The report that the actor, style symbol and remarkable survivor of the 1960s countercultureTerence Stamp has passed away at the age of 87, which is hard to accept. Similar to another unconventional movie star,Donald Sutherland, Stamp appeared to be as enduring a part of Anglo-American culture as one could imagine, with his stylish, charming demeanor (and well-known romantic relationships) tempered by what might be either real danger or something almost supernatural.
Although Stamp He made a large number of films purely for financial reasons, which he honestly admitted to having no memory of once they were finished. However, he was too skilled to ever be uninteresting on screen; when he delivered, there were few actors who could match him.
He portrayed the devil, naturally. At one point, in a literal sense, in Pasolini’s 1968 surreal psychological thriller Theorem, where Stamp, at the height of his attractiveness and charismatic on-screen presence, arrives at an affluent Italian household and not only charms them, both metaphorically and physically, but also causes all of them to experience existential euphoria due to the overwhelming power of his personality. By the time Stamp’s so-called “Visitor” leaves the family’s lives, they are unable to function without him and quickly fall into disarray.
So it will serve as evidence for many of Stamp’s numerous fans, particularly his contemporaries who were first captivated by his performances in quintessentially Sixties films like The Collector, Far From The Madding Crowd, or – wonderfully –Modesty Blaise. Or the new fans he gained through his rather ungrateful role in one of the most high-profile films he ever appeared in, the Star Wars prequelThe Phantom Menace.
Stamp famously remarked about his minor role as Supreme Chancellor Finis Valorum, a powerless well-meaning character who struggled against the schemes of Ian McDiarmid’s more formidable Senator Palpatine, that “I didn’t want to [take the role], but my agent pressured me, and I wanted to meet Natalie Portman because I had seen her in The Professional [also known as Leon]. And I did meet her, and she was truly captivating.”
In a more relaxed moment, he criticized the film’s director George Lucas, calling him “[not] a director of actors…[a man] more focused on props and effects,” and found the process of filming in front of green screens “quite dull.” Regarding the then-18-year-old Portman, he remarked: “I must admit, I had a huge crush on her”; such was Stamp’s captivating personality that this confession didn’t provoke much surprise.
It is undeniable that Stamp had the potential to become a more prominent star. Michael Caine once humorously remarked about his former Wimpole Street roommate, “I still wake up in a cold sweat at night thinking about Terence agreeing to take my advice and accept the role in Alfie.” However, Stamp approached his central role in the Sixties with a blend of amusement and indifference.
When he was involved in a romantic partnership withJulie Christie, they were eternally captured byThe Kinksas “Terry and Julie,” the pair in their iconic song Waterloo Sunset. However, despite dating many of the most renowned women of the time, including model Jean Shrimpton and, according to rumors, Brigitte Bardot, he had no desire to be a subject of tabloid attention, or a film star. He once even remarked, “I never thought I was good-looking or appealing in any way.”
Several of the initial films that contributed to his success were both well-received by critics and achieved financial success, including Far From The Madding Crowd – where he played alongside Christie as the charming and stylish but timid Sgt Troy – and his impressive first role as the innocent titular character in Peter Ustinov’s adaptation of Billy Budd by Herman Melville. Nevertheless, Stamp consistently gravitated towards compelling original works and auteur Directors who avoid creating dull and uninteresting films. When he was proposed, inevitably, for the role of James Bond, it didn’t go well: he later remembered that “my concepts about [how the character should be played] scared [producer Harry Saltzman]. I didn’t receive a second invitation from him.”
By that time, Stamp had lost enthusiasm for mainstream filmmaking and went to an ashram in India for nine years, making films only sporadically. In addition to two roles as the main antagonist General Zod, briefly appearing in the firstSuperman photo and more significantly in the second, he abandoned big-budget movies entirely for almost two decades.
If you were a fan of the charming actor who showcased remarkable swordplay as a form of seduction in front of a clearly impressed Christie in “Madding Crowd,” you would have to wait until 1984’s “The Hit,” a stylish gangster film where Stamp was perfectly cast as an unusually composed informant, to see him in a film that was somewhat mainstream.
However, for some reason—money, a desire to perform more, or simply boredom—he eventually became a highly active performer in projects that were frequently not worth his time or effort. Occasionally, the films were good, such as Oliver Stone’s Wall Street and the lively Steve Martin-Eddie Murphy comedy Bowfinger. More often, though, they were poor. If you recall movies like The Real McCoy, Genuine Risk, or Red Planet, it’s likely that the well-paid guest actor contributed very little.
There were a few standout moments. Stamp often appeared to be a serious actor, which made his occasional forays into comedy all the more enjoyable. When he portrayed the dignified transgender woman Bernadette in the hilarious 1994 comedy The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, he brought depth and charm to what could have been a shallow character. A few years later, he delivered an equally impressive performance in Steven Soderbergh’s excellent crime thriller The Limey, where he channeled the peculiar intensity from his earlier roles into a remarkable, unforgettable lead as Wilson, a mysterious Englishman who travels to Los Angeles to avenge his daughter’s death. (Stamp’s delivery of the line “You tell him I’m coming! You tell him I’m f______ coming!” is truly extraordinary.)
