James Purefoy may not be a household name, but that's just how the British actor likes it. Though he's worked steadily for the last 20 years and watched his theatre co-stars Jude Law and Joseph Fiennes go on to fame and fortune in American movies, Purefoy was more than content to continue treading the boards. "When I started out, we didn't really have a movie industry in England. There were maybe three films being made, and they all starred Hugh Grant," he notes wryly. "When Jude arrived, there was an explosion of British filmmaking, so people were becoming famous at the age of 23 and going straight into leading parts." But that's only part of the reason Purefoy never actively pursued film roles. "I'm also something of a socialist, which was probably terribly destructive for me," he remarks. "But I felt very strongly I should just be doing theatre, and everything else was a bit of a sellout for me."
Which is not to say he has anything against his peers who took that route. He raves about Fiennes' talent and Law's sense of humor, and he is happy to see the British film industry thriving. And Purefoy has certainly dabbled in big-budget films: He fought zombie dogs in Resident Evil, battled Reese Witherspoon in Vanity Fair, and jousted as the Black Prince in A Knight's Tale. He also tested against Pierce Brosnan for the role of James Bond in 1995's GoldenEye. And though it didn't work out that time, Purefoy is again at the top of a short list of actors to inherit the role in the next outing.
It's easy to see why Purefoy is in the running. Aside from his obvious genetic blessings, the actor comes armed with a quiet charisma that translates into a powerful onscreen presence. It's a persona put to excellent use in Rome, the epic new miniseries from HBO that launched Aug. 28, in which the actor portrays Marc Antony, the loyal foot soldier of Julius Caesar. It's a role that requires Purefoy to fill pretty big sandals; Marlon Brando and Richard Burton are among the greats who have tackled Antony in the past. "Brando and Burton are heroes of mine, so it's not something you want to take lightly," Purefoy admits. "However, this is a different Marc Antony than people normally expect. People have this notion of him as kind of a romantic figure, somebody very noble and loyal. You're not getting that version." As played by Purefoy, Antony is a Roman party animal, frequently drunk and loving women and battles. "He's a man who lives his life at 200 miles an hour, he's so full of that lust for life," Purefoy says. "That makes him great fun to play."
And terrific fun to watch. Budgeted at upward of $100 million, Rome is HBO's attempt to fill the series void left by stalwarts Six Feet Under and Sex in the City. It certainly features enough death and sex to outdo both shows, but it also features smart scripts and stellar acting by the largely European cast, which includes Polly Walker as Caesar's manipulating niece and Lindsay Duncan as Servilia. "It's got something in it for everybody," Purefoy observes. "There's great characters, great production values, and it's a bit soapy at times. It's Dynasty in sandals. It's Sex in the Sandals." It's also full of plot twists that require focused viewing, but Purefoy promises it will all come to a dynamic conclusion. "If people stick with it, it's devastating by the end," he says. "It's like seeing Shakespeare or anything done by a great writer; it can be complicated and hard, but the payoff is tremendous."
Purefoy had never considered doing American TV before, primarily because he makes his home in England, where he has an 8-year-old son. "If I want to be the kind of dad I want to be, I have to live near England," he says simply. "Being here, it's just too far away to have that kind of long-distance relationship. It's impossible to do his homework with the eight-hour time difference. So I was delighted to be asked to go in for something like this, where it's American television but it was going to be shot in Rome." Purefoy was able to return home every weekend during filming to be with his son. But there were other incentives: "It was a great character and an HBO series. HBO is the best network to work for. If they don't feel something's right, they'll just shoot it again. They just throw the money at it because they know they're investing in quality." He also became fascinated with Antony, whom he researched in great detail through period writings and books on military history. "There's very little in the scripts where you would say, 'Oh, no, surely he didn't really do this,'" Purefoy says with a laugh. "I learned Marc Antony would dress up as Dionysus, the god of wine, and travel around Rome in a chariot pulled by six lions. You just can't make this stuff up."
