Actress Devyn McDowell plays the title role in the film "Annette," which stars Adam Driver and Marion Cotillard. (Photo courtesy Imprint PR)
Most elementary schoolers spend their time playing pretend by dressing up in their parents’ clothes or building a fort in their living room. Midlothian native Devyn McDowell gets to play with Oscar winners.
Two years ago, McDowell beat out thousands of children for her first major motion picture role in “Annette.” McDowell, 7, plays the titular character in the contemporary rock opera telling the tumultuous love story of a stand-up comedian (Adam Driver) and an opera singer (Marion Cotillard). McDowell plays their daughter, who has an exceptional gift. To prepare for the film, she trained with a voice teacher for the final musical scene in the movie. It was a learning process she’s not likely to forget.
“I had to memorize a small amount of script and a whole three-minute song that I had to practice over and over again, and I had to memorize it for three months,” McDowell says.
This is her first big role, but she’s been performing professionally for much of her life. At the age of 4, she performed onstage at the Altria Theater in the Broadway musical “Waitress.”
The play tells the story of Jenna, an expert pie maker trapped in an abusive marriage. Jenna’s only source of happiness comes from her daughter, Lulu, played by McDowell and Short Pump local Arabelle Pitera in February 2019. In each city of the national Broadway tour, two local children were selected to play Lulu. McDowell appeared in three to four shows in front of 3,000 people each performance.
As soon as she felt the spotlight shine, she knew she wanted to be an actress, she says.
“I used to do little concerts [at home] with my mom, and when I was 4, my mom’s friend told us about an audition for the ‘Waitress’ national Broadway tour, and so I auditioned and I got [the part],” McDowell says. “The very first minute the first night I was on the stage, I loved it, and so I asked my mom for more work.”
While there are probably more roles in her future, acting isn’t her only interest. While filming “Annette” in Germany, McDowell toured a museum exhibit on ocean pollution and became inspired to help the environment.
“When I saw the [exhibit] on ocean pollution, I was heartbroken,” she says. “I’ve seen pictures with millions of [pounds] of garbage in the ocean. It can be super bad for the fish, and a lot of fish are dying.”
In addition to acting, home schooling and trying to save the world, McDowell enjoys swimming, biking, golfing and playing Pokémon. She is fascinated with outer space and hosts a space-themed podcast dedicated to the cosmos titled “Goodnight Space Adventures.” McDowell hopes to continue acting into adulthood while also being an astronaut and a scuba diver.
“I’ve been watching a bunch of shows and learning about space and our solar system,” she says, “and I really want to see what’s out there."
“Annette” is playing in select theaters and on Amazon Prime.