SUPERHEROES grow up, too, don’t they?

Just last year, Ben Tennyson, played by “Evan Almighty” star Graham Phillips, was a 10-year-old alien-busting hero in the live-action movie “Ben 10: Race Against Time,” which was based on the hit animated series “Ben 10 Alien Force.” Now, Ben is a mature and confident 15-year-old, more equipped to battle alien forces to save the planet from an intergalactic threat in “Ben 10: Alien Swarm.”

Playing the teenage Ben is Ryan Kelley, who starred in the Emmy-nominated movie “Prayers for Bobby,” a story about a teenage boy who commits suicide due to his family’s religious intolerance. Ben’s cousin Gwen Tennyson (Galadriel Stineman) and “frenemy” Kevin Levin (Nathan Keyes) have grown up as well in this movie, which focuses on the original plotline set within the Alien Force universe of Ben 10.

In “Ben 10: Alien Swarm,” teenage hero Ben Tennyson breaks ranks from the Plumbers (a secret organization that battles alien forces) to help Elena, a mysterious young woman, uncover an alien threat to the planet. Ben is armed with a watch-like device called Omnitrix that gives him the ability to morph into 10 different alien life forms. Gwen and Kevin, who also possesses superpowers, join Ben in his adventures to fight evil.

“Ben still has the heart of gold he had when he was younger but now he is starting to take on more of a leadership role,” Kelley described the teenage Ben in an e-mail interview with the Philippine Daily Inquirer. “Like so many other teenagers, Ben starts to question and figure out things on his own. Ben also starts to take on the huge responsibility of driving, which is pretty exciting.”

Kelley’s first crack at the big screen was the role of Seamus O’Malley in “Stolen Summer,” a feature film starring Aidan Quinn. He has since starred in films such as “Dust Factory,” “Roommates,” “Stray Dogs,” “Charming Billy” and “Mean Creek,” which earned him a “Special Distinction Award” at the Independent Spirit Awards. The film won awards and nominations at festivals including Sundance, Cannes, and Stockholm, as well as the John Cassavetes Award. He most recently starred in “Outlaw Trail” with Arielle Kebbel and had a small role in Clint Eastwood’s, “Letters to Iwo Jima.”

Kelley, who looks young at 23, is proud to take on the part of Ben Tennyson, whom he described as “a role model” and “a natural born leader who has amazing instincts.”

“Ben gives people the benefit of the doubt and is extremely trusting – something all role models need to do,” he explained. “Family and friends also mean the world to him, and he would do anything to protect others.”

The actor said “Alien Swarm” was able to sustain the interest built by the original movie by taking the same fast-paced, kid friendly formula and “cranking it up a few notches.” The action and special effects were also taken to new levels by director Alex Winter, he added.

Of action scenes in the movie, Kelley considered back-flipping off a moving motorcycle and speeding around turns in the car as the more exciting but challenging tasks.

“What I think catches kids’ attention so much is that Ben, Gwen, and Kevin are just like them – average kids who live normal lives, but at the drop of a pin can magically transform into ‘heroes,’” he said, explaining the kids’ enduring fascination with “Ben 10.” “Every kid dreams of being able to have some special power that they use to save the day.”

If he had superhero powers, Kelley said he would use them for the good of mankind while protecting his identity so he could lead a normal life. “Of course that starts with helping every cat stuck in a tree,” he quipped.

And his take on extraterrestrials? “I’m a believer. The universe is supposedly never ending, how can we be the only life forms in it?”

“Ben 10: Alien Swarm” will have a special screening at the SM Mall of Asia Center Stage Cinema on Nov. 21 at 2 p.m. before it debuts on Cartoon Network on November 28 at 6 p.m. Kids can log on to Cartoon Network’s website, www.cartoonnetwork.com.ph to download “Alien Swarm” memorabilia.