Maxim Swinton Talks About His Music Career Goals And New Role In ‘Fleishman Is In Trouble’

A true breakout star!

From his roles in Netflix’s ‘Halston’ to Apple’s ‘Raymond And Ray’, Maxim Swinton stands out in everything he’s in. He now stars as ‘Solly’ in the new FX series ‘Fleishman Is In Trouble.

We had the amazing honor of talking with Maxim about his dream acting co-stars, his music heroes, and more!

When did you first realize that you wanted to pursue a career in acting?

M: “When I was a little kid my mom would just take me to auditions sometimes with my sister Alexa Swinton (who is a series regular in And Just Like That where she plays Charlotte’s child, Rock) and so I got to like it and I continued. When I was nine months old – I almost booked a Huggies commercial – I was the runner up.  I got applesauce at the audition and I liked it so here I am. Of course almost getting a part is a major part of the business.  I just worked with Ethan Hawke and Ewan McGregor and I learned that they auditioned for the same part in Moulin Rouge – and you know how that turned out. They’re both amazing actors and doing great things so sometimes you get things and other times you don’t.  Sometimes you get the Huggies commercial and other times just the apple sauce but it’s all good!”

Can you tell us more about your amazing new role in the FX series ‘Fleishman Is In Trouble’?

M: “I play Solly – the son of the Fleishmans – played by Jesse Eisenberg and Claire Dane.  I’m a New York kid whose parents are getting divorced.  He is an intelligent kid who struggles to fit in. Solly loves physics and the Natural History Museum and Vanta Black.”

Do you think you have anything in common with your character Solly?

M: “Yes! I love physics!  I love science projects!  This year I am in a new school and I can definitely relate to Solly’s struggle to fit in.  I guess I would say that I am also eccentric like Solly.  Like today I built a balloon contraption that is now just floating in a meandering way around our house. To me eccentric means you like to do your own thing sometimes like thinking out of the box.  Solly is also from a Jewish family and my mother is a Jewish refugee from the Soviet Union so I hear lots of stories about World War II and our own family history of the Holocaust in Belarus and Latvia.  Also – Solly spends a lot of time with his older sister – and I spend a lot of time with my two older sisters – Ava Swinton who is in a theater program and Alexa (above.)”

You also star in the film ‘Raymond and Ray’. How was it working alongside iconic actors like
Ewan McGregor and Ethan Hawke? 

M: “Ewan and Ethan are a lot of fun and really professional – obviously – because to get this far in this business – you need a lot of talent and also a great ability to work. It was so cool to see Ethan because I loved Dead Poets Society. Ethan is a great story teller and kept everyone entertained on set. Ewan is Obi Wan Kenobi! Also – he played Halston in the Netflix series Halston – and I played Young Halston – the young version of Ewan’s character.  He is Scottish so maybe we are even related at some point – my dad is the head of the Swinton family and there is a town called Swinton where our family has lived for 1,000 years.  It means Swine -town – my people were known to have driven all the wild boars out of Scotland.”

Speaking of stars, is there an actor you would love to work with in the future?

M: “I would love to work with my mother – actor/comedian/producer Inna Swinton – she and I do standup comedy together in New York clubs – and we need a comedy special – hear that HBO and Netflix?  Also – if he were alive – Marlon Brando – we are watching the Godfather – some parts skipped because it definitely must be monitored by parents.  I’d love to work with Al Pacino, Chris Rock, Kenan Thompson, Bowan Yang – basically SNL!  Hire me Lorne Michaels!!

How do you think you’ve grown as an actor since your on-screen debut at just 6 years old? I’ve gotten better at negotiating good snacks!  And good supplies for the trailers on location. I’ve gotten better at reacting and since acting is reacting at least that’s what my mom shouts at me in the basement when we are working on auditions – this means I’ve gotten better at acting.“

You are also amazing at singing! What are your goals for your music career? 

M: “First – thank you! I’ve loved singing since I was a baby – apparently I woke up in my crib for many years – I spent too many years in the crib cause my parents were so busy – doing mashups of songs like Tomorrow, Somewhere Over the Rainbow and Somebody to Love by Queen. 

Recently – I’ve been listening to a lot of Pink Floyd, the Beatles and of course – Beethoven is always on rotation. I play piano and am learning drums too and am attempting the saxophone at school. 

My goals:  ten thousand followers on Spotify, produce my own original song, make enough money from my music to pay for a tasting menu dinner at Le Bernadin in New York for my sisters Ava and Alexa, all my grandparents and my parents in New York (I am on a mission to get to try the cooking of as many amazing chefs as I can). 

Mostly – I’d like to make music that I would love to listen to.  My musical heroes are Sam Cooke, Billy Joel, Frank Sinatra and I love Richie Cannata – the saxophonist who toured and recorded with Billy Joel and who also plays the sax on my album for New York State of Mind!  Richie reminded me that practice is key to being good at anything!  He has been playing the sax forever and he still practices for hours every day.  

I also love musicals like The Producers, Something Rotten, Oklahoma, SpongeBob.  I have seen MANY musicals – my first one that I went to was Spiderman with music by Bono and The Edge when I was like two years old!  I wore ear plugs. We also go to operas – we recently were in Venice and saw William Grimes by Benjamin Britten at La Fenice – the opera house in Venice.  I fell asleep during the main aria because of jet lag but I loved what I saw.”

Where can we follow your amazing journey?

M: “Please follow me on Spotify or iTunes and listen to my EP “Songs That Make Me Happy”. On Instagram at @maximswinton. On YouTube at @theswintonshow.”

See Maxim shine in ‘Fleishman Is In Trouble’, available now on Hulu!

Photo Credit: Justin Jay

Je’Kayla Crawford– Founder and Director– Je’Kayla has been a journalist for years and decided to start a publication of her own, New Scene. When not helping her team and working on the monthly issues, you can find her watching a movie on Netflix or baking using a viral Tasty recipe.