Glen Powell gestures to the asphalt where his dreams were almost crushed. He was 13 years old, playing pickup basketball on this very portion of the Austin Studios lot with fellow child actors from the third Spy Kids movie, when he accidentally knocked one of his co-stars to the ground. They were taking a break from filming the popular children’s franchise, on which Powell, whose character is simply referred to in the credits as “long-fingered boy,” was only working for the day. This was his first acting gig. Would he ever be allowed on a film set again?

The other kid was fine. So, it turned out, was Powell. As he relays this memory on a May afternoon, it seems ludicrous he ever worried about such a mishap derailing his acting career. But Powell has always been farsighted. He knows that what you do in the present can determine your future. This apparently manifested as anxiety during his childhood. As an adult, it became business acumen.

Which might help explain why Powell, 35, seems to be everywhere this year. He appears on the covers of glossy magazines. He sneaks into all your social media feeds. He shows up on daytime talk shows, where he tells Gayle King that he isn’t chasing love but will accept it if it “hits me in the face.”

Not only has Powell gained credibility among critics by becoming a regular weapon in Richard Linklater’s arsenal — most recently in the action-comedy “Hit Man,” which the actor co-wrote — but he might also be on the verge of reliable blockbuster stardom. After an attention-grabbing supporting role in the massively successful “Top Gun: Maverick,” Powell stars in the disaster film “Twisters” (opening Friday), Lee Isaac Chung’s sequel to Jan de Bont’s 1996 smash hit featuring Helen Hunt and Bill Paxton.

Paxton, admired for grounding big-budget productions with palpable humanity, is a hard act to follow. Skeptics raise an eyebrow at Powell, who has been described as the next Matthew McConaughey because of his wide grin, chiseled look and Texan geniality. He is already set to expand his résumé with a diverse slate of film and television projects — plus a potential Broadway musical — and keeps a notebook full of advice from the likes of Tom Cruise. But does that translate to trajectory? Is Powell the next McConaughey or Cruise? Could he become a Paul Newman or a Robert Redford, earning artistic respect on par with his jawline and smile wattage? [More at Source]