Louisville native gets breakout role in Netflix Christmas film ‘Jingle Jangle’
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LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WLKY) — A local actor is shining bright in a new Netflix Christmas movie. It’s called, “Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey.”
“I was on set with David Talbert and said, ‘This is the highlight of my career,’ and he said, ‘Mine too.’ So, I guess that’s exactly what it would be, the highlight of my career,” said Justin Cornwell.
Remember that name. The 32-year old Louisville native’s acting career has taken off.
“With Netflix, you can hit a button and 77 million people all around the world get it at one time,” said Cornwell.
The film has an all-star lineup, including names like Phylicia Rashad, Forest Whitaker, Ricky Martin and Keegan-Michael Key. Cornwell plays toymaker Jeronicus Jangle, the younger version of Whitaker’s character. It’s a colorful and heartwarming film full of song and dance with a multi-cultural cast.
“We wanted to give you a vibe. We wanted to give you joy. It doesn’t always have to be this thing that you get on the first viewing or second viewing. I talked to people who said by the fourth or fifth time they’ve seen it, they saw something different,” said Cornwell.
Cornwell grew up in Middletown. He’s a UofL graduate, and proud to call Louisville home.
“I went to Middletown Elementary, Crosby Middle School with those same kids and then Eastern High School with those same kids. I ended up at UofL with a lot of those same kids. You know everybody by what high school they went to,” said Cornwell.
Cornwell began singing at a young age and says his time in JCPS and at UofL was perfect preparation for his acting career.
“When I showed up in Chicago, they were just like, ‘man, you are already trained, you’re ready to go aren’t you?’ I’m like, ‘Yeah, I had a lot of great advocates in Louisville,'” said Cornwell.
Cornwell may be riding on a high with the success of “Jingle Jangle,” but he says he’s already working on the next big project. He hopes the movie becomes a Christmas favorite that families watch for years to come.
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