Damian Lewis says he’s ‘much less rigorously alpha male’ than his characters and claims he wouldn’t play Bond ‘even if he was asked’
He’s a Hollywood action star best known for playing macho figures like Sergeant Brody in Homeland and Robert Axelrod in Billions.
But while Damian Lewis might have made a career out of being playing hard men, his actual life is a world away from all of that.
In a new interview with the Daily Telegraph, the Homeland star, 49, said: ‘I’m much less rigorously alpha male than any of the characters that I play.’
Action man: Damian Lewis says he is ‘much less rigorously alpha male’ than his characters and claims he wouldn’t accept a Bond role if he was asked (pictured in 2018)
While fans might be used to seeing Damian play American tough guys, Damian is actually the Etonian son of a City banker who hails from the swanky north London neighbourhood of St John’s Wood.
In the same interview, the Band of Brothers star shut down once and for all the rumours that he might be playing the next James Bond.
He said: ‘I don’t know who they’ll choose – he’ll be fantastic, or she will be fantastic. But I don’t want to play Bond – even if I was asked!’
The Billions star revealed that he was interesting in doing different kinds of projects, with the Bond role in any case unlikely now that he is approaching his 50th birthday.
Serious: The screen star, 49, played Bobby Axelrod in Billions (pictured) and Sergeant Brody in Homeland
Strong bond: The Hollywood star has been married to Harry Potter actress Helen McCrory, 52, since 2007 (pictured together in November 2019)
Damian was also candid about how his 13-year marriage to Harry Potter actress Helen McCrory, 52, has lasted longer than many other showbiz relationships.
The pair got together when Damian was in his mid-thirties, a few years after his mother’s tragic death in a car crash had triggered a reckless period in his life.
‘Helen definitely helped me out of that, no question,’ he said. ‘She was unlike anyone I’ve ever met. She still is.’
Period piece: Showing his eagerness to play varied roles, Damian starred as Henry VIII alongside Claire Foy in the BBC’s adaptation of Wolf Hall in 2015
Damian and Helen have been have two children together, daughter Manon, 13, and son Gulliver, 12, at their home in north London.
In March, Damian joked he finally knows what fellow thespian Helen looked like as they self-isolated together in their country home in Suffolk amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The duo were asked how they were coping with life in quarantine, in contrast to their typically busy schedules during an appearance on Good Morning Britain.
Homeland actor Damian quipped: ‘I know, it’s amazing! I had no idea [Helen] looked like that!’
Helen previously revealed to the Radio Times that when she met the flame-haired actor, it had been love at first sight.
‘He just made me laugh a lot. And still does,’ she gushed of her longtime partner.
‘Of course, everyone in life wants someone to love and be loved by, but I think I was always just engrossed and involved in work.
‘And no, the timing was pure fluke, pure chance, it always is, isn’t it?
How he was: The actor first found fame in 2001 as a star in HBO’s hit series Band of Brothers