Tom Felton is suiting up again, and this time it is not as a conflicted wizard or a CSI tech.
In Altered, he steps into full superhero mode, jetting between dystopian danger and big emotional beats.
Felton admits that slipping on the costume for the first time came with a jolt of uncertainty, but the hesitation didn’t last long.
As he put it, “I wasn’t quite sure when I first suited up how I was gonna feel, but it does feel pretty badass.” That spark sets the tone for the entire film.
The World of ‘Altered’
Altered builds its world around a sharply divided society where genetic capability determines opportunity, status and power.
Felton says the parallel to the real world was impossible to ignore.
“There is obviously a big theme of the film, the class system,” he explains. “Some people have DNA capable of accepting these new accelerators of genes and others don’t. It’s kind of symbiotic in so many different ways to the normal world.”
He has always been deliberate about his sci-fi choices, pointing out that the greats — from Star Wars to Harry Potter — endure because they’re crafted with care. Altered, he says, aims for that same blend of spectacle and meaning.
An Amazing Mentorship
But the unexpected heartbeat of the movie might be Felton’s dynamic with his young co-star, Elizaveta Bugulova, who plays a central role in his character’s journey.
Mention her name, and Felton lights up instantly.
“She is the most talented actress I’ve ever… Lizzie is phenomenal,” he says. “She’s incredibly witty, and I forget how old she actually was when she shot the film. I think twelve, but she was obviously speaking a separate language. She has very good comedic timing for such a youngster.”
Felton recalls how she’d correct him on lines, knew the script “by the back of her hand,” and brought tireless energy to set even when she had to jump straight from filming into tutoring sessions.
The experience threw him back to his own early days in the business on Harry Potter, and he found himself slipping into the mentor role without even noticing.
“The weird part is like, wait a minute, does that mean I’m the old man? And yes is the answer,” he jokes. Then he pivots, more thoughtful. He describes suddenly realizing he was the one actors were looking to for guidance. “There was a bit more responsibility to understand exactly all the elements happening… working with Lizzie and all the other actors to make it all human. Joining those dots together was the big challenge.”
Becoming a Superhero
The physical demands added another layer, particularly the wheelchair that confines his character for much of the film.
“It wasn’t the most practical prop,” he admits, and the custom steampunk exoskeleton that appears later required a team to assemble its eighteen pieces. Still, the sheer cool factor won out. Felton laughs remembering moments on set when he’d strike a heroic pose and grin behind the mask, thinking, “This is… awesome.”
For all the gadgets and genre thrills, Felton keeps returning to the humanity that grounds Altered.
He loves sci-fi that tweaks the real world just enough to uncover new truths, the kind of storytelling that shaped everything from The Matrix to Jurassic Park. What convinced him here was the director’s fully imagined vision. “He had days and days of drawings and pictures,” Felton says. “That made it quite easy to trust him.”
Altered may be packed with tech, tension and towering stakes, but at its core is Felton — a seasoned performer discovering fresh excitement and guiding a rising star as she finds her own footing. Superhero suit optional, the man is clearly having a blast.
