Theo James Talks ‘The Gentlemen’, Royals, Comedy, & Career
If you’ve seen Theo James on the big screen over the last decade, you’ll remember him as the charming leading man in the Divergent series or the Underworld series. Many will also remember him entertaining us as Cameron, the hilariously over-privileged, deplorable guy in the second season of The White Lotus.
But what many don’t know is that the British actor can make you laugh; he flexed his comedic muscles in Guy Ritchie’s latest series, The Gentlemen. The actor says he shares a love for dry humour and sarcasm with his character, Eddie. “Comedy and being kind of silly is my favourite creative outlet,” he tells SHARP over a Zoom interview.
Now streaming on Netflix, The Gentlemen follows aristocratic Eddie (Theo James) as he inherits the family estate, only to discover that it is home to an enormous weed empire — and its proprietors aren’t going anywhere. The series is hilariously entertaining, without leaning too much into the comedic or dramatic side. James says he loved diving into themes of organized crime, rising through the ranks of power (and being destroyed by it) and the idea of a family in crime.
James, 39, comes across as reserved and guarded, which is probably why his dry humour often takes us by surprise. He likes being spontaneous with his lines too, and he says he’d like to do that more often. He made his acting debut in 2010 with You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger. In his earlier days, James says he was affected by the prism of how others perceived him. But over time, his experience in the industry has taught him to “try and free myself of expectation through the eyes of others.”
We spoke with James about playing Eddie in The Gentlemen, working with Guy Ritchie, the next phase of his career, his own sense of style and what makes a gentleman.
Congratulations on your starring role in a Guy Ritchie series. I’ve been binging this — it’s so British, and it feels a mix of Downton Abbey and The Godfather, but with a more comedic edge.
It’s well put. Those were definitely touch points for us. First and foremost, as you said, it’s a comedy: it’s fun, it’s kind of a wild ride. Our creative touch points were smashing the world of high aristocracy and crumbling British Empire with the other side — the murky underworld of London’s criminality — and [blending] those two genres together. And then — not that we’d ever emulate The Godfather, being one of the best films of all time — but the linear story of someone coming back to their family, unexpectedly having to become the head of the family, and how their soul is poisoned by power.
“I really wanted to do an ascension story. They’re always my favourite stories — someone who is plucked from relative obscurity, then rises through the ranks of power and, in doing so, becomes destroyed by it.”
Theo James
This world of aristocrats is so fascinating as an outsider. What piqued your interest about this facet of society?
It’s fascinating because, as a British person, you understand the culture that we’re in, the history, and what informs our sense of class. Everything in class is a very British… toxin, shall we say, that still exists. But what I was most fascinated by is that this world still exists in real terms. Even though The Gentlemen TV show is a heightened sense of reality, there are dukes that inherit massive landed estates. The estate that we shot on is a real estate, and it’s owned by the Duke of Beaufort, the real Duke who has been passed down this massive swathe of land and property for centuries. That is so fascinating to me, because it feels like a vestige of a past that doesn’t exist anymore, but you realize it still exists. It’s mad.
As a British person, you’re kind of constrained to your social demographic. I’ve never met anyone in that type of aristocratic standing. So, it’s fascinating to see that it exists in real time, and all the leftover horrors of what the Empire did a century ago.
You have a SAG under your belt, you’ve done movies and TV. What were you looking to do at this stage of your career when The Gentlemen came along?
I really wanted to do an ascension story. They’re always my favourite stories — someone who is plucked from relative obscurity, then rises through the ranks of power and, in doing so, becomes destroyed by it. That’s the pompous way of talking about it. Obviously, The Gentlemen‘s more fun than that, but organized crime, the idea of a family in criminality, all those things felt really rich to me and I wanted to dive into that world.
“In The White Lotus, there was a freedom there. You could try anything under the sun. Some things work, some things don’t, but that’s the journey, which is really satisfying.”
Theo James
We love seeing your comedic side – you have great comic timing. We got to see that in The White Lotus and now in this. What’s your equation with comedy?
I love it! I’d love to do more actually. I started off doing it as a broke student hustling my way up and then I lost track of it somehow. That sometimes happens, just with careers and life, but it’s probably my favourite creative outlet, comedy and being kind of silly. I’d love to do more of it, really. It can be spontaneous and fun.
That’s what I enjoyed about this; although, it’s a little bit more controlled working with Guy — he’s more specific. But certainly in The White Lotus, there was a freedom there. You could try anything under the sun. Some things work, some things don’t, but that’s the journey, which is really satisfying.
“With age, I’ve learned to try and free myself of expectation through the eyes of others.”
Theo James
If every character is a little bit of the actor who plays them, how much of yourself did you see in Eddie?
Probably less in a way, but you definitely find a piece of yourself in him. I come from a big family and we all take turns being the fuckup of the family. Laughs. We all have done it over the years, and I certainly have been the fuckup at some points. But I think in our family dynamic, I’m the pragmatic one in many ways, and I do have a wild brother, and another wild brother, so I see parallels there. That’s probably the connective tissue, and also, he’s quite contained, but I like the dryness of [Eddie’s] humour. I quite like sarcasm, so maybe we share that too.
