Exclusive Interview

Noah Beck Scores as a Romantic Leading Man in ‘Sidelined: The QB & Me’ (VIDEO)

A new rom-com prince has risen. Noah Beck is making his feature acting debut as Drayton Lahey, the dreamy hot-shot quarterback, in Tubi‘s Sidelined: The QB & Me. After taking over TikTok, Beck is ready to take over the big screen.

“I feel like it was a perfect role in a bit of a cliche way,” he told Swooon. “I’m a fan of this genre, like truly. This is something I think when acting first came of interest to me, I was like, ‘I think this would be a segue that would make sense in a way, going from TikTok and being this almost All-American guy to what Drayton is.'”

Tubi

Sidelined: The QB & Me may be Beck’s first rom-com role, but the TikTok juggernaut was no stranger to the genre. “I grew up with two older sisters, so shout out to them for always having something on the TV that I could just walk in on and just sit down [and watch] because it was always a 2 [versus] 1, so I wasn’t going to walk in and take over the TV,” he said, admitting he “really developed a liking to these type of movies.”

In addition to starring in the film, he served as an executive producer, which Beck called an “out-of-body experience.” He took this position seriously. The film is based on the Wattpad sensation The QB Bad Boy and Me by Tay Marley, and Beck dove right into the movie’s origin story. “I felt it was like part of my responsibility to do the book justice,” he said.

The teen rom-com centers around the opposites-attract, slow burn love story between Drayton and Dallas (Siena Agudong). Dallas is determined to get into the best dance school in the country, but her romance with the school’s ultimate heartthrob takes her by surprise. When Agudong was cast, Beck “shot her a message on Instagram” so they could start getting to know each other.

The costars didn’t actually meet in person for the first time until they promoted the movie (which they hadn’t even filmed yet) at the FOX Upfront. “I felt like 2 days into knowing her, I could tell her anything. She’s such a safe space. There’s a lot of trust. There’s a lot of vulnerability,” Beck said.

Tubi

Sidelined: The QB & Me also includes a deeply emotional storyline between Drayton and his tough-as-nails father, Leroy (James Van Der Beek), a clear nod to Van Der Beek’s beloved role in the 1999 teen classic Varsity Blues. Beck admitted that his “most challenging scenes” were opposite the Dawson’s Creek alum. “I am so happy to have worked with him, and he has become a mentor of mine truly,” Beck said about his onscreen father. “You have no choice but to be in the moment with him, and he just pulls you in.”

Beck envisions Sidelined: The QB & Me as just the beginning of a new chapter for him. “I just kind of want to keep doing things that excite me and make me happy,” he said. This role “fulfilled something in me creatively that I felt like wasn’t being fulfilled for the longest time.” As for more rom-coms, the 23-year-old is at Hollywood’s beck and call.

Watch our full video interview above.

Sidelined: The QB & Me, Movie Premiere, November 29, Tubi