James McAvoy, and why I love him

Have you ever been asked who your favourite actor is?

Of course you have – especially when filling out your profile for Facebook or one of those evil dating profiles, which we all know just lead to bad things!

Well until recently I never really gave that question much of my time, and didn’t really have a favourite… There are lots of greats of course; Dame Judy is up there, Ewan McGregor is always a good choice, and I do have a thing for Lucy Lawless too – she certainly rocks as a Cylon! (FYI - James is also a fan of Battlestar, oh yeah!)
This has all changed over the last month however, when I realised I do actually have a favourite actor, one which I will buy a movie for – even if I haven’t seen it yet – just because they are in it… If you haven’t already guessed from the title, mine is James McAvoy! (and go and get a coffee for gods sake!)

So who is he? And when did my (until recently unrealised) obsession begin?!
Well, it all goes back to 2002, a year when I was busy working a 9-5 job at H & J Smith and living with Michelle in Tasman St, Nelson. Back then I was so much more innocent and spent each evening watching Shorty St and The Amazing Race with Mich, and reading Dune. This is where James comes in, as I first saw him in Children Of Dune, a sci-fi channel mini series which covered the second and third Dune books. James played Leto II, who became the God Emperor, and eventually turned into a Sandworm (this will mean nothing to you if you haven’t read Dune, but if you haven’t that’s your loss cause it’s the best sci-fi epic ever!!) So there he was, James first came onto my TV, he’s character was half naked for much of his performance, and pulled some awesome fighting moves while developing some pretty cool sandworm teeth! Apart from being a pretty face, he also came across as a pretty good actor!


James was born in Scotland, so I do of course feel empathetic towards him for that reason, but he also got married on my birthday! I’m not sure if this is just rubbing salt in the wound, or a sign that he is meant to be my favourite actor, either way it’s nice to have some sort of connection! :P

So is there life after Dune? Of course there is! James has played all sorts of characters, from a quadraplegic Irishman in Inside I’m Dancing (A movie which will make you laugh and cry, unless you have no sole), to Mr Tumnus the Fawn (another connection, this was one of my many nicknames!). James is also in The Last King Of Scotland which won much acclaim and is also a great watch, and did a great job as the lead in Starter For 10, an awesome comedy based around the TV classic that was University Challenge! Oh and Atonement is also very well reguarded! Unlike most American actors he’s also great at pulling off accents seamlessly, which is always nice! Saying that I guess most American’s don’t need too, as their movies as always about America – you must admit though, this is a bit boring and doesn’t really show the actors are very versatile!

So there you have it, he’s talented, witty and pretty hot too, he’s had some great roles and is set to have more, especially in The Hobbit! James has been tipped to play Bilbo, which will of course be his biggest role yet. I guess this post is partly to say “I saw him first – get your own favourite actor!” as I’m sure once the Hobbit comes out he will be in the spot light a lot more, so watch out cause he’s going to everywhere soon! (Especially in Wellington, hopefully he’s going to love it so much he’ll move here with his wife and I can be his gardener!!)

I’ll leave it there, but keep an eye out for him and watch any movie that he is in; as I’m sure you’ll agree he is awesome once you’ve seen him at work! Just remember – hands off!