What can’tDan Stevensdo? He melted hearts onDownton Abbey, played a force to be reckoned with inThe Guest, proved he had some serious comedic chops inNight at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb, is busy showing off his stellar voice work inKipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts- I can go on and on. Stevens continues to show off his range this summer with two new features,Dave Franco’s directorial debut, the horror thrillerThe Rental, and Netflix’s latest original feature, the undeniably silly and lovableEurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga.
In the film, Stevens plays Alexandre Lemtov, Russia’s entry for Eurovision. Loosely inspired by past Russian Eurovision contestants, Lemtov rocks an operatic voice and some serious stage presence. When not performing (even though Lemtov is always performing in a sense), he takes a vested interest in Sigrit (Rachel McAdams) and her career while testing Lars’ (Will Ferrell) patience.
Watching Stevens’ perform “Lion of Love” is undoubtedly a highlight ofEurovision Song Contest, but my personal favorite scene of the movie is the Song-Along at Lemtov’s wildly extravagant home. During an episode of Collider Connected, Stevens highlighted the pure joy of the moment:
“It’s a really epic sequence, and it’s completely bonkers and it kind of is really the sort of hallmark of the movie in terms of how insane it can get. You know, I think we had 12 real-life contestants from previous years - some of them winners, some of them very notable performers - and I’ve shown that sequence to a few hardcore Eurovision fans who absolutely lost their minds when they saw it because it’s very joyous I think. I just can’t help smiling when I watch it. It’s just pure silliness. The arrangement of the music is brilliant and the way that we go through that party and they just pop out and join in, it’s just joy. Even if you don’t know who those people are, it’s a fun sequence.”
Stevens also gave us a little insight into what it took to put that set piece together:
“It was about three days of shooting up at Knebworth Castle in Southside London, and it was a real party atmosphere and those contests were pretty thrilled I think that, A, that we were doing a Eurovision movie but that they got to be a part of it, that they got to sort of play and sing with us. All of them are incredible singers, and just kind of keeping up with them was a challenge. But yeah, it was great just talking to them about their Eurovision experiences and they all, without question, said that it was one of the most bizarre nights of their life performing at the real Eurovision and I think ours came close.”
If you’re looking for even more from Stevens, check out his full episode of Collider Connected at the top of this article where he details his journey fromDownton Abbeyto Broadway,The Guest,Eurovision Song Contestand so much more!
