Charlie Hunnam only wants to act in projects that he himself writes.
Heartthrob Charlie Hunnam is more than what he seems. Best known for playing Jax Teller on Sons of Anarchy, the actor is actually British and has been featured in a variety of films and shows in both the UK and the US. Now he’s turning his attention to screenwriting and recently told The Hollywood Reporter that he wants to keep his acting to his own scripts.
Currently, Charlie Hunnam is starring in the Apple TV+ show Shantaram, which is based on a novel by Gregory David Roberts. It tells the story of fugitive Lin Ford, an Australian bank robber who flees to India and becomes entrenched in its underworld. The show is resonating with viewers, achieving an 88% audience rating and an average of 7.8 stars on IMDB.
This role is just the latest in a long line of major roles for Charlie Hunnam. He worked with director Guy Ritchie as Raymond in The Gentlemen and the titular King Arthur: Legend of the Sword. He also starred in the movie Pacific Rim as jaeger pilot Raleigh Beckett. While his role in Sons of Anarchy propelled him to the spotlight, Charlie Hunnam has a lot of experience as a leading man.
Now the actor wants to put that experience to the page and has even started working on a few ideas. He’s started writing some scripts for feature films as well as a mini-series based in his hometown in the northeast of England, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne. He said that after his work on Shantaram he’s going to write full-time for a while.
About this turn in his career, he said, “I’m by no means going to stop acting but I’m going to try and only act in things that I write.” With the strength of his presence on screen, this can only herald success for any screenplays of his.
Many of the properties the actor has been connected with have expanded after his role in them ended. Pacific Rim got both a sequel and an animated series, and Sons of Anarchy got a spin-off about the SAMCRO rivals, the Mayans MC. There is even talk of bringing back Jax Teller for another Sons of Anarchy series.
Guy Ritchie also announced an eight-episode Netflix series based on his movie The Gentlemen, which stars Charlie Hunnam as Raymond, the bodyguard of an American marijuana kingpin in the UK. While the story isn’t about Raymond as a central character, the main narrative of the film involves him being told of its events via flashbacks, and this conversation is the central thread that ties the rest of the movie together. Even without Charlie Hunnam in the series, his presence will be felt as it is in the Pacific Rim and Sons of Anarchy spin-offs.
A performer with that level of presence should find the mechanics of screenwriting very simple, and Charlie Hunnam also easily has the creative chops to make a successful screenwriting career. In that respect, the follows the footsteps of stars like Carrie Fisher, Sylvester Stallone, and Emma Thompson, all talented actors who took their creativity to the page. It is a relief knowing that he will still act, and exciting to know that next time we see him, he may be playing a part he himself wrote.
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