Gary Lewis (actor)
| Gary Lewis | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
Gary Stevenson 30 November 1957 Glasgow, Scotland, UK |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1994–present |
Gary Lewis (born Gary Stevenson on 30 November 1957) is a Scottish actor. He's had parts in Billy Elliot, Gangs of New York, Eragon and Three and Out, as well as a major role in the television docudrama, Supervolcano.
Born and raised in the tough Easterhouse area of Glasgow, Lewis has described in interviews the dichotomy of his upbringing: his parents stressed the value of education, yet his formal studies were left wanting. When he left school, he lacked a sense of purpose, taking a job as a road-sweeper to earn a living. Later, Lewis found employment in the local library. Encouraged by his brother, an English teacher at a Glasgow secondary school (Stonelaw High School), he read voraciously and thought about pursuing a career as an actor.
Although he had pursued amateur theatrics, Lewis was 32 when he committed to acting, joining Robert Carlyle's newly formed Raindog Theatre. His career received a boost when he was befriended by actor-director Peter Mullan whom he met at a socialist lecture.
Mullan hired Lewis for a role in the short Close which began filming in 1991 but took some three years to complete. By that time, both actors had appeared in Shallow Grave (1994). Lewis went on to act in Mullan's subsequent shorts Good Day for the Bad Guys (1995) and the award-winning Fridge (1996).
Lewis joined director Kenneth Loach's unofficial stock company lending support to his two mentors in separate films: with Carlyle, he co-starred in Carla's Song (1996), while he played a recovering alcoholic alongside Mullan in My Name Is Joe (1998). In between, Mullan cast him as the over-righteous, somewhat dimwitted elder sibling Thomas in Orphans (1998), an examination of a dysfunctional family. He went on to co-star with Max Beesley in The Match (1999; released on video in USA in 2001) before landing his international breakthrough part as the father of a young boy who wants to become a ballet dancer in Billy Elliot (2000). Lewis delivered a multi-layered turn as a man coping with grief over the death of his wife, a violent strike that threatens his livelihood and the struggles of raising two sons. The actor rounded out his banner year teaming with Irish actor Sean McGinley in What Where, a 12-minute short film of Samuel Beckett's play, and supporting Michael Caine as a boxing coach who may or may not have been involved in a murder in Shiner (screened at the San Sebastian Film Festival).
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