Stardom and studies: Behind the scenes with TV stars Cole and Bastian Fuentes

Cole and Bastian Fuentes are no strangers to the spotlight. Between them, the brothers have starred in major studio films, lent their voices to animated features, dazzled on set with wirework in The Flash, and led performances in high-profile productions soon to hit Netflix and beyond.

Bastian made global headlines when he was cast in Jurassic World: Dominion at just eight years old, and Cole has impressed in major projects like Batgirl. But while their film careers are on the rise, the Fuentes brothers are living proof that you don’t need to choose between dreams and education – at least not when you have the right school behind you.

Lights, camera, childhood dreams

Cole and Bastian’s journey into the world of performing arts began almost by accident — or at least, with a playful suggestion. “I think I was maybe six or seven,” Cole remembers, “when Mum brought up the idea of modelling. It was just a casual suggestion.” Battling with low confidence at the time, Cole found that modelling helped him come out of his shell, and he quickly fell in love with being on set and meeting new people. “It helped quite a lot,” he says. “I had a really good time just going to new places.”

Bastian started at the same time as his brother, but he was much younger at the time.  “I was about four, maybe five,” he grins. “I was just dancing around the room when Cole was doing an agency audition. The director found it entertaining and decided to take me on, too.” From that point on, the brothers started modelling together – a gateway to auditions, acting lessons, and eventually, full-fledged roles in film and television.

When school and stardom collide

As their careers blossomed, it didn’t take long before their education began to feel the strain. At first, mainstream school worked well enough, with teachers making allowances for the occasional audition. But things started to shift when Bastian landed a lead role in a pilot TV show, which, though never aired, opened doors to more significant opportunities.

“It took us a couple of weeks to do it, and they were really starting to push back on the attendance,” recalls their mum, Heidi. As the boys’ acting commitments intensified, the school’s flexibility did not.

For Cole, the pressure mounted not only from academic demands but also from a negative school environment marked by bullying. “I was just exhausted all the time,” he says. “I remember one time I had to go down to London for an audition, and I spent both two-hour train rides doing homework. Geography and science, I think. And when I handed it in, the teacher asked me to do it again, because it wasn’t paper-clipped.”

Heidi adds, “The school even asked us to cut back on their coaching, things like accent training and acting lessons, so they could spend more time on homework.” But Bastian’s reaction was telling: “Why should I sacrifice my dreams just to do more homework?”

Not long after that conversation, Bastian booked Jurassic World. “It was just good timing,” Heidi reflects. “We pulled them out of school, and the very next month he got the role.”

Finding their footing with online education

That turning point led the family to explore home education. Cole was the first to join King’s InterHigh in November 2020, followed closely by Bastian in January 2021. The difference was immediate.

Bastian also found the shift transformative. “It’s a lot less stressful. If I miss anything for work, I can go back and watch the lesson recordings. It helps a lot.”

The ability to catch up independently and set their own pace has given both brothers control over their education, rather than forcing them to fit around a rigid timetable. And for two ambitious young actors juggling castings, coaching, and rehearsals, that autonomy has proved essential.

Life beyond the classroom

A typical school day looks very different now for Cole and Bastian compared to their time in mainstream education. “Back then,” says Bastian, “I’d go to school in the morning, get picked up before lunch for a recall, drive to London, do the audition, come home around 6 or 7, and then still have homework and extracurriculars.”

“Fourteen hours awake, one hour to myself,” adds Cole. “That was it.”

Now, their routines are more balanced and tailored to them. Cole, who’s currently studying for his GCSEs, has developed a deep love for mathematics. “I used to hate it,” he says, “I would have massive panic attacks over it because of these weekly timed exams. Back then, it was the most stressful thing in the world.”

But now, Cole does four hours of maths daily by choice. The difference? “I’m doing it without the insane pressure. It’s genuinely fun and interesting now. I wouldn’t have discovered that I had a knack for it if I wasn’t given the freedom to flourish with it.”

His passion has even shaped his future plans. “I want to be a theoretical astrophysicist – somewhere between astrophysics and quantum physics. It’s my dream.”

Bastian, meanwhile, names film studies as his favourite subject, but he is exploring coding as a possible career. “It’s something I’m considering as a backup,” he says, “but acting is still the main goal.”

