Joel Edgerton: That fear of loss of freedom was the thing that drew me to 'Boy Erased'

Freedom of choice is one of the basic necessities. But what happens if you lose your freedom to choose? It often results into fear. Similarly, Joel Edgerton, the directed, co-producer as well as an actor in the upcoming new age drama, 'Boy Erased' got drawn towards the storyline when he realized the fear of loss to freedom while reading Garrard Conley’s memoire.
Recounting his experience while reading Conley’s story, Joel Edgerton says, “It was like peeking into a window you weren’t supposed to reach and then seeing things you had only heard whispers about. As a child, my greatest fears and foundations for my early nightmares was any situation that took away my freedom: War, prison, cults, alien abduction or being separated from my parents. These prospects also became the foundation for my simple prayers as a young boy introduced to Catholicism,” Edgerton shares.

He further adds, “As a film watcher and maker, these stories still strike their chord in me. That fear of loss of freedom was the thing that drew me to 'Boy Erased' when my producer Kerry Kohansky-Roberts suggested I read it. And sure enough, it was all there - but there was something more. That something more made me want to take on Garrard’s story and bring it to the screen.”

Starring Academy Award Nominee, Lucas Hedge and Academy Award Winners – Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman along with Joel Edgerton, 'Boy Erased' is the true story of one young man’s struggle to find himself while being forced to question every aspect of his identity.