There was a time when being a thespian meant you were an accomplished actor. Now the word is being applied to pre-teens who starred in Spy Kids. Somewhere along the way we’ve gone horribly wrong.

Here’s the official press release that has me rolling my eyes, “Twelve year old thesp, Daryl Sabara, of “Spy Kids” fame, is attached to star in “Derby” for Tite-Belt Productions, LLC.” Maybe it’s ok because they’ve abbreviated it. That way, he’s only half the thespian that say… someone like Sir Ian McKellan is.

Anyway, as you can imagine Derby is a kids movie, this time set in the late sixties. Sahara will not play a desert loving horse racer who comes to the city as you might imagine from his sandy name, but rather a kid racing in a soap box derby with the help of a Vietnam Vet. My new favorite press release adds, “The tradition of Soap Box racing goes back to 1937 when it became a national past time in which boys would race their engineless go carts down hills to compete in local, regional, and national competitions.”

This kid’s got one hell of an agent. I wonder if he works with film critics? I could start calling myself a world renowned film commentator or something.