Editing Wil Wheaton (section)

===Early work and ''Stand By Me''===
Wheaton made his acting debut in the television film ''[[A Long Way Home (1981 film)|A Long Way Home]]'' (1981), which starred [[Timothy Hutton]].<ref name="auto1">{{cite news |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1986-08-21-8603020609-story.html |date=August 21, 1986 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220629203544/https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1986-08-21-8603020609-story.html |archive-date=June 29, 2022 |title=Teen actor Wheaton wants no part of trash |author=Kirk Honeycutt |newspaper=Chicago Tribune}}</ref> He voiced the character of Martin in the animated film ''[[The Secret of NIMH]]'' (1982), the film adaptation of [[Robert C. O'Brien (author)|Robert C. O'Brien]]'s book ''[[Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH]]'' (1971).<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/2009/07/a-new-secret-of-nihm/|title=A New Secret of NIMH|magazine=Wired |date=July 29, 2009 |url-access=limited |last1=Donahoo |first1=Daniel |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230425080727/https://www.wired.com/2009/07/a-new-secret-of-nihm/ |archive-date= April 25, 2023 }}</ref> Wheaton also appeared in ''[[Hambone and Hillie]]'' (1983), ''[[The Buddy System (film)|The Buddy System]]'' (1984) (opposite [[Richard Dreyfuss]] and [[Susan Sarandon]]), and ''[[The Last Starfighter]]''.<ref name="auto1"/> He had a few lines in ''Starfighter'' which were ultimately cut from the theatrical release, but Wheaton is still visible in several scenes.<ref name="io9">{{cite web |url=https://gizmodo.com/everything-you-never-knew-about-the-making-of-last-star-1602703884|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230112104321/https://gizmodo.com/everything-you-never-knew-about-the-making-of-last-star-1602703884|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 12, 2023|title=Everything You Never Knew About the Making of ''The Last Starfighter'' |author=Plummer, Ryan |publisher=[[Io9]] |date=July 10, 2014 |access-date=March 23, 2015}}</ref>

Wheaton first gained widespread attention for his work in ''[[Stand by Me (film)|Stand by Me]]'' (1986), the film adaptation of [[Stephen King]]'s novella ''[[The Body (novella)|The Body]]''.<ref>{{cite web |title=Book vs. Movie: Stand By Me (The Body by Stephen King) |date=May 1, 2012 |work=The Readventurer |url=http://www.thereadventurer.com/-home/book-vs-movie-stand-by-me-the-body-by-stephen-king |access-date=March 9, 2018 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=16 Nostalgic Facts About ''Stand by Me'' |last=Cormier |first=Roger |date=August 6, 2015 |work=Mental Floss |url=http://mentalfloss.com/article/67025/16-nostalgic-facts-about-stand-me |access-date=March 9, 2018 }}</ref><ref name="auto">{{cite web |title='Stand By Me': A Love Letter To Childhood Innocence |date=August 6, 2011 |work=NPR |url=https://www.npr.org/2011/08/06/139025610/stand-by-me-a-love-letter-to-childhood-innocence |access-date=March 9, 2018 }}</ref> In ''Stand by Me'', Wheaton played the lead role of Gordie Lachance, a 12-year-old storyteller mourning the loss of his elder brother.<ref name="auto"/> In her review of the film, Sheila Benson of the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' wrote that "Wheaton makes Gordie's 'sensitivity' tangible, but not effete. He's a gem".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-stand-by-me-review-20160820-snap-story.html|title=From the Archives: 'Stand by Me' is a summer standout|date=August 8, 1986|website=Los Angeles Times}}</ref> In addition to being successful at the box office,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://metro.co.uk/2016/08/22/stand-by-me-30th-anniversary-15-things-you-may-not-know-about-the-movie-6074110/|title=Stand By Me 30th anniversary: 15 things you may not know about the movie|first=Jon|last=O'Brien|date=August 22, 2016}}</ref> ''Stand by Me'' was nominated for the [[Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Drama]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/photo-stand-by-me-cast-168878|title=PHOTO: 'Stand by Me' Cast Reunites 25 Years Later|website=The Hollywood Reporter|date=March 17, 2011 |access-date=October 21, 2019|archive-date=October 21, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191021003101/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/photo-stand-by-me-cast-168878|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.goldenglobes.com/film/stand-me|title=Stand By Me|website=www.goldenglobes.com|access-date=October 21, 2019|archive-date=October 21, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191021003102/https://www.goldenglobes.com/film/stand-me|url-status=live}}</ref> and became known as a coming-of-age classic.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2016/film/news/stand-by-me-30th-anniversary-oral-history-corey-feldman-1201824490/|title='Stand by Me' Oral History: Rob Reiner and Cast on River Phoenix and How Coming-of-Age Classic Almost Didn't Happen|first1=Brent|last1=Lang|date=July 28, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/movie-news/stand-by-me-at-30-why-this-stephen-king-movie-is-timeless-93647/|title='Stand by Me' at 30: Why This Stephen King Movie Is Timeless|first1=Charles|last1=Bramesco|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |date=August 22, 2016}}</ref>