A school that gets it

What makes King’s InterHigh work so well for Cole and Bastian isn’t just the flexibility but also the support. “The teachers here are incredible,” says Cole. “You can ask them anything; they always get back to you with resources or advice. I’ve never felt like I had to choose between acting and learning. They trust me to do both.”

Bastian agrees. “They really help us manage things, especially when we’ve got big self-tapes or filming coming up.”

For a family whose life revolves around last-minute castings, filming schedules, and overseas shoots, the ability to study anywhere and revisit recorded lessons at any time has been transformational.

“The teachers here are a lot better and a lot more supportive than anything I ever had,” Cole says, without hesitation. “I feel like I can ask genuine questions. I feel like I can, after class, email the teacher. If I struggle with something, they’ll always answer.” He adds:

Social life and self-tapes

One common concern for families exploring online education is the question of friendships – something Bastian and Cole are happy to put to rest.

“I actually met one of my closest friend groups at King’s InterHigh,” says Bastian. “We started chatting during English class, exchanged email addresses, and ended up keeping in touch through Discord.”

He’s also part of a home education climbing group, where he sees friends every week. “I’m quite social,” he adds, “so it was important to me to keep that going. But it’s easier now, because I have the time.”

Cole echoes the sentiment but adds a powerful reflection of his own: “The relationships I’ve built since leaving mainstream school are a lot more meaningful. These aren’t people I’ve just been stuck in a classroom with — they’re people I’ve chosen to connect with. I share interests with them. The quality of the friendships is better.”

Their mum, Heidi, agrees. “When you’re doing online education, you do need to make the effort to get them out and socialising,” she says. “But you actually have the time to do that. And as a parent, that flexibility really matters.”

The brothers’ personal and professional lives now blend seamlessly, especially when it comes to preparing for the many self-tape auditions that come their way.

“We break it down over three days,” says Bastian. “Day one is all about learning the script. Day two, I go through the lines again with ‘feeling words,’ writing down the emotions behind each one. Then we film on day three.”

It’s a process that gives him ownership over his performance. “We even have a rule – three takes only” adds Heidi. “Because normally the first one or two takes are always the best, as long as he’s completely learned the lines and feeling words. It just works for us. It gives them control as well because you know that they decide what day they’re going to film it.”

From blockbusters to breakthroughs

Their flexibility hasn’t slowed their careers – quite the opposite. Bastian, now in Year 8, has several major roles awaiting release. “I’m playing a supporting lead role in a big animated feature and a feature film, which will come out in 2026,” he says excitedly. “And I’ve got a small role in a TV series for Netflix too.”

He describes The Flash as a personal highlight: “My favourite part was the wirework. Basically, what they do is they hook you up to a huge rope and they hoist you up into the air, and then you act while you’re in the air. It was really strange but really cool at the same time.”

For Cole, now in Year 11 and heading into his GCSE exams, Batgirl was a defining moment. “We filmed in Glasgow. It was the culmination of going to an entirely different city, meeting so many new people, and gaining the confidence to perform in front of important people. It changed my life.”

A parent’s perspective

As a parent navigating the hectic and uncertain world of child acting, Heidi knows how vital it is to have a solid foundation at home and in education.

And while the boys’ success speaks volumes, it’s their personal growth that makes her proudest. “They know what they love and what they don’t love doing, and are able to follow their own passions and projects.”

Advice for aspiring artists

When asked what they’d say to other young people with big dreams, Bastian keeps it simple: “Just go for it.” Cole adds: “People will always tell you your dreams should be realistic, but that’s the difference between a dream and a plan.”

He continues: “A dream is meant to be ambitious, and a plan is meant to be a realistic step to get there. I feel like a lot of people carry some cynicism because they didn’t achieve their ambitions but it’s okay to dream, and we need more of that nowadays.”

Cole and Bastian Fuentes are living proof that young people can thrive with the right balance of passion, structure, space, and support. They’re making bold choices, chasing bold dreams, and doing it all while keeping their education on track.

With King’s InterHigh, they haven’t had to press pause on anything. In fact, they’ve had the freedom to press play on acting, learning, and discovering who they want to become.