Devon Sawa Admits He Hated Talking About “Casper” for Years After Breakout Role (Exclusive)

Tereza Shkurtaj, Kelsie GibsonSat, October 10, 2026 at 9:29 PM UTC

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Devon Sawa today; Devon Sawa in ‘Casper.’Credit: Amanda Edwards/Getty; Universal Pictures -

Devon Sawa recently admitted he has learned to embrace his lasting connection to Casper

The 48-year-old actor spoke to PEOPLE about how he once avoided questions about the beloved film because it was all anyone wanted to discuss

Now, Sawa hopes his latest role in Coven Academy will create another memorable character for a new generation

For Devon Sawa, Casper’s legacy has lasted far longer than he expected after playing the human version of the friendly ghost in the 1995 family fantasy.

The brief appearance opposite Christina Ricci became one of the film’s most remembered moments, with Sawa’s “Can I keep you?” line becoming a lasting piece of ’90s pop culture. For years, however, the attention surrounding the role was something Sawa struggled to embrace, as fans and interviewers repeatedly returned to the same movie that helped launch his career.

Now, decades later, the 48-year-old actor says he has made “peace” with the fact that Casper will always be part of his story.

“Doesn’t matter what I do nowadays. It doesn’t matter how cool the project is, I will always have to say, ‘Can I keep you?’ to somebody at some point,” Sawa tells PEOPLE exclusively. “There will always be Casper stuff.”

Christina Ricci and Devon Sawa in ‘Casper.’Credit: Universal Pictures

Released in 1995, Casper followed Ricci’s Kat Harvey as she moved into a haunted mansion with her father, played by Bill Pullman, and befriended the ghostly Casper. Sawa appears as Casper’s human form during the film’s memorable final sequence, a role that helped turn the young actor into a recognizable teen star.

The movie became a major commercial success, earning nearly $291 million worldwide, and its influence has continued through generations, including a 2025 theatrical re-release for its 30th anniversary.

That level of recognition, however, also meant Sawa was often asked about the same performance, even as he moved into other projects. Looking back on that period, he acknowledges how strongly he once wanted to separate himself from the character and the attention surrounding it.

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“There was a time in my life I was like, ‘I don’t wanna talk about Casper. How dare you? I’m a thespian,’ you know?” Sawa admits. “But… I gotta embrace it. It’s why I’m here. It’s what got me here.”

Devon Sawa in ‘Coven Academy.’Credit: David Astorga/Disney

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Now Sawa is stepping into another supernatural world with Coven Academy, a Disney series set at a magical boarding school in New Orleans. He plays Mr. Cole, a warlock professor, alongside Tiffani Thiessen, Malina Pauli Weissman, Malachi Barton, Jordan Leftwich, Ora Duplass and Louis Thresher.

The new role gives Sawa another chance to connect with a younger audience, and he hopes his character can leave the kind of lasting impression that Casper did.

“I think [Coven Academy] is going to be one of those [shows] that hopefully in 20 years, people will be like, ‘Oh, Mr. Cole.’ And I won’t be able to shake that either,” Sawa tells PEOPLE.

Coven Academy is now streaming on Disney+ and Hulu.

on People

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”