In the Envelope: The Actor’s Podcast features in-depth conversations with today’s most noteworthy actors and creators. Join host and senior editor Vinnie Mancuso for this guide to living the creative life from those who are doing it every day.
We love an actor who doesn’t forget where they came from. Dylan O’Brien has established himself as one of the most dynamic young leading men working today, after breaking out in the early 2010s thanks to MTV’s “Teen Wolf” and the “Maze Runner” franchise. He’s since compiled an eclectic résumé that includes playing Dan Aykroyd in “Saturday Night,” leading indies like “Caddo Lake” and “Ponyboi,” and acting across from Sadie Sink in Taylor Swift’s “All Too Well” music video. Recently, he delivered one of the best performances of 2025, playing the dual role of Roman and his late identical twin, Rocky, in James Sweeney’s dark comedy “Twinless.”
Reflecting on where he is now, O’Brien wants up-and-coming actors to know that breaking in comes from taking opportunities, not curating them. “There’s an aspect of opportunity in this business that is everything, especially when you’re starting out,” the actor tells us on the latest episode of In the Envelope: The Actor’s Podcast. “I just think that doesn’t get talked about enough. You can’t necessarily control your trajectory.”
In talking about “Twinless,” O’Brien is surprised how often conversations round back to his earliest roles. “Such an interesting piece of this journey is [people] complimenting my performance, but so often starting that sentence with: ‘It’s shocking, given where you started,’ ” he says.
“I’ve always believed in myself, though, and you have to start somewhere. I refuse to knock [‘Teen Wolf’]. I’m not going to be like, ‘I know, right? So embarrassing.’ Because I don’t feel that way about it,” he continues. “I was soaking up every hour that I had on a professional set, working with a camera and really learning the ecosystem of how that environment works. Getting those reps was so important for me early on. I value it to such a high degree. I certainly didn’t pick and choose the first time as my next project by design. [At that point], you’re just auditioning, and you’re sometimes getting the job, sometimes not. And when you get the job, you go and you do the job.”
On this episode, O’Brien gets candid about the realities of the industry, how he crafted his two-part performance in “Twinless,” what to expect from Sam Raimi’s upcoming survival horror film “Send Help,” and much more.
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This episode is sponsored by MetroPlusHealth.
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