Sometimes things just work out, and for fresh-faced Joel Courtney, it seems his shot at Hollywood stardom is one of those things. While J. J. Abrams ‘Super 8’ is still fresh from the movie-making factory, 15-year-old Courtney already has two movie contracts to sign.

The first is sure to be a high fire success as Mark Twain’s American classic, ‘The Adventures of Tom Sawyer’, is being adapted by first time director Jo Kastner. Literature bods eager to take a glimpse at the adaptation, and even those who have never creased the pages but are keen to get in on the hype will fill theatres ensuring the film brings in the money and raises the profile of the young Joel Courtney.

Courtney will play the title role of Tom Sawyer, who travels the American South during the 1850s in search of trouble and adventure.

Just as the last film reel is in the can, Courtney will move on to star in Giorgia Serafini’s sci-fi family drama, ‘The Healer’, which tells the story of “an ailing father who takes his two teenage kids into the woods to renew the bond they shared before a divorce. The trio are soon swept into a supernatural adventure in a haunted forest”. Courtney will play the part of the resentful teenage son left bitter following his family’s breakup.

So there you have it. Hollywood’s A-list better watch out, there’s a new generation of stars on the horizon.