I first met Dev Patel at the very first read-through for Skins, before he ever got on TV. He was so full of life, and we both couldn’t believe we were missing school to do this. After Slumdog Millionaire, I went from getting food with him in Wetherspoons to watching him at the Golden Globes, within a month—and he still checked in when he got back.
Dev radiates goodness. His humanity shines through every time he graces the screen, leaving you no choice but to root for him even when his character is doing something foul; his presence makes you understand where he’s coming from. With a career that always elevates, in Monkey Man is my favorite. Giving us a fierce, soulful empathy, a channeled rage, shades of him we have yet to see—knowing he was so into martial arts during Skins, he’s brought it all together. Monkey Man is his moment, and an incredible directorial debut.
Dev sets the pace. He’s limitless. He’s fearless. Our responsibility as a generation is to go into familiar spaces and see them through new perspectives, thus creating, finding, and sharing a space that has never been touched before. He has that gift. He continues to surpass himself and surprise us, and we are all waiting for where he’ll take us next.
Kaluuya is an Oscar-winning actor