We don't think about the first responders until we need them. Like I don't unconsciously think everyday about these people and their lives, but that is what they are doing.
Oliver Stark
Often the people with the biggest smiles can be struggling the most.
I count myself as a feminist. I'm a vegan, so I believe in animal rights. I stand behind the Black Lives Matter here in the US. I want to help wherever I can.
I was a huge meat eater, but there came a turning point where I was like, actually I don't think I want to do this anymore. I'm a big animal lover. And I just thought, let me give it a go.
All the quirks you've spent years trying to hide, they are actually your superpowers; they're what set you apart. They don't make you better. They don't make you worse. They make you you, and only you can be that.
Then I was actually meant to be going home but for some reason I decided to extend for a week. Then on the final day by extension, finally an audition came through, and it was 'Into the Badlands'.
There's sometimes an accent on TV and it's like 'are you American?', because I can kind of pick up on it a little bit and I never want to be in that position.
People are really connecting to my birthmark. I'm getting lots of messages from moms saying that their child has a birthmark on their face and it's a huge boost of confidence to them.
Pete Krause has become a bit of a mentor to me. If there's anything that I'm struggling with right away, I'll go to him and I'll ask him questions. We've formed a really great relationship.
Growing up as a young man you're often told, 'You shouldn't cry,' and 'Emotions are weakness.' I think that's so damaging and I genuinely think that if we raised young boys better we wouldn't have such a need for feminism.
If you're told to 'Man up,' you're essentially being told that being feminine is lesser.
I think if we took away that toxic masculinity then the world would be a much better place.
There are some really genuinely talented people that make fan videos. They cut them really well, like, I'm amazed at the quality these editors have.
The heavy subject matter is the most fun stuff to work with. It's the meaty things, it's the things that you get to get stuck in.
But for me, personally, that's one of the biggest perks of the job that I get to do these kinds of crazy things but in a safely created environment.
There's something very comforting in the fact that you're given this reminder that whatever it is, whatever situation you find yourself in, there are these people that will run into the danger to keep you safe.
I think if it is something an actor believes in and has an opinion on it, then there is no better way to use that platform.
The shows which have strong female characters are long overdue. I think there should be more and I am glad to see that there are more. There are fantastic female and diverse actors all around the world. I am glad to see that they are getting more recognition and being pushed into light more and more.
So when I'm tweeting with people, I'm just surprised that anybody wants to talk to me, to be honest with you. So I'm still walking on cloud nine while I get to do that stuff with people.
I often play the quote-unquote bad guy, and I don't know why that is but it's just something that I've always hopefully been able to tap into. Maybe I'm harboring some deep, dark secrets that even I don't know about.
I like to think I'm not so devious and maniacal. So it's fun to step into that world and put those shoes on and play that character out.
To have a stable relationship in this career, to have a grounding rock, is very important because the career is so tumultuous. It's nice to have some stability somewhere in your life.
As far as skills go, I hope that I could administer CPR now for real. My problem with it, actually, is I'm not sure I know when to administer CPR.
If you keep on pushing someone, eventually you push them too far.
I hated myself because I had this imagined version of who I wanted to be. Looking back, this idealized person was an amalgamation of various toxic leading men I would watch in movies over the years. Cool. Strong. Mysterious. Serious. Intense.
I thought that if I was able to change myself, I would be more successful.
See, it's not until you start accepting who you are that you can really find success, or more importantly, happiness.
Firefighters are everyday heroes who I think are often overlooked - so to get to play one as a part of a show that is doing a huge amount to try and pay tribute to them... I feel very lucky!
We are able to create incredible set-pieces here in the US that TV shows often don't have the resources to create in the UK.
I felt like I had hit a ceiling in the UK. I wasn't having many opportunities to audition back home and I felt like my career was coming to a halt. So I came to the US to be a fresh face and start over.
Stark was my late Grandmother's maiden name. When I joined the acting union in the UK 'Oliver Jones' was taken so I had to come up with something else!
I think our first scene was us arguing, and nobody wants to argue with Angela Bassett, but the thing about it was that all of the nerves I had going into it were immediately kind of quelled as soon as I got to the set. Becasue she's not Angela Bassett, she's just Angela Bassett.
