Grant Feely is like any other 13 year old boy in Birmingham: He goes to public school, has two older brothers and three dogs, enjoys traveling with his family, and loves a good steak or pasta dish. But one of the things you might not know about Grant is that he is a renowned actor and will soon be featured in season four of Apple TV’s sitcom Ted Lasso! He first got into acting when he began watching behind-the-scenes videos on YouTube of his favorite movies and TV shows. (His favorite movies right now are Interstellar and Sinners.) He started taking acting classes at Acting Out Academy when he was only seven or eight years old.
Acting Out Academy was started in 2011 by Meg Deusner, a professional actress who sought to marry the two things she loved: acting and teaching. “The minute I saw him I knew right away,” Deusner says. “Grant never missed a class, went to every workshop.” Acting Out Academy offers acting classes and workshops for all ages and skill levels, and the kids are separated by age, not skill level. Kids learn from one another using “the onion technique,” which Deusner explains is “using your imagination to have a real experience.” The goal of her acting classes is “to teach kids to become confident by acting… giving kids the freedom to fail.” With the academy designed specifically for acting in film and TV, she brings casting directors such as Nickelodeon’s in to tell the students what they’re looking for, what it takes to get on their roster, and then students will do scenes for them.
It didn’t take Deusner long to approach Feely’s mom about securing him an agent. An agent signed him right away, and soon he was self-taping at the academy’s film studio and sending off auditions. “He loves it. He loves class, auditioning, and that’s really what makes the difference, I think,” says Deusner. Next thing they knew, he was getting callbacks and was being booked on projects like Disney’s series “Obi-Wan Kenobi” (2022), the TV show “Creepshow” (2019), and the sci-fi short In the End (2021). The producer even flew him out to the studio to have a live callback audition before he was booked on the blockbuster Five Nights at Freddy’s (2023). When asked what is his favorite project he’s ever worked on, Feely says, “Five Nights at Freddy’s, though ‘Ted Lasso’ might take its spot soon.” Feely had a similar experience with booking “Ted Lasso.” He first sent in an original tape, then his acting coach Deusner filmed him playing soccer. Soon after, he had two callbacks: one was in person and the other was on Zoom, before being offered a position on the show.
Feely says his favorite thing about being on “Ted Lasso” is that “Everyone is super nice; it’s a British cast and everyone is excited to have a kid on set.” In fact, his favorite recent memory is attending a Mumford and Sons concert in Kansas City with the cast and crew of the show. “They are such a fun group of people and truly enjoy being together,” he says. “We also got to meet the band backstage after the concert, which was a great perk!” He admits that he was surprised by how much waiting around you do on set. “A lot of time is spent sitting in my trailer waiting to get called to set or waiting for the crew to make camera angle adjustments for the scenes.” Of course, “Being on set” is his favorite part of acting. “Everything about it,” he explains. “The atmosphere… [it’s] the reason I started acting in the first place.” Stories like Grant’s are what dreams are made of.
“I’m not in the habit of selling dreams, but the amount of ‘Birmingham bratpack’ who are working in film and TV… I really believe if you want it and take the steps and work hard, you will work,” states Deusner. Her encouragement to kids who want to act is simple and straightforward: “Believe you can do it. Be humble. You’ll never not learn. You have to love the process, auditioning, because if it’s about booking, you’ll always be depressed. Don’t give up. You never know when that role’s gonna come. Find the joy in the journey.” Feely’s advice is similar: “Start with taking classes from an experienced acting coach. I highly recommend Meg Deusner and her staff at Acting Out Academy here in Birmingham.”
Feely is not done dreaming, though: “In the future, I hope to continue to act and would like to try out other aspects of film-making as well (like writing).” Follow Feely’s acting journey on @grant feely on Instagram or on his website grantfeely.com, and keep an eye out for season four “Ted Lasso,” which is expected to be released in 2026. “Henry is Ted’s 12 year old son who loves to play soccer (futball). That’s all I can share!” Feely states. “I had to practice a lot of soccer for this role!”
