<p id=”par-1_43″>Actor Devon Sawa got his big break in the film industry after doing the 1994 classic <em>Casper</em>, which he always <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/devon-sawa-gave-christina-ricci-credit-casper.html/”>credited Christina Ricci for getting</a>. But it took a while before Sawa was comfortable with talking about one of his most iconic roles.</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-devon-sawa-appreciated-his-casper-role-when-he-was-a-lot-older”>Devon Sawa appreciated his ‘Casper’ role when he was a lot older</h2>
<figure class=”wp-block-image size-full” id=”emb-1″><img decoding=”async” src=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Casper-Devon-Sawa.webp?strip=all&quality=80″ alt=”Devon Sawa arrives at the Punk’s Dead: SLC Punk 2 premiere event at Megaplex Theaters in a black jacket and shirt.” class=”wp-image-3774453″><figcaption class=”wp-element-caption”>Devon Sawa | Fred Hayes/Getty Images</figcaption></figure>
<p id=”par-2_65″><em>Casper</em> may have helped kick-start Sawa’s prolific film and television career, but he was already passionate about acting way before doing the movie. Like many actors, he began performing in front of live audiences as a kid before graduating to movie sets. Working in the industry for so long was one of the reasons why <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/devon-sawa-why-stepped-away-from-acting-after-being-teen-idol.html/”>Sawa took a long hiatus</a> from Hollywood as an adult.</p>
<p id=”par-3_131″>“I started in theatre when I was eight or nine and I always loved being on the stage,” he once said in an interview with <a href=”https://www.filminquiry.com/interview-devon-sawa/”>Film Inquiry</a>. “We traveled around to elementary schools and we performed for kids and I just loved doing it. I was 14 when I got Casper, but until then I was doing all sorts of theatre and TV shows. I was one of the rare kids, on set, that really wanted to be there. I remember taking the bus to theatre school and really wanting to go. I remember wanting to be on set, I was just happy. Which was rare, there’s usually about a 50/50 split of kids that were there because their parents wanted them and of kids who genuinely wanted to be there.”</p>
<p id=”par-4_34″>But although Sawa was grateful for his role in <em>Casper</em>, he had a difficult time opening up about the movie that made him famous. This changed, however, when Sawa entered his more mature years.</p>
<p id=”par-5_55″>“I think in my early twenties, I didn’t want to talk about them as much. Listen, when I was twenty-two, the last thing I wanted to talk about was <em>Casper</em>. But now that I’m older, it’s — that was my start. So I’m very proud of it,” he explained in an interview with <a href=”https://telltaletv.com/2017/07/devon-sawa-talks-somewhere-between-and-reflects-on-his-experience-as-a-child-actor-exclusive-interview/”>Tell-Tale TV</a>.</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-how-was-devon-sawa-s-experience-as-a-child-actor-after-casper”>How was Devon Sawa’s experience as a child actor after ‘Casper’</h2>
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<iframe title=”Casper (1995) Official Trailer – Bill Pullman, Christina Ricci Movie HD” width=”925″ height=”520″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/e8RATQJIngU?feature=oembed” frameborder=”0″ allow=”accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share” referrerpolicy=”strict-origin-when-cross-origin” allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<p id=”par-6_65″><em>Casper </em>may have been Sawa’s claim to fame, but he had small parts in other projects before then. As a growing child star, he did television shows like <em>Unsub</em>, <em>The Odyssey</em>, and <em>Sherlock Holmes Returns</em>. For the most part, Sawa looked back fondly at his past as a child star. His experience was evidence that not all child stars ended up going off the rails.</p>
<p id=”par-7_103″>“You hear these stories of actors that were child actors that didn’t have such a great time, or there was whatever controversy surrounding it,” Sawa said. “But I really can’t complain about being a child actor. I got to visit the most amazing places and work with the most eclectic and amazing people. I became the person who I am today because of that stuff, and it was all really a great experience. I don’t know whether I’m one of those rare child actors that can say that, but I worked with some of the top companies, and it was always just amazing.”</p>
<p id=”par-8_17″>But his past only made <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/devon-sawa-says-fans-havent-seen-last-chucky-shows-cancellation.html/”>the <em>Chucky </em>actor</a> sympathize more with child actors who weren’t so fortunate.</p>
<p id=”par-9_32″>“It’s sad to me when you hear the stories about the child actors that have not such a great experience, because it really wasn’t that way for all of us,” he said.</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-why-devon-sawa-found-his-casper-fame-weird”>Why Devon Sawa found his ‘Casper’ fame weird</h2>
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<iframe title=’Casper | “Can I Keep You?”‘ width=”925″ height=”520″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/33Ioa89EfNk?feature=oembed” frameborder=”0″ allow=”accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share” referrerpolicy=”strict-origin-when-cross-origin” allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<div class=”related-article related-article–simple”>
<span class=”related-article-flag”>Related</span>
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<a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/devon-sawa-shared-couldnt-stay-ncis-la-element.html/”>
Devon Sawa Once Shared He Couldn’t Stay on ‘NCIS: LA’ Because He Was Out of His Element </a>
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<p id=”par-10_81″>Despite all the movies <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/devon-sawa-claimed-wasnt-paid-final-destination-5-cameo.html/”>he’s done like <em>Final Destination</em></a>, his role as the friendly ghost remains one of his most memorable parts. But the fame he received from <em>Casper </em>could sometimes be peculiar for Sawa, who had extremely limited screen time. Sawa was only in the movie for one minute, and the little piece of dialogue he had wasn’t even voiced by him. Malachi Pearson, who played Casper in the titular picture, had his voice dubbed over Sawa’s during the scene.</p>
<p id=”par-11_73″>“And apparently the kid that did the voice and, god, he was there for like three and a half months and I showed up for a day or something like that for the end scene. And, not deliberately, I took a lot of the credit for the role. Apparently, I just found this out recently, they even dubbed my voice with his. So, it’s not even my voice. It’s weird, yeah,” he said.</p>