EDMOND — Blake Garrett’s love for acting goes back to the second grade at Charles Haskell Elementary School when his teacher, Stephanie Spears, told him he should try out for a local play sponsored by the Edmond Fine Arts Institute.

He got the part and that was the beginning of his exciting acting career, which has landed him a starring role in the New Line Feature “How To Eat Fried Worms,” opening nationwide Friday.

“After that I worked with Lyric, singing in ‘Annie,’” Garrett said.

Then he was on to StageStruck Studio. From there he worked with ACTS Acting Academy, which catapulted him to Los Angeles.

His friendship with one student in the academy was the stepping block for getting chosen at age 10 to tour internationally with “Barney’s Colorful World” and to star in the video of the same name.

He also has appeared in local television commercials.

After completing his 18-month tour with Barney and Friends, Garrett began intensive film acting training with coach and professional talent manager, Michelle De Long, who also found talent agency representation for him in both Los Angeles and Texas.

Since 2004, Garrett has been auditioning for films, TV series and national commercials, residing for extended periods in Los Angeles and Texas in support of his acting career.

In July 2005, he landed the role of “Plug” in “How to Eat Fried Worms” after first auditioning for the leading role of Billy in Los Angeles, and then reading for two other roles in Austin, Texas, where the film’s principal photography was shot.

His character is the right-hand man of the bad guy.

Garrett considers the six weeks of location shooting in Austin as one of the best times of his life. And truly, it was a boy’s summer paradise. The large ensemble cast began rehearsals with bike-riding choreography.

Each of the cast members was outfitted with a character-appropriate bike.

“I got there and they said, ‘Pick out the bike you want,’ so I did, and it was so cool.”

Being a year or two older than all but two of the other cast members put Garrett’s bike-riding skill at the front of the pack.

“I got to learn stunts and tricks while some of the other kids were learning to ride a bike,” Garrett said. “A lot of the kids were stage kids and live in apartments and never get to ride a bike, so I was ahead of them in that respect, also.”

There were scenes in watering holes, lots of mud and of course, plenty of gross, special-effects worms.

The director and wardrobe supervisors determined that Garrett’s character, Plug, would always be seen as dirty and unkempt.

Garrett’s make-up time was spent having his blue-eyed California surfer good looks covered in “movie mud” and his white-blonde hair altered by having his hair matted and dirtied.

“I loved being made up to look dirty,” Garrett said. “I even got to paint under my fingernails and on my hands so that they looked really dirty all the time.”

Garrett enjoyed having his own trailer and adults at his beck and call, but he realizes life can’t always be like that.

“One minute you are a movie star with your own trailer and the next day you are back at school playing sports, acting on the side and mowing lawns,” Garrett said.

Garrett and his friend, Cooper Cadle, have their own business called, “Coop’s Yard Work.”

“We have a golf cart and we pull this wagon behind it with the mower on it, listen to our tunes and just have fun,” Garrett said.

Although Garrett said they don’t get up until noon.

The weekend prior to the opening of the film, Garrett will join his fellow cast members in Las Vegas at The Palms for a special screening intended for a charitable fundraising event.

“I have missed the first day of school for the last five years, but I will be back the second day,” Garrett said. “I get to do a lot of things normal kids don’t get to do, I also am lucky because I get to do all the stuff regular kids get to do that a lot of (stage) kids don’t.”

In addition, a private screening event will be had for family and friends of the Garrett family in Oklahoma City.

When not touring, on location or in Los Angeles, Garrett attends Summit Middle School in Edmond, where he is active on the football and wrestling teams and will be going out for track this year also.

“Agencies like kids with real lives who like to act,” said De Long, his talent manager with Actors Casting & Talent Services.

His mother, Carol Garrett, and his younger brother, Ryan, a top-ranked competitive gymnast, are two of his biggest fans.

Aside from the fact that Garret is a star in a movie, he is your average, suburban 13-year-old, turning 14 in September, who loves to hang out with his friends and listen to his iPod.

(Patty Miller may be reached at pmiller@edmondsun.com.)