What happened to Barret Oliver and where is he now? Wiki Bio
Barret Spencer Oliver was born in Los Angeles, California USA, on 24 August 1973, so his zodiac sign is Virgo and he holds American nationality. He is a photographer and a former actor, best known for his portrayal of the lead character Bastian Balthazar Bux in the adventure drama family film “The Never Ending Story”, based on the eponymous novel by the German writer Michael Ende. The film was released in 1984, and also starred Noah Hathaway and Tami Stronach, while it follows a boy who imagines an entire fantasy world thanks to the book he’s reading.
Posted by Barret Oliver on Saturday, November 10, 2012
The movie won five awards and was nominated for seven others, while Barret was nominated for a Young Artist Award for the Best Young Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical, Comedy, Adventure, or Drama in 1985.
Barret is currently working as a photographer, and is teaching photography in Los Angeles.
Early life and education
Barret was raised in Los Angeles alongside his older brother Kyle Oliver, who was born in 1970 and who is also an actor known for his roles in movies “Knight Rider” and “House Calls” among others. Their father Kent was an interior designer while their mother Kathy was a manager, and she later served as Barret’s manager. The family also had a poodle dog Rita.
Barret attended the elementary Los Feliz (Apple) School in Los Angeles where he started acting, appearing in most of the school plays. He enrolled at a public high school where he played a variety of sports such as football and tennis, and upon matriculation in 199 he decided to focus on his career rather than to pursue a college degree.
Roles in movies
Barret made his debut film appearance portraying Child in Supermarket in the comedy movie “Jekyll and Hyde… Together Again” in 1982, followed by his cameo appearances in the romantic comedy “Kiss Me Goodbye” and the drama “The Circle Family” in 1982, for which he was nominated for a Young Artist Award for the Best Young Actor in a Television Series.
He made another cameo appearance in “Uncommon Valor” in 1993, before starring in “The Never Ending Story”.
In 1984, Barret was cast as Robbie Winslow in the supernatural horror movie “Invitation to Hell”, and in the same year portrayed Victor Frankestein in the short film “Frankenweenie”, before he was cast to play the lead character Daryl in the science fiction movie “D. A. R. Y. L.” in 1985. It also starred Mary Beth Hurt, Michael McKean and Kathryn Walker, and followed a young boy who is actually a robot created by the military.
For his performance, Barret won a Saturn Award for the Best Performance by a Younger Actor, and was nominated for a Young Artist Award for the Best Young Actor in a Motion Picture. Some of his roles which followed were in the science fiction comedy film “Cocoon” in 1985, the Disney’s film “Spot Marks the X” in 1986, and the drama “The Secret Garden” in 1987.
Barret’s last roles in movies before leaving the film industry were in the science fiction comedy “Cocoon: The Return” in 1988, and the black comedy “Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills” in 1989.
Roles in TV series
Barret made his debut TV series appearance in the episode “Veteran” of the superhero series “The Incredible Hulk”.
In 1982, he portrayed Buddy in an episode of the action crime drama series “Knight Rider”, and then guest-starred in “Love, Sidney” in 1983 and “Lottery!” in 1984. In the same year, he portrayed Arthur Nealy in the episode “To Touch the Moon” of the fantasy drama series “Highway to Heaven”, and for his performance was nominated for a Young Artist Award for the Best Young Guest Actor in a Television Series.
Some of Barret’s last roles in TV series before leaving acting were in an episode of the drama series “The Twilight Zone” in 1986, the folklore anthology series “Tall Tales & Legends” in 1987, and the comedy drama series “Hooperman” in 1988.
Career as a photographer and other ventures
In the early ‘90s, Barret bought himself his first camera, and soon became enamoured with photography. He went on to study with some of the most famous photographers in the US, such as George Tice and Cole Weston, while he also worked with Stephen Berkman and learned the 19th Century West-Plate technique from him. Barret has since become a recognized photographer, and his pictures could be seen in numerous galleries and museums around the US, as well as in galleries in Ireland and Romania.
Barret is also a writer, as his book “A History of the Woodburytype” was released in 2007, while he has also written many articles related to photography.
Love life and relationships
Barret has been very secretive regarding his love life and hasn’t shared any details of his past or present relationships with the public, which has given birth to rumors circulating around the internet about the former actor being gay. Some have even stated to have seen the actor in the company of another man, but this hasn’t been confirmed and Barret hasn’t commented on the rumors.
Conversely, another rumor has it that Barret is a married man, and that he met his other half sometime in the second half of the ‘90s. According to the rumors, the two married sometime in 2003, and have been together since then.
The mysterious woman is allegedly a photographer herself, and was a big fan of Barret before meeting him and falling in love with him. As far as the rumors go, the two are currently living together in New York – they don’t have any children.
Hobbies and other interests
Barret has been interested in all kinds of art and has also tried writing poems, sculpting, and painting, among other things. He has travelled around the US in search of inspiration for his photos, while he has been to all other continents, with some of his favorite countries among those he’s visited being England and Japan. Barret is a lover of animals, and has had several pet dogs and cats.
He is a philanthropist and has worked with a couple of charity organizations which have the goal of bringing children closer to art, and awakening the desire and imagination in them, while he has also held classes of photography for children at elementary schools.
He is keen on watching comedy movies in his spare time, and some of his favorite actors are Eddie Murphy, Jim Carrey and Robin Williams, while some of Barret’s favorite movies are “Coming to America”, “The Nutty Professor”, and “Bruce Almighty”.
Appearance and net worth
Barret is 46 years old. He has long brown hair with a long black beard, and brown eyes. He’s 5ft 8ins (1.72m) tall, and weighs around 152lbs (69kgs). As of May 2020, his net worth is estimated at over $400,000.
Barret, you were a terrific actor. I especially loved you in Highway to Heaven. Bless you.
Sincerely, Melody Lubart