Rebounds' Oren Williams

Interview By: Jenna Bensoussan Written By: Dee Liddle

Recently, ACED Magazine had the pleasure of speaking with Oren Williams to find out a little more about him. We were doubly surprised when we were we able to speak with his brother Zachary Isaiah Williams (Nickelodeon’s Romeo!) as well.

Oren Williams may look familiar to you. He played Keith Ellis in Rebound this past summer (2005). Maybe you’ve seen him in other productions such as ER, Chicago Hope, or The Shield? Of course, there are the commercials and modeling, including P. Diddy’s clothing line - Sean John Boys, which Oren has done as well. To say he is busy is an understatement. Oren is making a name for himself and we will see him at least two more times in productions from FOX. With all that he does, it is amazing that Oren maintains a 4.0 GPA in school and has time to play basketball (he has quite a few trophies for a 13 year old). When free time actually shows up, you’ll find Oren hanging out with his friends, playing basketball, taking in a movie, or playing a sports game on his Xbox or Playstation2. The last movie Oren took in was Fantastic Four, which he thought was great.

Discussing his work on Rebound, Oren tells us “The hardest thing for me was working and keeping a straight face when I was working with Martin. Whenever we were filming a scene it was just hilarious.” Of his many roles under his belt, Oren says working on Rebound has been his favorite to date. As the subject moves towards working with Martin Lawrence, Oren says, “he’s great!” He hung out with the kids on the set and played basketball, too. The best part about his role in this film was that it put Oren’s favorite two pastimes together, acting and basketball. “I got to combine those two into one, that was great – I loved that.”

How did this all start, you may ask? Well, it seems that acting runs in the Williams family. Oren’s father is an actor. It wasn’t long before Oren and Zachary wanted to act as well. The one thing Oren states about wanting to become an actor is that, “You’ve gotta have your school work ready, keep working on school. School comes first. Also, get your family involved with it." The brothers tell us that tutors are on the set when they are working during the school year. Both prefer the tutoring. Oren explains, “It’s better because you’re only in there for three hours. You get more stuff done, and it kind of fills the void when you're on set away from your friends." Speaking of friends, being away from them for long stretches is all part of being an actor. “A lot of kids see the fame and stuff, but they don't realize you have to give up a lot of things. Like this year I had to miss my graduation and my birthday because I was on the road promoting Rebound. I haven't seen my friends in a while.” says Oren.

If Oren and Zachary had to choose between acting and modeling, they’d prefer acting. Getting to portray a character is what appeals to them. “I like acting better because you have to work a little bit more for it. You have to read and prepare," explains Oren. What does he find most difficult when shooting scene? Making sure he gets the emotion of his character right. No fears here though, he uses an acting coach to make sure he gets it just right.

Winding down in our discussion, we spoke of the future. Oren and Zachary expressed the desire to be in the NBA. "I think I'd like to play on the Lakers because they are my favorite team,” says Oren. Of course, becoming a doctor specializing in Sports Medicine and continuing his acting career (he wants to win an Oscar) interests him as well.

Zachary, like Oren, wants to be an NBA player (definitely), continue his acting (he’d like an Oscar, too), stay on with his charity work, and be an inventor. Zachary likes to help children who have cancer. He just wants to “help kids who need help.” As for the invention, what would he invent? "I want to invent a car that can take off and fly over traffic!” Zachary tells us. What a great idea! (Can we have the first ride?)

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