Anton Lesser is not the lesser man, since he could beat up your dad...in an acting contest.
This is a little thread dedicated to the talents of British actor Anton Lesser, who probably doesn't get too much love outside of the Shakespearean acting circuit. The guy usually plays a weasel bureaucrat, but even then he gives such a powerful, likeable, and believable performance that you never forget his roles. There is at least no way your dad could do a better job; just be honest with yourself for a moment. It's time to come clean. It's time to admit that the otherwise skinny weakling Anton Lesser could probably beat up your dad.
I first noticed Anton's remarkable Thespian qualities and abilities in the role of Qyburn, Hand of the Queen (to Cersei) in HBO's Game of Thrones. He was much akin to a fantasy medieval Dr. Frankenstein for reviving the nearly dead Mountain (brother of the Hound) as a sort of semi-obedient zombie. It was also hilarious when said zombie killed him for intervening in their fight, despite the episode and last season overall being terrible and universally panned by critics. That wasn't Lesser's fault! He killed it in this role. You're a lesser man (like your dad) if you think otherwise. I'd like to see your dad bring a man back from the dead!
The next role I saw him in was in the great sleuth detective show and crime series Endeavour, as fictional Chief Superintendent Bright. Here he plays a far more sympathetic character than Qyburn and ultimately a good guy, but with some character flaws, arrogance, and naivety about his brilliant underlings (especially lead character Detective Sergeant Morse) and the increasingly dangerous criminal underworld around Oxford they have to grapple with as coppers on the beat. I'm not sure your dad could do a much better job as Chief Superintendent, though, so quit lying to yourself.
The next major role I saw him in was his depiction of Major Partagaz in Star Wars: Andor. Already a man of medieval and modern dramas, here he shows his chops as the same sort of capable, cunning bureaucrat in a space opera science fiction setting. Overall, Andor is a phenomenal show, easily the best one among Disney's Star Wars productions, and Anton adds a lot of gravitas as well as realism to the menacing otherworldly fascist authoritarian system of the Empire that temporarily replaced the galactic Republic in that fictional universe (ancient Rome seems to inspire that a bit). Needless to say, he is ultimately unable to keep the rebels from toppling the Imperial order, but there is no way in this galaxy or another that your dad could have done a better job in crushing their resistance.
Anton did a good job as the historical Prime Minister Harold MacMillan in The Crown from what I remember, though he naturally wasn't in many episodes since the political career of MacMillan did not last beyond the 1960s. I hear he did a great job as Sir Thomas More (Lord High Chancellor of England to Henry VIII and Catholic patron saint) in the TV series White Hall. I still have to check that one out. Overall the guy is a small powerhouse of an actor, which is at least more than what we can say about your dad, I'm afraid. Just face facts here, your dad will never be Prime Minister and he most certainly will never be a patron saint of any church.
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Re: Anton Lesser is not the lesser man, since he could beat up your dad...in an acting contest.
Originally Posted by Kyriakos
