How Dan Stevens Went to Be the Man to See in Hollywood for Just About Anything

Less than 12 years have passed since Dan Stevens, together with his family, gave the British nobility—that is, the Crawleys—the finger by leaving “Downton Abbey” just as the program was about to reach its Emmy-winning peak. He acknowledges that he had “absolutely no idea” what would happen to him.

The 41-year-old actor candidly and honestly describes a move that many at the time thought was completely insane: “There was no roadmap.” “I walked out of ‘Downton’ with no baggage. “I think I want to do other things,” was all that was said. However, I had no idea what it looked like.

Anyone can get a sense of what that now looks like by just walking to the closest theater, where Stevens is competing against himself in two of the season’s biggest studio films. They’re two very different movies, but have become something of a calling card for the British actor since he ended his “Downton” days beneath an overturned vintage automobile at the conclusion of the 2012 Christmas special, shocking TV audiences and even Lady Mary.

He’s a long-haired, Haiwaiian-shirted action hero from the 1980s and Titan veterinarian (think Brad Pitt meets Ace Ventura) who first appears in Warner Bros.’ massive monster sequel “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” when he’s air-lifted into Kong’s mouth to heal a massively painful gorilla tooth. In the meantime, he plays an f-bombing corrupt former police officer who is now leading a group of kidnappers in Radio Silence’s bloody Dracula action mashup “Abigail” for Universal. In one of the film’s many hilariously over-the-top scenes, the kidnappers projectile vomit blood for what seems like five minutes and then spend the rest of the movie covered in it.

Speaking from his Los Angeles home, Stevens grinned and said, “Yeah, they’re a little different.” But it adds to the enjoyment. Being able to accomplish something where you could see a movie in one cinema, go down the street to another theater to see another movie, and not even recognize the same person has long been a goal of mine. I adore that.

To be honest, Stevens has been acting in that manner for the last ten years.

Ever since he made his big post-“Downton” comeback in the 2014 cult thriller “The Guest,” playing a suave, cold-blooded murderer, he’s been wildly hopping between genres with astonishing, purposeful passion. There have been family-friendly hits like “Beauty and the Beast” starring Belle and “Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb” starring Sir Lancelot; sci-fi films like “Colossal” starring Anne Hathaway’s irate ex; joyful biopics like “The Man Who Invented Christmas” starring Charles Dickens; violent folk horrors like “Apostle” starring Gareth Evans as a missionary confronting a cult; and what he calls a “fireball of silliness” like Will Ferrell’s “Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga,” in which he plays a closeted Russian pop prince with a penchant for phallically-impressive statues of himself.

Similarly, though less frequently, Stevens has had similar success on television. In the Marvel/FX spin-off series “Legion,” he played the psychotic mutant son of X-Men’s Charles Xavier; more recently, he played real-life White House Counsel John Dean, Richard Nixon, in Starz’s Watergate political thriller “Gaslit.”

But with significant back-to-back parts in “Godzilla x Kong” and “Abigail,” it seems as if Stevens has elevated himself to the top of studio call sheets in a characteristically diverse manner.

Having cast Stevens in “The Guest” and subsequently reuniting with him ten years later, “Godzilla x Kong” director Adam Wingard says of Stevens, “I feel like he’s been waiting in the wings to be a major movie star leading man for as long as anyone.” “He has shown himself.” All that needs to happen is for the producers and studios to catch up with that. However, I believe we are there.

According to Wingard, who developed the “Godzilla x Kong” persona with writing partner Simon Barrett with Stevens in mind, the actor’s “secret sauce” is his unique ability to provide credibility to every character. He continues, “There’s something about Dan Stevens’ charisma that makes everybody, young or old, like him, regardless of whether they’re a villain or a hero.” “And because he’s done so many different kinds of things, I think that most casual moviegoers are familiar with him out of all the actors I’ve worked with.”

Stevens’ first motivation for traveling to the United States at the age of 29 was his expanding “appetite” for trying new things. He had acted in adaptations of Jane Austen and Henry James before “Downton,” and despite his passion for the role, he feels that if he had remained in his own country, he may have been forced into a certain role.

He believes that saying, “I’ve never seen you do this, I don’t think you can do this,” is maybe more typical of a British mindset. “In contrast, the initial response I received from people here was, ‘I’ve never seen you do this, but I’d love to see you try.'” Scott Frank told him almost precisely these lines shortly after he arrived in the United States. Frank then cast him with Liam Neeson in his 2014 neo-noir action movie “A Walk Among the Tombstones,” where he plays a heroin trafficker seeking retribution.

