The 17-year-old actor who played the kid version of Marvel’s Loki character in the Disney+ series is begging fans for “help” after revealing that he’s been living on the street.
Jack Veal, who also appears in the The End of the F***ing World, Come Away, The Favourite, and more, shared his struggle via TikTok. “Without delving too much into the details, I was abused at home,” Veal said in the video. “It was physical violence, emotional abuse. I didn’t have a very good upbringing. I’ve struggled with mental health. I have autism, ADHD and am being screened for bipolar and psychosis.”
Veal explained that he has no options outside of the home he escaped, as moving in with his grandparents was a no-go on account of his grandfather’s terminal illness. He also claims that social services in the young Brit’s home country “refused” him any assistance. “I have nowhere else to go. And I need help,” he says in the video. The budding actor adds that as a result, he’s been “sleeping in the streets.”
“I’m desperate,” he says, “I am currently sleeping in a trailer that has smashed-in windows, is unsafe and is two hours away from my work.” He then pans his phone’s camera to show the small trailer, adding, “At the moment, I have nothing else.”
TikTok users have wondered in the comments why his former employer Marvel, the producer of Veal’s last major role in Loki, won’t help the actor—but the entity to blame, according to Veal, is the U.K.’s social services. “I am on my knees begging for you guys to just share this,” he says in the video, “Spread the message of how the government are treating kids.”
Instead of asking for donations (“You don’t have to pay me anything,” he says), Veal is hoping that social media users will share his video widely. “I don’t need anything,” he adds, “I just need you to make this go as viral as possible.”
The video did go viral, and on Monday the teen shared an update that he’d been able to find shelter at a friend’s place. He reiterated his critique of government services, as he explained why he wasn’t taking up other offers for places to stay. “Being homeless with mental health is difficult,” he said in the follow-up video. “So many of you are reaching out offering me a place to stay, but the objective here is to get help from the people who are meant to provide it, social services.”
“If I hop place to place, there will never be any stability in my life, and that’s what I need in the state that I’m in.”
