Lewis Pullman, whose father is critically acclaimed actor Bill Pullman, has started to carve out his own path to Hollywood success. Pullman has showcased his acting range in various projects,from independent works to blockbuster mega-hits, and has developed his own unique acting style. His career is just starting to blossom, and while having a famous father in the industry doesn’t hurt, Pullman’s acting ability and dedication are what have brought him into starring roles.
He started his acting career back in 2013, acting in a series of short films before landing a role in the feature-length production,The Ballad of Lefty Brown. Since then, Pullman has racked up films,including a breakout performance inBad Times at the El Royaleand in the box-office smash hitTop Gun: Maverick, marking him asone of the best young actors of his generation. In every role he plays, he brings a commitment and quiet charisma that mirrors his father,Bill Pullman’s best film rolesin a career that keeps going from strength to strength.
Salem’s Lot
Cast
Salem’s Lot is a 2024 remake of the movie of the same name released in 1979. The latest adaptation of Stephen King’s 1975 novel stars Lewis Pullman, Makenzie Leigh, and Bill Camp, with Gary Dauberman writing and directing the Max original film. The plot revolves around a writer who discovers a vampire in his hometown of Jerusalem’s Lot upon returning home for inspiration.
Based on the 1975 novel of the same name by Stephen King,Pullman stars in the leading role of Ben Mears. Mears is a young writer who is struggling to find inspiration, so he returns to his hometown of Jerusalem’s Lot to rediscover himself and his passion for writing. Set in the ominous small town, everything isn’t quite what it seems, as his hometown is now plagued with the undead, and Vampires are in control of the area, dragging Mears into a web of murder, sacrifices, and paranormal terror.
Salem’s Lot Interview: Lewis Pullman & Makenzie Davis Compare Stephen King Movies
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Though it received fairly hit-and-miss reviews,Salem’s Lotwas praised for Pullman’s impressive performance of a haunted man caught in a treacherous situation. The horror narrative provides many opportunities forPullman to show his intensity and psychological dilemmas, which helped elevate the film to more than just a basic adaption.The film went on to become a streaming hitand will become a more appreciated film in Pullman’s catalog in years to come.
Them That Follow
Them That Follow is a drama set in a Pentecostal community led by Pastor Lemuel Childs, where snake handling signifies faith. The story focuses on Mara, Lemuel’s daughter, as she grapples with a secret past romance and an impending wedding while deciding whom to trust within the community.
In this American mystery horror drama, the story follows a remote Pentecostal community in rural Appalachia and the Pentecostal Pastor’s daughter, Maria. Maria is pregnant with the baby of her former lover and must keep this a secret from her family and the entire community.Pullman portrays the role of a young parishioner who is courting Maria for marriage, much to her father’s joy, who doesn’t know that Maria’s secretly with child from an illicit affair.
Praised for its visceral storytelling and deep character studies,Them That Followhelped Pullman further break out of his father’s shadow and show he is capable of commanding more screen presence. His role is integral to all that goes on in the film, and heweaves seamlessly between the ensemble cast with palpable chemistrywith both Maria and the rest of the group. His portrayal is both deeply vulnerable and complex, showing the internal struggle of a man caught in a difficult and hard-to-navigate situation.
As Ben
In Kelly Oxford’s directorial debut,Pink Skies Aheadis a comedy-drama coming-of-age film about a young woman called Winona (Jessica Barden). Winona has a less-than-perfect relationship with her parents and is developing symptoms that her doctor believes arerelated to an anxiety disorder. Pullman plays Ben, the love interest who comes into Winona’s life when things have been looking down and provides an outlet for some of her emotions, but things continue to remain unstable and turbulent.
Though not a leading role like Pullman is starting to become known for, it is another fantastic supporting performance that glues the film’s narrative together. Pullman’s chemistry with Barden makes for an engaging watch, and he brings a quiet charm and intrigue to a role thatcould have been relegated to a generic love interest. He is allowed to show his range with some funny, awkward moments, like taking Winona to his roommate’s mother’s party, and he provides a maturity and steadiness that allows the lead to bounce off.
Press Play
Press Play follows Laura, who discovers a mixtape that allows her to travel back in time. Starring Clara Rugaard and Lewis Pullman, the film blends elements of romance and drama as Laura attempts to alter past events to save her boyfriend. Directed by Greg Björkman and featuring music as a central theme, Press Play explores the complexities of love and fate through its time-bending premise.
