James Rolleston, star of hit New Zealand film 'Boy', seriously injured in car accident

Actor James Rolleston, the star of breakout film Boy, has been seriously injured in a car crash in New Zealand.

The 19-year-old was travelling in a car near his hometown of Opotiki, on the country's north island, when it hit a bridge, the NZ Herald reported.

Emergency crews rushed to the scene. He was later transported by air ambulance to Tauranga hospital with serious injuries.

The teen is awake and surrounded by family, Rolleston’s agent told the newspaper.

"At the moment, he is in a holding pattern. He's alright," Gordon said.

"They are making him comfortable and he is responding to all the things he needs to respond to."

It is unclear whether Rolleston was a passenger or driving the vehicle when the crash occurred.

Gordon told the paper he didn’t know if Rolleston had been a passenger or was driving at the time of the crash.

Boy is a coming-of-age 2010 film about a young Maori child in the 1980s, played by Rolleston.

He attended the world premiere for his latest movie The Rehearsal at the New Zealand International Film Festival in Auckland this weekend.