A hero is only as good as the bad guy he faces, so every Mission: Impossible movie is required to step up Ethan Hunt's foe. His adversary in the latest installment is a mysterious and captivating man — but who plays Solomon Lane in Rogue Nation ? The Mission: Impossible newcomer is British actor Sean Harris, and although he may not be familiar to most audiences, he's clearly a star on the rise. Personally, I don't think there are enough ginger bad guys in the action movie canon, so I appreciated Harris's bright locks. On top of that, the apparent leader of the movie's powerful "Syndicate" has reportedly turned in a chilling performance in the spy thriller. Critics are talking, and co-star Tom Cruise had only praise for the actor when he spoke with Yahoo News.
Sean Harris is incredibly enigmatic and very powerful on screen. He’s as powerful a villain as we’ve had in Mission: Impossible. It really is a chess match between him and Ethan. The guy is very charming, intelligent, but lethal. It’s delicious.
"Delicious" isn't an adjective anyone should use lightly, but I'm confident that Cruise is not exaggerating. M:I is Harris's most high-profile project so far, but he's certainly no rookie. The London native has a long list of credits that's dominated mostly by British film and television, and once his intensity has hooked you via his indelible baddie role in Rogue Nation, be sure to check these Sean Harris performances out.
1. Macbeth
Clearly, this guy can do anything, as he's about to go from playing an evil spy to embodying a timeless Shakespearean character. Harris will be the Macduff to Michael Fassbender's Macbeth in the newest film version of "The Scottish Play." Expect lots of muddy sword fights and even more scenery chewing when Macbeth comes out this fall.
2. Deliver Us From Evil
This 2014 horror film, which co-stars Eric Bana and Joel McHale, has its roots in the actual memoirs of a cop. The "actual events" tagline and terrifying performance by Harris as a possessed ex-Marine might wipe out all your hopes of ever sleeping again.
3. Southcliffe
Sean Harris won a BAFTA award for his portrayal of a tortured man who embarks on a shooting spree that terrorizes a small, unassuming town. The tense and effective four-part miniseries is available to stream on Netflix right now, continuing the trend of British television being unnecessarily addictive.
4. The Borgias
Harris ruled over the sumptuous Showtime series The Borgias as the trained and loyal assassin, Micheletto Corella. It's a layered performance, especially since Corella is gay and must deal with what that means in a royal context in the 16th century.
5. '71
This British-made thriller is set in Northern Ireland during the height of its religious conflicts. The film, in which Harris plays a soldier, has been widely lauded. Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times said of '71 , "Nothing is extraneous, no moment that doesn't enhance the tension of this nightmare scenario is allowed to survive, until the proceedings become, in the best possible sense, almost unbearable to watch."
6. Brighton Rock
Brighton Rock is an adaptation of a Graham Greene novel starring Sam Riley as a sociopathic killer in love. Harris plays one of his first victims. At this point, I think I can confirm my theory that, as an actor, Harris is drawn to dangerous, taut stories.
This guy is no slouch, right? Enjoy Sean Harris's performance in Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation and dig into his meaty filmography.
