Ray Stevenson Conquered HBO as Titus Pullo in ‘Rome’

Northern Irish actor Ray Stevenson died in Italy today at the age of 58, leaving behind a lifetime of performances that celebrated and demonized the beautiful, brutal side of masculinity. Nowhere in his storied career, however, was he as titanically cool as he was in HBO‘s Rome. As Titus Pullo, one of two Centurians who find themselves on the edges of Roman history’s most seismic moments, Stevenson was a hero unlike any other. He was a drunken lout, abusive monster, and the man you most wanted to have your back. Stevenson might be remembered as Volstagg, the Punisher, or even RRR‘s sadistic British villain, but for me and every other soul who lapped up HBO’s cult hit Rome, he will always be Titus Pullo.

Created by Bruno Heller, Rome was one of the first lavish period pieces attempted by HBO. Shot on a sprawling set in Italy and boasting the talents of Kevin McKidd, James Purefoy, Lindsay Duncan, and future awards show darlings Tobias Menzies and Kerry Condon, it blew the fusty dust off of Americans’ notions of ancient history. Rome was a bloody, raunchy, technicolor look at a moment in time most people associate with togas and marble ruins. And Rome‘s most relatable character was arguably Titus Pullo, a guy defined by his love of booze, women, warring, and sticking by his best friend no matter what.

We first meet Titus Pullo as a man down on his luck. His reckless disobedience in Julius Caesar’s (Ciaran Hinds) Gallic camp has doomed him for execution. However, everyone, including his direct commanding officer, Lucius Vorenus (Kevin McKidd), recognizes Pullo as a brilliant murder machine. When Caesar’s Golden Eagle — the symbol of Roman strength — is stolen by Gauls, Vorenus enlists Pullo to join him on the impossible mission to retrieve it. The two diametrically opposite men bicker throughout their journey, but wind up not only finding the Eagle, but Caesar’s kidnapped nephew Octavian (Max Perkis). Even more fortuitous for Vorenus and Pullo? They secure proof that the Eagle wasn’t stolen by Gauls, but Caesar’s former friend and now prime rival, Pompey (Kenneth Cranham).

Pullo and Vorenus’s success marks them as both competent and favored by fortune. Soon they find themselves consistently pulled into Marc Anthony (James Purefoy) or Caesar’s plots. In Egypt, the pair are asked to track down Cleopatra (Lyndsay Marshall), who winds up sleeping with Pullo to ensure she conceives an “heir” for Caesar. The mercurial and lowborn Pullo somehow winds up being the man Anthony dispatches to assassinate Cicero (David Bamber) when the time comes. Heck, the second episode of the series is literally titled “How Titus Pullo Brought Down the Republic.”

None of Pullo’s improbable adventures feel false. That’s because Stevenson consumes the screen in Rome like a towering deity. His energy is so potent, you can believe that Cleopatra would climb him, that Marc Anthony would respect him, and the lowborn peons of the Roman gutters would try him. There’s either always a twinkle in Pullo’s eye or roiling thunder. He goes from sweet to savage in a snap, like a wolfish puppy who charms you before chomping down on your throat.

Rome is one of those lesser known HBO shows that seems to be quietly building upon its ardent fanbase once more and more discover it on streaming. It is, in many ways, the template for Game of Thrones. An X-rated, high-stakes soap opera focused on legends. But the reason why fans keep obsessing over the two-season run of Rome comes down to the brotherhood that develops between Pullo and Vorenus. Ray Stevenson was one half of that masterful partnership, but his was arguably the trickier part. McKidd could hide Vorenus’s ferocious rage under a thin mask of Catonic stoicism. Stevenson had to be magnetic. As author Gretchen Felker-Martin noted on Twitter, he threw down “one of the greatest effortlessly charming performances of TV’s golden age.” No matter what atrocities Titus Pullo committed, Stevenson made you instantly forgive him. That was his magic.

The world has lost not only a great actor today, but also an artist who brought one of HBO’s most incredibly mesmerizing characters to life. “THIRTEENTH!”