Let me make one thing perfectly clear, the term “weirdo” is about as high a compliment as I give. The weirdos of this world are the ones who eschew the safety of the status quo in favor of the dark, uncharted lands of personal fetish. They are heroes who dare to show us different way of being… and grant us the gift of normalcy by contrast.
Weirdo actors embody these traits through inspired, unexpected characterizations, odd role choices, and the constant desire to hop from genre to genre searching for new corners of humanity to explore. Bruce Dern is a kook, Jeff Goldblum lives on another plane, Geraldine Chaplin is a glorious alien, and Nicolas Cage elevates cinematic weirdness to shamanistic heights. There are dozens more like Juliette Lewis, Catherine O’Hara, and Steve Buscemi whose inherent weirdness seems to seep into every role they inhabit. And I love them all dearly for it.
Into this illustrious company I wish to add Dan Stevens. Here’s 7 Reasons Why.
Like many, I first became aware of Dan Stevens on the very not-weird Downton Abbey, where his Matthew Crawley was a breath of vitality into an otherwise staid upstairs/downstairs chamber piece. Stevens’ performance wasn’t the flashiest on the show (give Dame Maggie Smith her due) but there was something about his portrayal of a lawyer-turned-Lord that felt meta, as if his character were being drawn not only into the world of the eponymous manor house, but also somehow into the pages of an Edwardian novel being written without his consent. He was really good, but I had no idea that he was a true weirdo until I saw…
1. The Guest (2014)
From the opening scene, Dan Stevens’ physical performance, as a Captain America-style super soldier gone wrong, is riveting. He slips effortlessly between off-the-charts charm and bizarre inhumanity and back again, often all in the same scene. And then there’s the sex appeal. When he steps from the bathroom to confront Maika Monroe wearing nothing but a very low-slung towel… um… I lost my train of thought for a moment. Anyway, Adam Wingard’s Halloween-y action-thriller is a wonderfully odd delight and Dan Stevens owns every frame.
2. Legion (3 seasons, 2017-2019)
This series is Noah Hawley’s take on a Marvel Comics property… and it’s a doozy. Stevens plays a mutant who is again named “David,” but this character couldn’t be further from the sexy, murder-machine of The Guest. Here he’s a disheveled, sardonic mutant with schizophrenia struggling not only to control his seemingly endless mutant powers, but also his growing paranoia and skewed perception of reality. The show was nuts and Stevens shines as the star and unreliable narrator of the series. If you want a really weird ride, strap in. I’m glad I did.
3. I’m Your Man (2021)
In this German, sci-fi/rom-com (yes, you read that right) Stevens plays a robot designed specifically to satisfy the romantic and sexual desires of Alma (Maren Eggert), an anthropologist who is lost in academia and has no time for romance. So, of course romantic shit happens, but it’s German, so there’s a cruel honesty to it all. Again, Stevens really goes for it, playing the android striving to please someone who is determined to reject him. All while speaking German (as he does again in Cuckoo [see our review] – way to be multi-lingual!). Weird choice. Weird performance. Weird movie. Love it.
4. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024)
How the fuck do you stand out in a film where King Kong gets a mecha-fist so he and Godzilla can team up to fight a giant monster? Watch Dan Stevens deliver a master class in “understanding the assignment” as Trapper, who is introduced to us as “the weirdest vet in the world.” Stevens lets his devil-may-care freak flag fly as a big-hearted, poetry spouting, adrenaline junkie, and as such he brings actual joy to the scenes between monster smash-up stuff.
5. Apostle (2018)
It takes a special kind of actor to undertake folk horror. The subgenre itself is inherently iconoclastic as it implies that there are ancient, pagan forces that are more than just superstition. The Apostle is a brilliant example of this subgenre. Stevens plays Thomas Richardson, a man willing to go through hell to rescue his kidnapped sister. And he essentially gets his wish. Stevens brings a deadly reality to this performance, grounding the movie and allowing us to believe in something we would rather dismiss.
6. Abigail (2024)
The surest way to my heart is to give me a true genre mash-up. So how could I resist Dan Stevens in a horror/crime film from the filmmaking collective Radio Silence? Stevens plays “Frank,” an ex-cop-turned-trigger-man, who is in over his head on a kidnapping gone horribly wrong. His dancing eyes almost allow us to trust him, but there’s a lurking darkness in his performance that makes us keep him at arm’s length… until he reaches peak bad-guy status. So good. So bloody.
7. The Man Who Invented Christmas (2017)
I know what you’re thinking, a period Christmas movie? What could be more traditionally mainstream? But casting weirdo-extraordinaire Dan Stevens as Charles Dickens in this wildly fictionalized take on the creation of A Christmas Carol makes a treacle-sweet film far more fun than it would otherwise be. Stevens plays Dickens with hammy, manic glee that propels the story through its mandatory beats and makes this an enjoyable addition to the holiday film-watching rotation.
So what do you think? Who else should join the Weirdos club? I’d say Kathryn Newton is already showing a lot of promise.
