WGBH Drama Club has been loving MASTERPIECE’s new miniseries Howards End, and its fascinating look at class struggles. The show has brought to life some dynamic characters, including Matthew Macfadyen as the romantic lead, Mr. Wilcox. Macfadyen has an impressive and diverse resumé, and we're here to tell you everything you need to know about our new favorite leading man.
The Howards End finale airs on WGBH 2 on Sunday, February 2 at 8pm. Missed any episodes? No problem! Watch it now on Passport.
1. He’s married to Keeley Hawes.
Talk about a real-life power couple. Macfadyen is married to
Keeley Hawes, star of Drama Club favorite Durrells in Corfu. The couple met on the set of the spy series Spooks and have been married since 2004. You may also recognize Hawes from BBC’s Bodyguard as well as MASTERPIECES’s Upstairs, Downstairs and Mrs. Wilson.
2. He played Mr. Darcy in 2005’s Pride and Prejudice.
It is a truth universally acknowledged that Mr. Darcy is a dream role for any British actor. So in 2005, Macfadyen stepped into Colin Firth’s wet shirt for the film adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, starring as Mr. Darcy opposite Keira Knightley’s Elizabeth Bennet. And he bewitched us, body and soul.
3. He is playing his first American character on HBO’s Succession...
After many years of starring in period dramas, Macfadyen landed the role of Tom Wamsgans in Succession, the delicious HBO drama about a family-run media empire. “Americans sort of say every word, you know. So it’s kind of liberating, because you’re on the front foot as opposed to the back foot. It’s totally different, and it’s really energizing,”
he has said about acting with an American accent.
4. … a role that allowed him to show off his comedic skills.
Drama enthusiasts are accustomed to seeing Macfadyen in serious British roles, but Succession allows him to show his humorous side. As Tom, he is a bit of a buffoon and a little pathetic, yet somehow likable and compulsively watchable. While he’s just one part of an absurd ensemble of fine actors, he somehow steals all of his scenes.
5. He played Captain Von Trapp.
Macfadyen once again stepped into the shoes of an iconic role when he played Captain Georg Von Trapp — possibly one of the most beloved fictional characters from any musical — in 2015’s The Von Trapp Family: A Life Of Music. The film tells the classic tale from the perspective of the oldest daughter, Agathe von Trapp, and is based on the real woman's memoirs.
6. He’s an award-winner.
Macfadyen's acting skills have been officially noticed by industry experts. He picked up a BAFTA (basically a British Emmy) for his supporting role in the TV series Criminal Justice in 2010. He has also been nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for his ensemble role in the 2008 film Frost/Nixon and as well as a Critics' Choice Television Award for Succession.
7. His acting heroes are Al Pacino, Robert De Niro and Daniel Day Lewis.
Macfadyen takes inspiration from the greats.
He says he once had the intimidating experience of auditioning with De Niro, which led him to believe you shouldn’t meet your heroes. “It is nicer to imagine them in your head and admire their work.”
8. He and his wife have resisted the Hollywood lifestyle.
Despite successful acting careers, Macfadyen and his wife Keeley Hawes avoided moving to the West Coast and living the Hollywood lifestyle, instead choosing a more family-focused life. “It didn’t seem like somewhere we wanted to live,”
he has said. “I’ve found it quite tough, this time, being away... And if I have more than three of four days off and I can’t get back, I miss the kids.”
9. His next TV role focuses on a fascinating true story.
Remember the Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? cheating scandal? In the 2000s, former army general Charles Ingram scammed his way to £1 million on the game show by using an accomplice in the audience to feed him answers. Macfadyen will play Ingram in the
AMC/ITV series Quiz, alongside Michael Sheen and Fleabag’s Sian Clifford.
10. He is also set to appear in one of the first #MeToo movies.
He’ll play another American in the forthcoming film The Assistant, a thriller inspired by the Harvey Weinstein sexual assault allegations. It’s being called “
the first great movie about #MeToo.” Macfadyen plays an HR Director at a film production company as the film follow a young assistant during one day on the job. It hits theaters this month.