In another romantic drama, this time with a science fiction twist,Press Playsees Pullman star as Harrison, the love interest of the lead, Chloe (Clara Rugaard). It isa time travel-based love story,where after Harrison passes away in a hit-and-run, an old cassette mixtape can transport Chloe back in time to her time with Harrison. It is a bittersweet tale that has an imaginative story and is well-executed throughout.
Once again, Pullman is able to showcase an undeniable chemistry with Rugaard, as the two seem to share a genuine connection. The story is nuanced and emotional, and Pullman strikes all the right chords with his portrayal, giving a confident,believable performance that is tinged with emotion and sadness. Pullman continues to display skills in multiple genres and is able to give acclaimed performances in unique narratives.
The Starling Girl
The Starling Girl follows 17-year-old Jem Starling as she navigates her role within a Christian fundamentalist community. Her life takes a turn when charismatic youth pastor Owen makes a return to the church, challenging her understanding of faith and identity.
In the coming-of-age dramaThe Starling Girl, the story follows Jem (Eliza Scanlen), a 17-year-old in a fundamentalist Christian community in rural Kentucky. At an age ready for ‘courtship,’ she dismisses a younger suitor and instead enters into an illicit affair with the Pastor’s oldest son (Pullman),who is married to another woman in the congregation. Pullman’s character, Owen, is torn between his new teenage lover and his wife and religion, with whom he has seemingly grown distant.
Lewis Pullman On Filling In Blanks For His Character In The Starling Girl
The Starling Girl actor Lewis Pullman describes his rehearsal process, his complex dynamic with Eliza Scanlen’s Jem, and his hopes for Top Gun 3.
Pullman and Scanlen both received rave reviews for their portrayal of a naive younger girl entering a relationship with an older married man. It is a complex narrative about religion, sexuality, and patriarchy, andPullman mirrors the layered work in his own performance, providing an accurate depiction of a man torn between two lives and grappling with his own inner demons.The Starling Girlis another breakout role for Pullman, who shows he can hold his own in a complicated drama.
Bad Times at the El Royale
Drew Goddard’s Bad Times at the El Royale is a noir thriller film that follows an ensemble cast of six strangers who all find themselves spending the night at a border hotel known as the El Royale - each harboring a dark secret that will unfold to the viewers and each other as the night progresses. As the strangers' stories begin to intersect, the Lake Tahoe Hotel’s own dark secrets will make their efforts to bury the past a bit more complicated than they’d hoped.
Bad Times at the El Royaleis a neo-noir thriller set in a hotel located along the California-Nevada border that follows the lives of six strangers and a hotel employee whose lives become intermingled on this fateful night.The film features an ensemble castwith actors like Jeff Bridges, Dakota Johnson, and Jon Hamm. Pullman portrays the hotel manager addicted to heroin, who interacts with all the guests and gets embroiled in the intense and gripping narrative.
Writer and director Drew Goddard wrote the spec script and has compiled a list of songs to accompany each moment he envisioned. He told any studios who were interested in buying the script only to do so if they could afford to buy the licenses for each and every song he needed to complete his vision.
Even in a star-studded cast with some genuine Hollywood A-listers, Pullman is able to steal some of the spotlight in a more subdued role. As the hotel manager, he admits to being forced to secretly record sexual encounters and provide the footage to his superiors. Pullman nails the quiet and intense nature of someone who is just trying to do their job but is forced to reveal hidden trauma and issues the deeper he gets pulled into the situation.It is a stand-out performanceand a fantastic film in his young career.
Outer Range
Created for Amazon Prime Video, Outer Range is a Sci-Fi and Western television series that began in 2022. The series was created by Brian Watkins and stars both Imogen Poots and Josh Brolin. The premise sees a Wyoming rancher trying to care for his farm and keep his land safe when a strange void shows up in one of his pastures.
Amazon Prime Video’sOuter Rangeis a sci-fi neo-Western series about the life of Royal Abbott (Josh Brolin), a rancher in Wyoming who is fighting for his land and for his family’s future. When a mysterious female drifter arrives in town who has a connection to his ranch,strange things start to happen, with his daughter-in-law disappearing, a black void appearing in the land, and a rival family trying to steal their land.
