This photo of Joel and acting coach Gary Spatz was taken at the Super 8 premiere.

Joel’s appearance on Hollywood Uncensored with Sam Rubin will air Sunday, June 12, 2011 @ 7:30 AM PT/ 8:30 AM MT on The Reelz Channel.

The episode will re-air on Monday, June 13, 2011 @ 2:30 PM PT/ 3:30 PM MT on the Reelz Channel.

From Canada's CTV:

Last summer on school break, 14-year-old Joel Courtney travelled to Los Angeles to visit his older brother. The middle-school student from Moscow, Idaho had one dream to accomplish on his trip -- a goal that would push Courtney far away from his usual school classes in Latin, Logic and basketball.

He wanted to work in a commercial and leave L.A. with $100 in his pocket.

Courtney blew the lid off that aspiration when he landed the starring role in J.J. Abrams' sci-fi adventure, "Super 8."

"I know how lucky I am," Courtney, now 15, told CTV.ca from Los Angeles.

On the advice of an acting coach, Courtney went to a casting call for Abrams' top-secret venture.

Eleven callbacks later, Courtney got the part that has changed his life forever.

"J.J. took a huge risk hiring me," said Courtney. "I had no experience. I was totally unknown. But J.J. saw something in me. I'm glad that he did," he said.

That "something" that Abrams spotted was a potent blend of heart, guts and innocence -- a combination that harkens back to iconic characters like the young boy, Elliott, in Steven Spielberg's 1982 classic, "E.T."

Girls Life magazine interviewed Joel for Super 8.

Brace yourself, babes. Joel Courtney is one star on the fast track to superstardom. He’s making his debut in the J.J. Abrams/Steven Spielberg summer thriller Super 8, hitting screens next Friday, June 10.

In Super 8, Joel takes on the role of Joe, a kid who loves moviemaking (circa 1979) and must abruptly deal with the mysterious disappearances in his town after witnessing a chaotic train crash while shooting a zombie flick with his buds and crush Alice (played by Elle Fanning).

While little has been released about the flick so far (keeping with its mysterious theme), we were intrigued to learn even more about its star. So we caught up with Joel and learned these eight surprising things about the cutie…

Find out about those 8 things over at Girls Life magazine!