How does a role like this satisfy you as an actor? Is there a check box?
This one, well, it doesn’t but I’ll find it on the next one… joking! Laughs. Each one satisfies a different element. This was trying to create a story in the Guy Ritchie world that felt like it had longevity over a whole show. I’ve said it before, but one thing that’s fascinating about this world is that it’s heightened, it’s above reality by 10%. As a result, you’re treading a line between humour and insanity: ridiculousness.
If you dip too deep into that pool, it becomes a little bit pointless and silly. But, then you can’t go too hard on the drama of it, because it’s Guy Ritchie; it’s not the same. It has a slight wink to it, a slight knowingness to it. And I love that because I think that’s very British; but also, as an actor, you have to really kind of walk that tightrope.
We read that Guy’s Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels was definitely part of your cultural diet as a teen, and it had a huge impression on you. What were your expectations [prior to] working with Guy, and in what ways did he surprise you?
He’s been around a while, so you always hear stories, or you know someone through someone who’s worked with him, so I had some idea. But I was surprised that is he, very specifically now, likes the bones of a script. He likes top and tail. He knows who’s in the scene, the beginning, and the ending pretty much. Then on the day, getting to set, he likes to fill in everything else. He likes to vibe it on the day.
As an actor who’s used to preparing and being ready, thinking about your character and how your character evolves, you have to be ready to just sack that shit off because it’s going to be completely different on the day. There’s a real freedom to that. It lets you throw away some of your preconceived ideas about the character and do something new.
“It shouldn’t matter too much how others see you because at the end of the day, control is an elusive reality.”
Theo James
Throughout your career, how do you think Hollywood, or the entertainment industry as a whole, sees you versus how you want to be seen? Has that changed over time?
It’s a good question. It’s funny, when you start off, you are often affected by the prism [through] which people see you or you think that people see you. With age, I’ve learned to try and free myself of expectation through the eyes of others.
The funny thing about this job is that you have an element of choice, but in reality, some things happen and some things don’t, some things work and some things don’t. Sometimes the best script with the best team, the best studio, and the best director is the thing that really doesn’t work for whatever reason. In opposition to that, the thing that you weren’t sure about, and you were always a little on the fence about, can evolve into something much more complex and creatively satisfying than you were thinking. I guess that’s a long winded way of saying: it shouldn’t matter too much how others see you, because at the end of the day, control is an elusive reality. [It] isn’t real when it comes to being an actor.
What part of this experience gave you a better understanding of goals for yourself, as an actor?
Comedy is really important to me, trying to play as many different characters as possible; I think that’s what I would like to do going forward. As well as playing more, and not necessarily always the centre of each piece; I quite like playing a central character, but [I also like] being able to do something else, just ducking into something.
With White Lotus, for example, the thing before The Gentlemen, was a very open American: big-chested, metaphorically and physically ravenous. Then the opposite of that is Eddie in The Gentlemen. He’s very reserved, he’s very controlled. His physicality and his body movement is completely different to that of Cameron. So, the next thing that I’m doing at the moment, which happens to be in Canada, is very different. Again, it’s two brothers, twins, and it’s a very violent horror film. So if I can learn anything, it’s trying to do as many different things as possible, but who knows? Laughs.
“I think the idea of a gentleman, in this instance, is refined with an air of menace. That’s the true gentleman: someone who, on the outside, appears to be extremely refined, but on the inside, there’s a piece of animal there.”
Theo James
How much of Eddie’s character arc is reflected in the clothes he wears?
Eddie’s journey, stylistically, was quite specific. We started him as not particularly stylish. He comes from the army, he wears thick jumpers with waxed jackets. He has some sense of style, but that’s not driven him. What I wanted to happen to him was [that], over the series, he becomes more stylish, more put together, more structured, in terms of what he wears. By the end of the season, he’s wearing three piece suits, very structured, very gentleman-esque because he’s ascended to a position of power. With that, he has a sartorial illusion to him, so that was very specifically designed. Interestingly, when you’re in a three piece tweed suit, it gives you a sense of being that you don’t have when you’re wearing day to day clothes. It’s very reflective of the character.
How would you define your own sense of style?
With me, I don’t go too hard out there because I have tried that in the past and I end up looking like a steaming gimp. So, I like to wear a mix of styles and colour, and try to push the boundaries in my nominal way, where I can.
You mentioned gentleman, so I was wondering, what makes a gentleman?
Well, it’s funny, we had that line in the show, but thank God it got cut! Laughs. Literally, someone said: ‘Tell me, what does make a gentleman?’, and then I said some bollocks about what a gentleman is, which changed about 15 time. I think the idea of a gentleman, in this instance, is refined with an air of menace. That’s the true gentleman: someone who, on the outside, appears to be extremely refined, but on the inside, there’s a piece of animal there.
All photos courtesy of Netflix.
