Nicholas Hoult Deserves Better
And why I'm still sticking with the RENFIELD star
The long wait for a breakout leading role to make my beloved Nicholas Hoult a household name continues. The 33-year-old British actor, who’s been passed over for Batman (but could potentially make a good James Bond…), has long been the best part of movies that don’t deserve the unique alchemy he can bring to a role. That’s true of the new horror-comedy Renfield, which opens in theaters today. As the titular “familiar” (think henchman) to Nicolas Cage’s hammy Dracula, Hoult lights up the screen with equal parts violence and vulnerability.
I bought metaphorical “stock” on Hoult low around the time of his first “adult” role in 2009’s A Single Man and thus feel quite invested in his success. Few actors manage to bring the combination he can to a single role — something sinister, silly, smoldering, and sincere. His peers can often times manage two or three of these but falter on one, as the great Hunter Harris of Hung Up has pointed out on Twitter:
After his screen debut in 2002’s About a Boy, Hoult really cut his teeth on television in the UK teen soap Skins alongside luminaries like Daniel Kaluuya, Dev Patel, and Jack O’Connell. Hoult recently told a Reddit AMA that he felt he grew up alongside the cast and characters making it, and I think you can feel that transference in his comfort in front of the camera. Whether he leverages that to be cocksure or unsure is always a delight to discover.
Hoult has now returned to the small screen for some of his most recognition to date, including an Emmy nomination, for his role in Hulu’s The Great — which returns for its third season on May 12. The scene below, which I should caution revolves around some NSFW discussion, should give you a sense of the full range he imparts through his character Peter III.
A cut comparison from my review of season 1 posited that Hoult was becoming the next Hugh Grant, be it from the relaxed smarm or the distinct vocal pattern. (And how fitting given that Grant starred in Hoult’s first film!) But I think a more apt summary of where he stands comes from Matthew Monagle’s review of Renfield for The Playlist: “Hoult – in a lifelong battle with Daniel Radcliffe to be our most reluctant leading man – is both a capable action star and the perfect straight man for material like this.”
I go back and forth on how much of the ambivalence is Hoult chafing against material that isn’t really built for someone like him — is that reluctance just frustration with the larger state of how hard it is to become a leading man without putting on a superhero cape. (Not for nothing, Hoult didn’t get a huge boost from doing those X-Men movies.)
So here’s to me hoping against hope that one day, the perfect star vehicle arrives for Nicholas Hoult. But in the meantime, here’s a selection of ten titles that I think speak to his incredible versatility and virtuosity.
About a Boy, rental
He had it from the beginning. A cherubic young Nicholas Hoult lights up the screen and holds his own opposite Hugh Grant, who’s arguably the bigger child of the two in About a Boy. Hoult resists just flattening Marcus into a plot device to further the emotional maturation of Grant’s manchild Will. He bundles hang-ups and hilarities into one irresistible package that can’t help but draw out an audience’s sympathy.
A Single Man, Amazon Prime Video (free with ads through Freevee)
Something about the way Tom Ford lights Nicholas Hoult’s Kenny in his angelic white sweater gives him an almost heavenly glow in A Single Man. It’s a look fitting for his function in the tale of Colin Firth’s George Falconer, a widowed gay professor in ‘60s America. He’s here as a living, breathing reminder of the eternal mysteries and hopes that keep life worth living … on the very day George has committed to dying by suicide. Hoult transcends the inviting innuendos he must deliver again and again, beguiling us with his zest and resilience in spite of what the world throws at him. With a boyish face but a mature heart, his Kenny is a real standout turn and a dynamite transition into adult roles.
Warm Bodies, rental
A friend of mine compared Hoult’s performance in Renfield to being warmed-over Warm Bodies, and I think that’s a little bit uncharitable … to both movies. Hoult’s playing a literal zombie here in a sci-fi/rom-com hybrid where loving a human starts to resuscitate his spirits. He’s a bit stilted wooden by design, though the charm does break through as his character “R” comes back to life. This off-beat, borderline YA film is just a lot of silly fun that puts just enough of a spin on genre formula.
Young Ones, Tubi (free with ads)
The dystopian Western Young Ones puts interpersonal conflict front and center, pitting parents against children, families against outsiders, and even siblings against each other. Hoult’s ruthless Flem Lever thrives as the rest of the world struggles for water, and he foils nicely against Kodi Smit-McPhee’s exceedingly earnest Jerome Holm. His persuasive powers are on full display as he transitions from boy to man, largely by consolidating authority through weaker people in his orbit. It’s riveting to watch him wallow in wickedness.
Mad Max: Fury Road, rental
I can’t summon the feverish enthusiasm that many do for Mad Max: Fury Road because, thrilling as the journey may be, I struggle to get over how it’s literally just a trip there and back again in the desert. (Sorry! It’s not enough to hang a whole movie on!) But I’m less wavering in my praise of Nicholas Hoult’s Nux, a War Boy roped into Max’s maelstrom of mayhem, because he actually does undergo some change along the way. Watching him break from the prison of ideology and understand the value of life is a real joy because it never feels forced or fake from Hoult.
