Teenager Daan Creyghton stars as Sal in the hit Nickelodeon show, Hunter Street, which has currently aired for 3 seasons. Although he resides outside of America, we couldn’t resist featuring this talented actor in this issue, and he graces our cover, too. Daan dished on everything from the show, to life overseas, to juggling academics with acting.
Tell us about your childhood in Amsterdam.
I had a very happy childhood. I was the first son and the fourth child in our family. Besides my mom, I had three other moms; my older sisters. I was really happy when my younger brother was born. Although we are three years apart, we did everything together. My mom even dressed us the same. Like every other child, I went to school and after school, my friends and I had field hockey practice twice a week and the other days we had playdates. In the Netherlands, you usually don’t get homework after school until you start high school. I loved playing dress-up and do sketches with my younger brother. I spent a lot of time at my grandparents’ house as well. They had a little mini farm for us with lots of animals.
When did you live in the United States?
We lived in Ross, Marin County from August 2011 until July 2014--35 minutes outside of San Francisco. I loved everything about living there. It was really cool to experience this as a family. It brought us closer together. The people in Ross were so nice and positive. We did a lot of sports, teachers were wonderful and supportive, the weather was nice so we could spend the whole day outside. There were lots of opportunities at school to perform, which I loved. I would love to move back to California--maybe not Ross, but this time to LA.
What drew you to the field of acting?
My sister was signed with a casting agent who was interested in signing me as well. I was curious, so they signed me up. I knew I loved the school plays but after my first commercial, I was hooked.
What makes Hunter Street such an unique show?
Unlike other Nickelodeon shows, Hunter Street is filmed in Amsterdam which gives a totally different vibe. It's about foster siblings and it deals with family mysteries and ghosts. There is a lot of humor and even moments like being in the only house in the forest or going to an empty warehouse are more funny than scary. What really makes this show unique is the family structure, which shows that family is not only about biological bonds but much more about emotional bonds.
What was the audition process like?
Casting agents in the Netherlands were asking for English-speaking boys between the age of 12 and 14 that wanted to audition for the role of Sal. I went there for the first round, which went well but not spectacular. I was happy when I found out they asked me to come to the third round. I was so nervous that afternoon. There were 3 more “Sals” auditioning. I met Thomas and Kyra as well that afternoon. We played scenes together as a family to see which characters fit best together as Hunter siblings. I was the lucky one.
What kind of charity work are you involved in?
There are different charity projects you can be involved in at my school. At this moment I am mostly involved in raising money for Tanzania kids to be able to go to school and to have school materials. Apart from this, my family and I are involved in the Dutch arthritis foundation. My oldest sister has juvenile arthritis and decided she wants to help children who have this chronicle disease. We as a family decided to join her. So, on a Saturday we will go to the hospital and walk in the garden or play simple activity games with the patients.
Your character, Sal, is techie and loves computers--in what ways are you similar?
I would not say I’m the Sal of our family—that’s my younger brother Tom, but by portraying Sal, I have learned so much about science. I do have other similarities with Sal. We’re both happy and positive people. Like Sal, I have a large family, which is really important to me. Sal and I both love to spend a lot of time with our family and always have their backs no matter what.
How do you juggle school with acting?
I’m very lucky to have all the support from my family, friends and from school. On a filming day, I’ll be picked up at 7:00 am and will be home around 7.00 p.m. My tutor is waiting for me at my house to help me catch up with my schoolwork and after that I go to bed. If necessary, I get an extension for my assignments and tests. As far as my social life goes, I try to catch up with my friends during breaks at school and sometimes I try to do that during class (not a good idea according to the teachers!).
What's next for you, career-wise?
At this moment I don’t have a confirmed next project but hopefully something is coming up soon. It’s my dream to do anything that falls into the category of dark or edgy drama...I would eventually love to do something along the lines of Baby Driver and anything similar to early Leonardo DiCaprio, early indie films that Harris Dickinson played in, or even more recently some of the projects that Timothee Chalamet has worked on.
Follow Daan on Instagram at: @daancreyghton