Henry Hopper

Henry Hopper is Dennis Hopper’s son, one of the stars of Gus Van Sant’s next film and, perhaps unsurprisingly, a refugee from artschool. The 19-year-old Los Angeles native studied painting and sculpture at the infamously hippie CalArts for a year before dropping out and fleeing to Berlin to make films and art with friends. “I sort of fell out with the idea of art school,” says Hopper, who eventually made his way back to Venice, California, where he now resides. Hopper didn’t totally indulge in CalArt’s unofficial clothing-optional policy while there, but admits to a proclivity for skinny-dipping: “The pool was the most clothing-optional,” he says. “I may or may not have taken a nice sunbath every other day.” At 14, Hopper started taking weekend acting classes at the Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute in Los Angeles as a way of “keeping out of trouble”; at 16, he was spotted by an agent in a play and has spent the last three years turning down various TV and film projects. “I ended up saying no to a lot of things because there aren’t that many inspiring parts for young people,” he says. “We often get squandered, doing stuff like Disney Channel and all that bullshit.”

In Van Sant’s next film, Restless, Hopper plays a teenage social misfit whose parents die in a car accident. “It handles death from a young person’s perspective,” he says, “which I feel is very rare.” The elder Hopper has been supportive at each step. “I’ve learned almost everything I know about acting from my dad,” says Henry. “We just have a very honest relationship.” He also relates his father’s best piece of advice: “Be cool.”

Photo: Henry Hopper in Los Angeles, February 2010. Vest: Levi’s. T-shirt: Diesel Black Gold. Bracelet: Hopper’s own. hair products: kérastase, including crème nutri-sculpt. Fragrance: Fuel for Life by Diesel. Styling: Moses/Margaret Maldonado Agency. Hair: Maranda for Kérastase Paris/www.themagnetagency.com. Makeup: Darlene Jacobs/Frank Reps. Special Thanks: Siren
Studios.