Right From the Start
As Purefoy speaks about his joy of acting with such enthusiasm, it's interesting to discover he first pursued it for slightly frivolous reasons. "I had to choose three courses in college," he recalls. "I'd already chosen two and thought I would check other classes out to find my third. I walked in the drama room, and there were 16 girls and four boys. And that's the pathetic, true reason why I started becoming an actor." Still, the world of theatre wasn't new to him. He grew up in the small town of Taunton, 165 miles from London, where his mother was active in amateur dramatics. "She was kind of the village star," he explains. "She either directed or starred in pretty much everything. And although I never did it, it wasn't alien to me. I was around the house when she was learning lines, and I'd go to see her in shows. I'd sit in her dressing room waiting because they didn't have babysitters."
While still in his teens, Purefoy was tackling the title roles in Romeo and Juliet and Henry V. Of course, he's quick to point out, this wasn't really a big deal in England; taking on Shakespeare is a bit like doing Neil Simon in America. But, while starring in a production of Equus, Purefoy experienced what he calls his "Billy Elliot moment"— borrowing from that film's description of the electricity in the air. "That's the only way I can describe it," he says. "That feeling of being in front of an audience, using that language, and having 1,000 people in the palm of my hand. I could make them do anything—laugh, cry, anything. I sound like a complete megalomaniac, but that was how I felt at the time."
He was also a realist. "I didn't want to bang my head against a brick wall, I didn't have stars in my eyes," he says. "I was interested in theatre, not television or film." He applied to the Royal Shakespeare Company, where he auditioned opposite 2,800 people for 28 available slots. He got in, snagged the title role in Henry V, and was approached by an agent. "He said, 'What do you want to do?'" recalls Purefoy. "And I said, 'I just want to go to the RSC; I want to go to Stratford and learn from the best classical actors I can.' And he was happy about that. Agents here, they were very keen on letting you train. It's longevity they're after. I didn't want to be burned out when I was 28, I wanted to be doing this job when I'm 90."
Bonding With Bond
Purefoy worked in film and television from time to time, mainly to pay the bills. "I did a play by Euripides, Women of Troy," he notes. "I did 14 weeks, and at the end of it I was given a check for £69. So I would have to go and do a TV show, simply to pay the bills so I could go back and carry on doing theatre." Although he's with the ICM agency in Los Angeles, Purefoy admits he probably causes his agents headaches by not pursuing blockbuster roles. "I know I have a slightly self-destructive streak, and sometimes I've cocked up meetings and screen tests," he says with a slight smile. "I'm aware I've botched jobs that could have made me huge, because I think there's something in me that doesn't really want that. I've been working 20 years now and doing lots and lots of different things, and I'm really happy in my work. The only reason to be famous is quality of scripts: The more famous you are, the better scripts you get offered."
That said, Purefoy confesses an enormous fondness for the role of James Bond, something that would undoubtedly make him a worldwide superstar. "I love Bond, I love Bond movies," he says. "The first cinema film I ever saw was Live or Let Die. I saw it two-and-a-half times straight through with my father. We just sat there, through the morning show, the afternoon show, and part of the evening show. I have a great, great affection for James Bond, and I get excited going to see those movies." While he knows the role comes with its own baggage, Purefoy also believes it is an "insanely good part." He also doesn't want to be the one to screw up one of the biggest franchises in the world. At the end of the day, however, he chooses not to think about it too much. "You'd have to consider the pros and cons very carefully," he notes. "But it's also one of those things you can't really consider until you're asked to do it."
Purefoy is eager to take on any projects with great scripts, citing writers as the most prized contributors to entertainment. "I think the big difference between English and American actors is, because we've done so many plays, it becomes about the ensemble and the scene for us," he observes. "It's not just about the character within the scene. It's about, 'What is the writer getting at? What does the writer want?' The writer is the only truly creative force in any piece of film, television, or theatre. Everybody else is interpretive." And with Purefoy as interpreter, writers can know they're in good hands. BSW