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Dacre Montgomery says he took an acting hiatus after starring in Stranger Things as Billy Hargrove in order to “reverse engineer” his career
The actor said he was being “pushed in a commercial direction” after starring in the Netflix hit show and wanted to distance himself from that since he was interested in “art house films”
He also noted that he had to wait for the right story that he wanted to be a part of — which came in the form of his new indie film Went Up the Hill, which comes out on Aug. 15
Dacre Montgomery is getting candid about why he took an acting hiatus — and the role Stranger Things played in that.
The 30-year-old Australian actor says that while his breakout role as Billy Hargrove on the hit Netflix series brought him fame and opportunity, it also pushed him in a direction that didn’t fully match his creative goals.
“I think with Stranger Things — as any big show on Netflix — it’s kind of like you lose your anonymity overnight,” Montgomery tells PEOPLE. “And it was amazing and overwhelming and a combination of many things, and I felt really lucky and really fortunate to have that opportunity.”
“But I think for me, I grew up really wanting to work with all tour directors on arthouse films and really explore how far I can push myself in terms of character development and really, really fall in love with stories,” he continues. “And when Stranger Things came out, I felt like … I was really being pushed in a commercial direction.”
Netflix
Dacre Montgomery as Bill Hargrove on ‘Stranger Things.’
The Elvis actor says this made him want to “take time to step back” to reevaluate the kinds of roles that he wanted, the kinds of filmmakers he wanted to work with and the films that he ultimately wanted to be a part of. He also had to wait for the right “phone to call” with a role he wanted.
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“That sort of stuff takes time to kind of reverse engineer a career that’s going one way into a different direction. It takes time, and I can’t just generate a story, an amazing story [and] an amazing director in front of my eyes,” he explains.
Montgomery says it took about five to six years to finally steer his career back toward the type of roles and projects he had envisioned when he first entered the business, and now he feels he’s in a much better place.
“Now I kind of feel like I’m in a really, really good space with a couple of great movies coming up that fit the bill… in terms of where I wanted to be,” he says.
Greenwich Entertainment
Dacre Montgomery in ‘Went Up the Hill.’
Montgomery describes his new film, Went Up the Hill, as “exactly the thing I want to be doing.” The movie takes on a more somber tone than some of his past roles, with Montgomery portraying Jack, a grieving son who forms a connection with his late mother’s widow, Jill (played by Vicky Krieps), as they navigate their shared loss.
“… It changed my life,” he says of the movie. “The process of rehearsing and making the film really changed my life.”
Kirsty Griffin/Greenwich Entertainment
Dacre Montgomery and Vicky Krieps in ‘Went Up the Hill.’
The Guilty Creatures star said that he is aiming to make movies like this one that has “something really important to say” and that will potentially leave an “impact” on the audience.
“That’s why you make these movies, right? Because it only has to impact one person in the right way to work,” Montgomery says. “And that’s really what I’m really trying to mine in my career, is being a part of projects like that.”
Went up the Hill will be released in theaters on Aug. 15.
Read the original article on People
