Frederick, as he is part of our history.”
The film, which is slated to be released in 2016, also stars Callan McAuliffe (The Great Gatsby, Beneath the Harvest Sky), Dean Kirkright (Newman, The Green Woman, Newman, Neighbours) and Andy McPhee (The Condemned, Wolf Creek, Saving Mr. Banks).