It wasn’t until his last on-screen appearance in Edgar Wright’s Late Night in Soho that Stamp encountered another director who was equally captivated by his unique, slightly off-kilter charm. Playing a mysterious figure referred to only as the “silver-haired gentleman,” the actor infused his supporting role with the genuine essence of 1960s London—both dazzling and unsettling.
But by that time, Stamp had been content to take things easy for many years, offering interviews that only deepened his mysterious image. During an interview with John Preston for this newspaper in 2013, he said, “I don’t really live anywhere. I stay with friends a lot, or just travel from hotel to hotel.” When a confused Preston asked where his home was, Stamp simply answered, “Oh, I don’t have one. Haven’t had one for years.”
Stamp authored three memoir volumes (one, notably, titled Stamp Album), a decent novel called The Night, and a cookbook featuring recipes suitable for individuals who, like him, had issues with wheat and lactose. He deserves to be remembered not only as a remarkable on-screen performer and uniquely quirky individual, but also as someone who maintained a reasonable level of doubt regarding the entertainment industry.
He once admitted to being so financially struggling in the 1990s that he couldn’t afford a bus fare, yet he had his own uniquely creative way of earning money. “Luckily, I had purchased a lot of white wine, Chateau d’Yquem, in the 1960s. I hadn’t consumed much of it, so whenever I needed cash, I could sell a case and that would get me through.”
In some way, selling premium wine from that era he contributed to reveals more about Stamp than any quantity of Star Wars big-budget films could. May this unique figure continue to be honored and appreciated for a long time.
The top five performances by Terence Stamp
1. Billy Budd (1962)
It was somewhat expected of Stamp that his first film role, which he took at 24, earned him an Oscar and Bafta nomination, along with a Golden Globe for New Star of the Year. The award committees were correct. Stamp’s portrayal of the pious, handsome new crew member on a ship during the Napoleonic Wars, who initially stirs desire and later anger in the strict officer John Claggart, is impressive, adding an unusual and erotic element to what might otherwise have been a standard naval adventure. Benjamin Britten composed a well-known opera based on the same Melville novella a decade prior, and would have certainly wished for a Budd with the same charm as Stamp.(Available for rental on Apple TV, Amazon Prime, and Sky Store)
2. Away from the Bustling Crowd (1967)
Nicolas Roeg soon gained recognition primarily as a director rather than a cinematographer, yet it is his visual work with Julie Christie and Stamp in this classic Sixties adaptation of Thomas Hardy that elevates what could have been an outdated film into something truly extraordinary. Stamp consistently appeared striking on screen—“bone structure…my father had it too,” he once remarked, in a casually dismissive way—but what he achieves here is transforming Hardy’s outwardly charming yet weak and shallow rake-sergeant into a character of such compelling presence that it’s hard to imagine the entire cast, both men and women, not wanting to join the army if he were their commanding officer.Available for rent on Apple TV and Amazon Prime)
3. Superman II (1980)
“Kneel before Zod!” No matter which version of the Superman sequel you watch – the more lighthearted, Richard Lester-directed film or the restored, more refined Richard Donner version – it’s hard to argue that Stamp’s return to major cinema was a rewarding choice. Naturally, it was a lucrative opportunity, but the actor needed the income, recalling that when he got the role offer, “I remember opening the envelope, and my hand trembled. I think I knew that my life was about to change.” What Stamp does exceptionally well is to minimize the character of General Zod (in sharp contrast to Michael Shannon in Man of Steel), giving him an oddly detached view of humanity that makes the comic book villain as uniquely Stamp-like as any character he has portrayed before or since. He outshines everyone else – even Gene Hackman – on screen.(Available via Sky Movies, Now TV, and Amazon Prime)
4. The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994)
Stamp showed some hesitation about portraying the transgender character Bernadette in the camp, outrageous comedy Priscilla, not due to any hidden homophobia, but because he wasn’t sure if he was the right actor for a role that was completely different from anything he had ever done before. Director Stephan Elliott’s confidence that the English actor would excel in the lead role of Bernadette was quickly proven correct. While his co-stars Guy Pearce and Hugo Weaving overdo it to great heights—as the film requires—as a pair of drag queens, Stamp’s calm, often deeply moving performance stands out as one of this talented actor’s finest. There was once hope that he would reprise the role in a sequel, but unfortunately, events have put an end to that possibility.(Streaming on Amazon Prime and available for rent via Sky Store Apple TV)
5. The Limey (1999)
Stamp featured in two remarkable gangster films as a seasoned actor, this one and Stephen Frears’ brilliant, mysterious The Hit. Either could have been included on this short list, but while The Hit may ultimately be associated with John Hurt, there is no question that in Soderbergh’s enthusiastic tribute to 1960s crime cinema, Stamp is the standout element. There were definitely periods in the 1980s and 1990s – and even later – when it seemed as though the actor was merely adding generic seriousness to projects that didn’t truly deserve him. However, in this case, he was given the chance to express deeper emotions, and his portrayal of a rugged, vengeful figure, at times gentle, wild, and instinctive, must be considered among his finest performances.(Available for rental on Apple TV, Amazon Prime, and Sky Store)
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