Kill Your Friends1, Peacock (free with ads)
Hoult’s performance as an upstart A&R man in the ‘90s London music scene recalled another actor for me – a young Tom Cruise, maybe circa-mid 1980s. His Steven is cocky, self-assured, and somehow completely magnetic. The confident attitude is merely his shield, albeit one that he wields well, to fend off any doubters of his performance. Yet he is far from perfect in maintaining the ruse. Tough as he may seem, the thought of having to substitute smarts for swagger absolutely terrifies Steven. Kill Your Friends proves most compelling during the moments when Hoult allows Steven to let his guard down and lay his insecurities bare … though his unhinged mayhem comes in a very close second.
Newness, rental
Hoult lets his sensitive side show in Newness, a contemporary romance deeply plugged into the ethos of a generation of swipers. He’s achingly raw here as the more lovelorn member of a couple who tries to see if their passionate first encounter can sustain. It felt startling to me to watch a young male actor splay their heart out on screen so achingly, and that outpouring of feeling was enough to overpower any qualms I might have had with the movie’s somewhat familiar trappings.
The Favourite, rental
Hoult’s trial run for the humorous stylings of The Great came from first spitting writer Tony McNamara’s words in The Favourite. As Harley, a calculating and cutthroat political power player in the court of volatile Queen Anne, it’s a delight to watch him get put through the wringer of Yorgos Lanthimos’ absurdist touch. I adore this movie (genuinely don’t think there’s been a better release since it came out), and Hoult’s scurrilous scoundrel is a large part of why. I could watch him do idiot fop forever, but I know he is capable of so much more.
The True History of the Kelly Gang, rental
Hoult makes but a brief appearance in The True History of the Kelly Gang, the Aussie actioner about the country’s infamous outlaw Ned Kelly. But he leaves his mark, and not only for a scene in which he holds a conversation with the protagonist wearing nothing but sock garters. The role gives him a chance to put his charisma toward playing a character who is pure, unvarnished evil. Hoult oozes seductive sinfulness, ensnaring all in his path until they realize the malice behind his magnetism.
The Menu, HBO Max
Admittedly, I did not flip for The Menu as so many did this past winter in theaters and on HBO Max. I’m willing to chalk a good deal of that up to being miserably tired during the peak of awards season. But one thing that did stand out was, unsurprisingly, Hoult’s performance as a wannabe foodie influencer. In a film whose satire largely lacks bite, he’s one of the few getting it right. His Tyler straddles the right line between needling and nastiness, sending up a scenester while also conveying his inner tragedy.
You can always keep up with my film-watching in real-time on the app Letterboxd. I’ve also compiled every movie I’ve ever recommended through this newsletter via a list on the platform as well.
Perhaps the best advertisement for Beef thus far, save maybe the chorus of friends telling me I should binge it. This conversation with its star Steven Yeun is so rich and unexpected. The kind of stuff you dream of being a part of as an interviewer.
No real movie connection but this Pitchfork story on the long cultural shadow of “Blurred Lines” 10 years after its release is an absolute must-read.
A bit late on the topicality, but I really enjoyed reading this well-sourced Vulture story on the mixed legacy of the Best Animated Feature Oscar.
Over at Slant Magazine, Showing Up director Kelly Reichardt joined my illustrious club of repeat interviewees. I won’t link to my less-than-stellar job in 2016, but it felt like a real accomplishment to have a great conversation about work, life, and art that I didn’t know I needed to hear. Check out the movie — it’s one of the best of 2023 so far.
Another early favorite film of 2023 is now out in NYC — De Humani Corporis Fabrica, a documentary that will make you see the mysteries of the human body in thrilling new ways. I had a wonderful conversation with its directors, Verena Paravel and Lucien Castaing-Taylor, back at NYFF 2022 … and it’s live today on Slant Magazine.
You’re most likely to have access to the incendiary, invigorating How to Blow Up a Pipeline now that it’s expanded nationwide. In spite of what the title might suggest, this is not a didactic manual but a discussion guide to thinking about our relationship to the planet. I enjoyed chatting about collective action and social media with one-half of its “film by” credit, Daniel Goldhaber and Ariela Barer, for Slant Magazine.
I had a busy week of Stream It or Skip It for Decider, giving you the go-ahead on Netflix’s Chupa and Oh Belinda! as well as Peacock’s Praise This while giving a hearty permission to pass on Amazon Prime Video’s On a Wing and a Prayer.
You can keep track of all the freelance writing I’ve done this year through this list on Letterboxd.
Off to some wedding festivities this weekend — if I can keep it together, maybe you’ll get that delayed Damon newsletter!
Yours in service and cinema,
Marshall
Description taken from my 2016 review of the film.
I adore Nicholas Hoult. Cannot stomach Nick Cage.
He's a damn good actor. Although I'm eager to see him as the lead in RENFIELD, he also still strikes me as a case of "character actor in a leading man's body."