Category: TV/Film Projects

Speculation Redux: Billions – Guns in a Pool

Damian Lewis, Bobby Axelrod
Source: Showtime

A slice of pizza here, a perfectly coiffed pompadour there, and badda bing badda boom Damian Lewis has transformed himself into a born and bred New Yorker. Let’s visit the ways and means by which he’s achieved the transformation. This post originally came about as speculation fueled by some tantalizing previews we got late last year, before Billions first aired in the States. Now that we have our friends across the pond tuning in every week, speculation has gotten a new lease on life. Some gems from Brit Twitter so far:

And my personal favorite:

So here we are, a revisit to my post “Billions: Guns in a Pool and the False Bravado of a New Yorker” with some notes added here and there without being too spoiler-y for those who didn’t splurge on the Sky Atlantic box set.

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Trivia Tuesday: How did Damian Lewis transform into Dick Winters?

‘It’s very authentic, dripping in sincerity, there’s nothing sensational about it. It had a docu-drama feel to it which people responded to. –Damian Lewis on Band of Brothers

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We earlier blogged about how a 29-year old British actor Damian Lewis got cast to play all-American WWII hero Dick Winters as well as the deft and the charisma with which Damian Lewis came to immortalize Dick Winters on small screen. However, we still have a black box between the casting and the shoot: How did Damian Lewis TRANSFORM into Dick Winters?

DLDW

Well… Once he gets the part, the two Hollywood giants Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks leave the room and Tony To, the executive producer, asks: “Hey Damian, how’d you like to go to boot camp in March?”

Ha! The boot camp… It is, in fact, what FILLS the black box I’ve been talking about… The Transformation, quoting Damian himself, from “a rice pudding” to a “celery stalk” 🙂

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How Loyalty Rules Bobby Axelrod’s Billions *UPDATED*

source: Showtime
source: Showtime

Regardless of the context it is set in, a good TV show is ultimately about human relations. It is the complex characters with exciting and compelling relationships in their personal and professional life that MAKE it great. And we can’t have enough of them in Billions.

I live and work in a world, academia, that cannot be farther away from the world of Axe Capital. Thus, I am fascinated by this world that is ALL NEW to me, and, in particular, by how Axe runs his business. Here’s my take on what it takes to be king with many thanks to Lady Trader who kindly read the post and gave me the thumbs up earlier.

Bobby “Axe” Axelrod is running a 15 billion dollar worth hedge fund. He is, in Chuck’s words, “an icon of the wealth of our age.” Thanks to his power and influence on the markets, Axe is the king that he is. Revered. Respected. Envied. However, as Pete Decker points out it is a zero-sum game and “these guys are like kings. There is always someone coming to assassinate them.” So… how do you run a business in a setting where there is always someone, say it is the US attorney, the SEC or another hedgie, trying to mess with you? Yes, exactly like a king, you have your close circle, you have your fixers. But one keyword stands out in Axe’s tight network: Loyalty.  Continue reading “How Loyalty Rules Bobby Axelrod’s Billions *UPDATED*”

Billions on Sky Atlantic, Episode 2: Naming Rights

Great fun hearing the excitement from across the pond as folks have started watching Billions! I was happily following along on Twitter to the live tweets for The Pilot. Much easier to simply read and not think of cleverness to write at the same time.:) How lucky you are to be able to get the Sky Atlantic box set now and binge the entire series in one go. We Yanks had to wait for our weekly fix!

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Previously on Billions: “I’m ready”

Damianista’s note: Exclusively for Damian Lewis fans in Damian-land aka the UK! We know you are more than READY for Billions Episode 2 at 9pm on Sky Atlantic tonight and our Bookworm has a GREAT Episode 1 refresher here to get you fully in the mood! ENJOY!

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‘Previously on Billions’…sadly this is no Damian Lewis voice over, but you could just pretend it is…

So ‘Previously on Billions’…

Chuck Rhoades likes  someone else to be in control when it comes to his sex life.

source: Showtime
source: Showtime

BEATI QUI AMBULAN IN LEGE DOMINI (Blessed are those who walk in the law of the lord), adorns the front of the US Attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York. Chuck happens to be the US Attorney and at work he is the one in control and he has no love for either Spyros of the SEC (who waltzes into his office about suspected insider trading in relation to Pepsum Pharmaceuticals) or Bobby Aexlrod of Axe Capital.

Bobby Axelrod likes Pizza so much he wants to go in to partnership with the owner of his local Pizzeria who has suddenly found himself in a squeeze with his new Landlord.

source: Showtime
source: Showtime

Bobby Axelrod, Hedge Fund Manager wastes no time schooling two employees on the fact that it is important to know “the who” as well as the numbers in relation to what to do with Lumetherm.

Continue reading “Previously on Billions: “I’m ready””