The 1990s were a much similar time for movies.
We didn’t need superheroes or
Star Wars. Just a lonely child, who befriends a cute animal.
Beethoven. Air Bud. Flipper. Dunston Checks In.
And king of them all was
Free Will. The story of 12 year old Jesse, a foster child who rescues the titular killer whale from a theme park, it grossed $153 million worldwide, and spawned three sequels. It co-starred Michael Madsen from
Reservoir Dogs and even had a theme song by Michael Jackson.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xk0XY83eEuM
Child star Jason James Richter reprised the role of Jesse in
Free Willy II &
III, and also appeared in
The Neverending Story III, and episodes of
Rugrats and
Sabrina The Teenage Witch. He stopped acting in the late 90s though, and tried his hand at a music career.
In 2009 he started to return to the screen, appearing in the
Tekken movie and an episode of
Bones. And recently he has started acting more, with his latest movie being the indie drama
Last Rampage.
Here's what Richter looks like now:
https://www.instagram.com/p/Beid1GEB14z
https://www.instagram.com/p/BZmZ6JghIT0
https://www.instagram.com/p/BZW3vCUBB0U
He is also now a film producer, and worth $500,000 (£355k), according to
Metro.
We also couldn't mention
Free Willy without featuring this classic moment either.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TU8FqTwICMA