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Top Gun: Maverick(2022)
Pullman plays Rhett Abbott, the youngest of the two sons of the Abbott family, who has a rugged intensity and charisma to him. Rhett develops a love interest in the story with a local bank teller, Maria, and also aids in all the family’s dilemmas, including his brother’s murder of a rival family’s uncle.Pullman plays the complex character with ease; whether in scenes of romance or graphic violence, he is able to convey the tensions and emotions needed at the right moments.
Catch-22
Based on Joseph Heller’s seminal novel, Catch-22 is a dark comedy war-drama series. Set during World War II, it follows Captain John Yossarian, a U.S. Army Air Forces B-25 bombardier who contends with the rule that holds him back from continuing his risky combat missions, while wrestling with the conundrum that the Catch-22 rule presents.
Based on Joseph Heller’s classic 1961 novel of the same name,Catch-22follows the story of John Yossarian (Christopher Abbott), a US Army Air Force bombardier during World War II. The series, like the book,focuses on the ridiculousness and absurdities of the war effortand the ‘Catch-22s’ of flying some of the most dangerous missions and wishing to avoid any conflict in the future. With a star-studded ensemble cast and brilliant source material, it is a series that has garnered a lot of critical acclaim.
Catch-22is the bureaucratic rule in which pilots are seemingly trapped in an endless dilemma: to be relieved of flying dangerous bombing missions on the grounds of insanity, you must request to be relived, but the very fact that you are rational enough to ask to stop flying means you aren’t insane. Thus, you may not be relieved and must fly.
Asone of the main characters inCatch-22, Pullman stars as the infamously named Major Major Major Major, named as a joke by his father and then quickly promoted to Major by seniors with a similar sense of humor.Pullman’s role provides a lot of the comic reliefin the series, though it is often seen as a comedy, there are also many serious and depressing moments throughout. His comedic timing and dark humor help sprinkle in the ironic nature of the series and add a captivating flair to a brilliant series.
Lessons In Chemistry
Based on the novel by Bonnie Garmus,Lessons in Chemistryis set in the 1960s and follows Elizabeth Zott, whose dream of being a scientist because society demands a woman remain at home and not work. When Elizabeth finds herself pregnant, alone, and fired from her lab, she accepts a job as a host on a TV cooking show. She sets out to teach a nation of overlooked homemakers — and the men suddenly listening — about food and chemistry.
Based on the 2022 novel of the same name by Bonnie Garmus,Lessons in Chemistrystars Brie Larson as chemist Elizabeth Zott. After being limited at her job as a lab technician, Zott starts her own feminist cooking show that teaches women about scientific topics.Pullman plays Dr. Calvin Evans, the star researcher at the institute who helps Zott transfer into a better department so she can conduct her research in a more conducive environment, before the two become romantically involved.
As the main love interest in the series, Pullman gives one of the most impactful performances of his career. His character provides a poignant perspective in an era with outdated social norms. Although he passes away before the third episode,his story continues and is integral to the rest of the season. Even though his time on the show is relatively short, he still gives a tour de force performance as a compelling and grounded presence. His energetic delivery and the love story he shares with Larson are genuinely heartfelt, helping to make it one of the best series in recent memory.
Top Gun: Maverick
Top Gun: Maverick is the sequel to the 1986 original film starring Tom Cruise as Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, a top-tier pilot in the Navy. Thirty years after the original film’s events, Maverick is asked to head up a section of the TOP GUN program to embark on a dangerous mission. Things become personal when the program includes the son of Maverick’s late friend, forcing him to confront his past.
InTop Gun: Maverick, the sequel to the 1986 cult classic filmTop Gun, Pullman plays Lt. Robert ‘Bob’ Floyd,an essential member of Maverick’s flight squad. The story follows Maverick as he deals with issues from his past while helping train a group of new Top Gun recruits for a dangerous, one-of-a-kind mission that requires the best pilots in the Air Force. It is a fast-paced, action-packed film thathas been praised for its realistic flight sequences and technical details.
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A Marines Corps fighter pilot rates the flying maneuvers of the training scenes in Top Gun: Maverick, giving some of them near perfect scores.
Lt. Bob Floyd is portrayed masterfully by Pullman as the more sensible, mature, and grounded pilot of the crew. He adds a relatability and authentic quality to the intense scenes, and his chemistry with the rest of the cast is superb. The high-octane and blink-or-you’ll-miss-it action sequencesneed that more introspective and quiet presencethat helps balance out the film.Top Gun: Maverickis definitely the jewel inLewis Pullman’s career so far, both in terms of performance and success, with it being nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards and grossing almost $1.5 billion.
