VH1's 100 Greatest Kid Stars – Jason James Richter - video Dailymotion

Watch VH1's 100 Greatest Kid Stars – Jason James Richter - Jeffrey Long on Dailymotion

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00:00In 1993, 13-year-old Jason James Richter reeled in the role of a lifetime.

00:10Oh, I love the little boy from Free Willy!

00:13Being chosen out of 4,000 other kids for his first movie role was pretty impressive.

00:18I had no idea the whole time until they told me, which was kind of a shock.

00:22I was kind of like, what? 4,000 kids? Wow.

00:25And working alongside a 7,000-pound killer whale was no small feat either.

00:32You want me? Put it in your mouth.

00:37Then they're like, put your hand in his mouth.

00:39And I was like, okay, I'm 11 years old. What possibly bad could happen?

00:42You don't see the danger that this animal could grab you and take you to the bottom of the tank.

00:46You know, those bad thoughts just don't enter your head.

00:49Following the success of Free Willy and its two sequels,

00:52Jason found himself in the midst of 90s teen stardom and all that it entailed.

00:57He became the kid in the teeny bopping magazines.

01:00And I definitely had a crush on the kid.

01:03At one point in my career, I was getting like 5,000 or 6,000 fan letters a week.

01:08And there was some, like, weird stalkery types.

01:11One time I answered the door and there's this guy in a suit and tie.

01:13He's like, I'm here to pick you up.

01:15I'm like, oh, really?

01:16One moment.

01:17Shut the door.

01:18Mom, there's a crazy at the door.

01:19God, please.

01:22These days, Jason is working behind the camera, trying his hand at writing and directing.

01:27And currently has a script for a short film in the works.

01:30However, he'll always have a special place in his heart for that little whale, Willy.

01:34If you're a kid and you get involved, something that's as successful as Free Willy was, you get pigeonholed.

01:38But I had a lot of fun.

01:40And that's all I can really say.

01:42I'm just glad I got to be part of something pretty awesome.