And that’s all you want to hear as a budding performer. It’s the most uplifting thing, he declares. Since then, I’ve been thinking about it sometimes, thinking things like, ‘I’ve never seen myself do that, I’d want to try.’ And I believe that more and more, I like shocking people, making them wonder, “Oh, he’s a Russian pop star now?” Alright.

With every role Stevens plays—be it that of a bloodstained criminal, Arthurian knight, King Kong dentist, or Russian pop star—his power to continue shocking people may wane. His USP is quickly becoming into his capacity to look as anybody and anything.

That’s not to say he can’t still draw attention, as he did with Maria Schrader’s science fiction romance “I’m Your Man” in 2021. The surprising aspect of Stevens’ performance as a humanoid male “companion” robot was that, despite having studied German in high school, he was able to speak the language well.

He remarks, “The German is a beautiful thing that’s very personal to me.” “A large portion of our careers are spent vying for roles with other actors and doing similar projects, such as ‘Oh, he’s done an action movie or a biopic.'” We’re all kind of going about our lives, but every now and then I get to go over and make this weird little video in German. and sometimes that peculiar little movie gets a viewer.

He points out that the movie had its international debut at the Berlinale and went on to make the shortlist when Germany submitted it for the Oscars. Stevens was nominated for best actor in the German film awards, where it also took center stage.

Recently, the German was given a second chance to shine in Tilman Singer’s feature debut, “Cuckoo,” a psychological horror film that plays with a disturbing weirdness and stars Stevens as an eccentric villain in charge of a terrifying breeding program. Similar to “I’m Your Man,” the movie debuted at Berlinale (Neon will release it on August 2), but Singer was “completely floored” when the actor struck up a discussion in German, despite the fact that it was obvious that Singer had not seen Schrader’s drama three years before.

Stevens hopes to continue working with a growing group of collaborators, including singer, who he first connected with after viewing his “hugely inventive” 2018 graduation short “Luz.” These filmmakers have either approached Stevens directly, or whose work he discovered at festivals or through recommendations. Naturally, he’s willing to work with them on just about any project, but ideally he’ll focus on making it a “fun ride.”

He says, “Abigail is the ideal example.” “The film has a stunning tone reminiscent of the classic era, but the on-screen action is extremely ridiculous,” he remarks. “This looks and feels gorgeous, but there are 5,000 liters of blood coming out of this man’s mouth—what’s going on?,” is how the paradox makes you feel.

Zelda Williams is someone he may work with in the future or simply someone he admires from a distance. He enjoyed her recent feature film debut, Focus Features’ comedy horror “Lisa Frankenstein.”

“It’s fantastic, and incredibly remarkable for a debut picture,” he remarks. “The film might not be flawless, but it’s not necessary to be.” What it does is unequivocally exhibit the characteristics of a person with taste, style, and a sense of humor.

Stevens agrees with Singer and Wingard that Williams can choose a fantastic music.

“And the majority of the work has been done for you and it’s yours to fuck up if you know you’re going to be in a great looking shot with a great sounding tune,” he says. And Zelda is well capable of it. I’m eager to see what she does next, therefore.

Another problem is whether Stevens has the time to collaborate with Williams.

In addition to Robert De Niro, Lizzie Caplan, and Jesse Plemons, he is wrapping up filming the Netflix political conspiracy thriller series “One Day.” Meanwhile, Wingard, who is currently enjoying the success of his next film, Godzilla x Kong, which is expected to gross over $500 million at the box office, says he has another “juicy role” in a screenplay he has been working on with Barrett. Additionally, Stevens is discussing next endeavors with Singer, whom he is “really keen to champion.”

Stevens appears to contribute his own ideas to a lot of projects (he originally intended to play his “Godzilla” role with a South African accent), but he’s currently “figuring out” a move behind the camera to start collaborating much more closely with writers and start producing, thanks to friends in the film industry who have given him the confidence to do so. He remarks, “There are a few things on the stove,” and that it’s an exciting new era.

Stevens has long cited the actor-director duo of Rutger Hauer and Paul Verhoeven as an influence, but in the meanwhile, he’s only too glad to follow whatever haphazard path the creative ties he’s already formed lead him.

It is possible to see them thinking, “Oh, we’re going to do an intense personal drama now, or we’re going to do a medieval epic now. He explains, “It was just pointing a stick and saying, ‘Let’s make one of those.'”

“So, I would say, ‘Absolutely, fucking sign me up,’ if Adam Wingard, Tilman Singer, Radio Silence, or Gareth Evans approached me and said, ‘Actually, I just want to do a rom-com,'” Stevens continues. “I just want to be a part of it, I don’t care what they’re doing next.”