Ray Stevenson, of 'Rome' and 'Thor' movies, dies at 58

Ray Stevenson, who played the villainous British governor in “RRR”, an Asgardian warrior in the “Thor” films and a member of the 13th Legion in HBO’s “Rome”, has passed away. He was 58 years old.

Representatives for Stevenson told The Associated Press that he died Sunday but had no other details to share Monday.

Stevenson was born in 1964 in Lisburn, Northern Ireland. After attending the Bristol Old Vic Theater School and working in British television for years, he made his film debut in Paul Greengrass’ 1998 film “The Theory of Flight”. In 2004, he appeared as a Knight of the Round Table in Antoine Fuqua’s “King Arthur” and several years later had a lead role in the pre-Disney Marvel adaptation “Punisher: War Zone”.

Although “Punisher” wasn’t the best-reviewed film, he got another taste of Marvel in the first three “Thor” films, in which he played Volstagg. Other major film roles included the “Divergent” trilogy, “G.I. Joe: Retribution” and “The Transporter: Refueled”.

The 6-foot-4 tall Stevenson, who played his share of soldiers in the past and present, once said in an interview, “I guess I’m an old warrior at heart.”

On the small screen, he was the evil Titus Pullo in “Rome,” a role that really propelled his career in the United States and earned him a SAG card at age 44. The popular series ran from 2005 to 2007.

“That was one of the prime years of my life,” Stevenson said in an interview. “It forced me to sit in my skin and say, just do the job. The job is enough.

In a Variety review of “Rome”, Brian Lowery wrote that “the idealized Stevenson comes across as decidedly a brawler, whore and none-the-brighter warrior—a force of nature who, despite her excesses, is a force to be reckoned with.” Kind of stays on his feet.”

He was Blackbeard in the Starz series “Black Sails”, Commander Jack Swinburne in the German television series “Das Boot”, and othere on “Vikings”.

Stevenson has also done voice work as Gar Saxon in “Star Wars Rebels” and “The Clone Wars”, and has a role in the upcoming Star Wars live-action series “Ahsoka”, in which she plays the bad guy, Baylon. Play the role of school. The eight-episode season is expected on Disney+ in August.

In an interview with Backstage in 2020, Stevenson said that his acting idols were, “the likes of Lee Marvin (and) Gene Hackman.”

Stevenson, he said, “never performed poorly, and within that capacity was brave and fearless.” “There was never this young, hot leading man; These were men I could identify with.

Stevenson has three sons with Italian anthropologist Elisabetta Caraccia, whom he met while working on “Rome”.