Damian Lewis is the king in PBS’ “Wolf Hall,” but he’s not the star. After meeting his demise as Brody on Showtime’s “Homeland,” the 44-year-old English actor is getting the royal treatment and suiting up in opulent garb to play famous and often misportrayed Tudor tyrant Henry VIII.
But Lewis’ Henry is merely a supporting player in the six-part “Masterpiece” miniseries. Based on Hilary Mantel’s novels, the series aims its focus on the savvy Tudor adviser and fixer to the king, Thomas Cromwell (played by leading stage actor Mark Rylance). “Wolf Hall” begins its PBS rollout Sunday.
It’s quite a time to be an actor on TV, wouldn’t you say? There’s broadcast, cable, digital.
Oh, yeah. A lot has happened in the last 10 years, heck, just the last three years. I am the first to say that I’ve benefited enormously from it. I came of age as a male lead actor just as the TV landscape dramatically shifted.