No one is ever upset or disappointed when Sir Patrick Stewart comes on screen. Whether it’s the umpteenth cameo in a Marvel movie or being a surprise addition to a huge Super Bowl ad, Shakespeare’s master And the generational captain has always been greeted with curiosity, if not outright glee, by audiences.
But Stewart, who died Thursday afternoon of Alzheimer’s disease and Lewy body dementia, didn’t feel their warm respect was appropriate. He saw the respect he earned during his soaring career as an opportunity to look forward to what was next – not for easy pay from familiar parts, but to push himself into new territory and delight audiences again.
Maybe that’s why when I heard about his demise, my first memory was of one of his less-seen roles. “Blunt Talk” was a hot commodity when Starz picked it up in 2014. Seth MacFarlane (who worked with Stewart on “Family Guy,” “American Dad,” and “Ted”) was producing, and Stewart was starring as an ex-prominent British news anchor attempting to make a fresh start in America. Premium cable network delivers comedy from ‘Bored to Death’ creator Jonathan Ames straight-to-chain sequence With a two-season commitment.
And it actually lasted that long: two, 10-episode seasons, neither of which received the praise or viewership expected by the network. Following nods to the 2005 TV remake of “The Lion in the Winter” and a two-episode adaptation of 1999’s “Moby Dick”, Stewart received a Golden Globe nomination (his final nomination of three total), but reviews were low. median And interest waned rapidly.
I’ll admit: I don’t remember much of the show’s story, partly because it wasn’t as “grand” as I initially thought. Stewart’s character, Walter Blunt, was a handful – understood only by his trusted valet (Adrian Scarborough), a fellow Falklands War veteran, and constantly challenged by his staff, producers and studio executives. The stubborn lost soul ended up in one absurd situation after another, a comic version of the era’s anti-hero obsession: a drunken womanizer whom virtually no one liked, clinging to what little respect he had left.
But Stewart had the ball. He said a lot during the show’s press tour that made no sense, but he backed it up in every scene, no matter how ridiculous, how awkward, how trivial. There’s a meta joy in the sound of a drunken Shakespeare blaring from the top of a police car at the premiere. There is relative hilarity in this Their shameful battle with touchless devices In an airport toilet. Pity his childlike dependence on his particularly loyal servant.
Frankly, Stewart brings so much to a series that it never quite lives up to what it has to offer, but that and it becomes all the more beloved for that very reason. It would be easy to say that “Blunt Talk” made a mark because Stewart got a chance to play outside his comfort zone; He delighted in subverting the expectations attached to a captain, a professor, and a two-time Olivier Award winner (not to mention a man whose natural baritone commands gravitas with every syllable), and the few who watched him do it got a chance to share in his joy.
But I think that’s why Stewart’s performance in “Blunt Talk” is better than any other memory of the series – and Short It far exceeds any memory I have of what such an actor could (and should) do. saw everything) – That’s because it exemplifies his unique, enduring blend of affability and competence. Patrick was an actor we never got tired of seeing (or hearing about), even when we had every reason to believe we’d seen (or heard of) it before.
As Picard, Stewart logged more than 200 episodes and led four films. He revived Charles Xavier in nearly a dozen films (including the upcoming “Avengers: Doomsday”). He voiced Deputy Director Avery Bullock in 125 episodes of “American Dad” (a role he cited as his favorite voice-acting performance). He kept bringing audiences night after night to see his performance One-Man-Show of “A Christmas Carol” Her Tony Award-nominated work in “Macbeth” and her stellar performances in “The Tempest,” “The Ride Down Mount Morgan,” “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?”, “Antony and Cleopatra,” and “Hamlet.”
His lifetime’s work should feel abundant, and instead it feels barely enough. Even his lesser projects now seem like they deserved more. This is the level of care he brings to the screen, and it’s partly why he will be so missed in future screenings.
sir patrick stewart was Man Who was it easy to like And an actor who was easy to admire. He never took anyone lightly. Thankfully, we never took that for granted.