Dan Stevens facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Dan Stevens
Stevens in 2024
Born	Daniel Jonathan Stevens (1982-10-10) 10 October 1982 (age 42) London, England
Education	Emmanuel College, Cambridge (BA)
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1999-present
Spouse(s)	Susie Hariet ​ (m. 2009)​
Children	3

Daniel Jonathan Stevens (born on October 10, 1982) is an English actor. He became well-known for playing Matthew Crawley in the TV show Downton Abbey from 2010 to 2012.

He has also starred in many movies. These include The Guest (2014), Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb (2014) where he played Sir Lancelot, and Disney's live-action Beauty and the Beast (2017) as the Beast/Prince. He also played Charles Dickens in The Man Who Invented Christmas (2017). From 2017 to 2019, he was the main character, David Haller, in the TV series Legion. In 2020, he played Alexander Lemtov, a Russian singer, in Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga. Since 2023, he has voiced Korvo Opposites in the animated series Solar Opposites. In 2024, Stevens appeared as Trapper in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.

Early Life and Education

Dan Stevens was adopted when he was born. His parents were both teachers. He grew up in Wales and southeast England. He has a younger brother, Jason Andrew Stevens, who was also adopted.

Discovering Acting

Stevens went to Tonbridge School, a private school in Kent, on a scholarship. There, he became interested in acting. He tried out for the main role in the play Macbeth with his teacher, Jonathan Smith. From the age of 15, he spent his summers training and performing with the National Youth Theatre in London.

College Years

Stevens studied English Literature at Emmanuel College, Cambridge. At Cambridge, he was part of the Footlights comedy group. He was also active in the Marlowe Society, a drama club. A director named Peter Hall first noticed him in a Marlowe Society play of Macbeth.

Acting Career Highlights

In 2004, Dan Stevens started his professional acting career. Peter Hall cast him as Orlando in a play called As You Like It by Shakespeare. This play toured to places like New York City and Los Angeles. His first performance received great reviews in Britain and the United States.

Early TV and Stage Roles

In 2006, Stevens starred as Nick Guest in the BBC TV show The Line of Beauty. Later that year, he acted in the play Hay Fever in London. He also played Lord Holmwood in a BBC version of Dracula. In 2008, he appeared in the BBC show Sense & Sensibility. In 2009, he returned to the West End stage in the play Arcadia.

Downton Abbey Fame

In 2010, Stevens got a very big role as Matthew Crawley in the ITV series Downton Abbey. This show became popular all over the world. The love story between Matthew Crawley and Lady Mary Crawley was a big hit with fans. Stevens decided to leave the show after the third season in 2012. His exit caused a lot of discussion among fans.

Moving to New York and New Roles

In 2012, Stevens moved to New York City with his family. He made his first appearance on Broadway in the play The Heiress.

In 2014, Stevens starred in the movie The Guest. He received praise for his role as an army veteran. He also appeared in The Cobbler with Adam Sandler. That same year, he played a version of Sir Lancelot in the comedy movie Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb.

Superhero and Disney Roles

In 2016, Stevens was chosen for the main role of David Charles Haller in the FX series Legion. This show is related to the X-Men comics. The first season started in 2017 and was very popular.

In 2017, Stevens played the Beast in Disney's live-action movie Beauty and the Beast. He starred alongside Emma Watson as Belle. The movie was a huge success, earning over $1.2 billion worldwide. It became one of the highest-grossing films of 2017. In the same year, he appeared in Marshall and The Man Who Invented Christmas.

Stevens at the 2019 WonderCon promoting Legion.

In 2018, Stevens starred in the Netflix thriller film Apostle. In 2019, he was in the drama Lucy in the Sky.

Recent Projects

In 2020, Stevens co-starred with Harrison Ford in The Call of the Wild. This movie is based on the classic novel by Jack London. He also returned to Broadway in the play Hangmen. However, the show had to close early because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the same year, he played a Russian singer in the Netflix musical comedy Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga.

In 2021, Stevens played a robot in the German science fiction romance I'm Your Man. In 2022, he voiced the villain Admiral Hornagold in the animated movie The Sea Beast on Netflix.

In 2024, Stevens starred in the horror film Cuckoo. He also played Trapper, a veterinarian, in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. He appeared as Frank in Abigail.

Other Work and Interests

Stevens has narrated over 30 audiobooks. These include famous books like Casino Royale and Wolf Hall. In 2014, he was nominated for awards for his narration of Frankenstein.

Outside of acting, Stevens enjoys writing and literature. He is an editor for The Junket, an online magazine he helped start in 2011. He was also a judge for the 2012 Man Booker Prize, a famous book award. He used to write a regular column for the Sunday Telegraph newspaper.

Stevens is a fan of cricket. He played for the Authors XI team, which is made up of British writers. He also wrote a chapter for the team's book, which was nominated for an award in 2014.

Personal Life

In 2009, Dan Stevens married Susie Hariet, a jazz singer and singing teacher from South Africa. They have three children together. He can speak English, French, and German fluently.

Filmography

Movies

Television Shows

Stage Performances

Awards and Nominations

See also

In Spanish: Dan Stevens para niños