James Wolk and John Gluck as father and son in Ordinary Joe

Fernando DeCillis/NBC
October 11, 2021
In The Mix

In Sons, He’s Three for One

Like his adult counterparts, 13 year old John Gluck plays multiple versions of his character in NBC's Ordinary Joe.

Libby Slate

When John Gluck was in elementary school, he made micro-movies during recess, playing a supervillain named Dr. Glove (imagine a mitten) and later screening the works for fellow students.

Now, at 13, Gluck is enjoying acting for a much wider audience in the new NBC drama Ordinary Joe. James Wolk stars as Gluck's dad, Joe Kimbreau, who experiences three parallel "what if?" scenarios: life as a rock star, a nurse and a New York City police officer. Gluck plays the son in each scenario — Zeke, Christopher and Lucas, respectively — a nine-year-old who, like Gluck himself, has muscular dystrophy and uses a wheelchair.

"It's very interesting because technically, they're all the same person, but they've had different life experiences, families and friends," Gluck observes over a Zoom call from Atlanta, where the show is shot. "So I have to look for what makes each of them unique, but also for what their core factor is, that makes them all the same." And that would be? "Oh, his heart. His love for his family."

Gluck's real-life mom played a pivotal role in his being cast — she spotted the casting call online. "I decided I'd give it a shot," he says of the self-tape he submitted. "And if I didn't get it, it was good for the experience. I wasn't expecting to hear anything back."

For the past several years, Gluck has been studying acting and singing as well as performing in musicals at a children's program near his Washington, D.C.–area home; he also enjoys songwriting. "I love all genres," he enthuses, "but a lot of the time, I write a little pop with a touch of dance, a sprinkle of indie and a whole lot of love."

He sings in roughly half of the episodes of Ordinary Joe. Gluck plans to release music to benefit the nonprofit Cure CMD (congenital muscular dystrophy); his own type is called Collagen VI. "My character has SMA [spinal muscular atrophy], another rare form of muscular dystrophy," he says. "I think it's great that these diseases are getting more representation in movies and shows."

And there may be more such inclusion as Gluck matures; he's still making short films and hopes to write and direct. "I am a movie lover, so being a part of this is amazing. I love being able to throw myself into a different world and see what could happen." To other young people with MD who'd like to be a part of those worlds, Gluck has this advice: "Don't let the obstacles that inevitably come with muscular dystrophy get in the way of sharing your gifts with the world."


This article originally appeared in emmy magazine, Issue No. 11, 2021

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