Actor Dan Stevens Based His Russian ‘Eurovision’ Character on Supermodel Irina Shayk
Even though he's in the movie Eurovision, Dan Stevens is just like everyone else—he's still very obsessed with the movie's soundtrack. And while he loves "Ja Ja Ding Dong," the silly and undeniably catchy anthem at the center of the movie, another song has become a personal favorite.
"I mean, 'Ja Ja Ding Dong' has been a huge hit in our house, but 'Husavik' is an absolute banger. And I’m delighted for Molly Sandén, who sung it for Rachel. That song song seems to be in the top 10 on iTunes in a number of countries now—it’s really extraordinary."
Stevens is riding high right now after his scene-stealing performance in the Netflix original film as charismatic Russian Eurovision star Alexander Lemtov, who wears flashy clothing and brings an even flashier bravado to his in-movie performances. Stevens is also riding a renaissance wave for his 2014 horror/thriller The Guest, an underrated gem that he says he's been hearing a lot of people discover after entering the Netflix catalogue.
Also known for roles in Downton Abbey and FX's Legion, Stevens was born in London, and as we chat on the phone, it's clear his real accent is different from what he typically uses on screen. It's not the American accent he primarily uses in Legion, or the southern drawl he uses in The Guest. It's certainly different, in that effect, to the Russian tone he uses in Eurovision.
While he's worked with a dialect coach in the past for roles like The Guest, he says he did all of the Eurovision research himself. That meant channeling a few Russians that he knew in real-life, and also fitting the accent around what someone who sings like "Lion of Love" would actually talk like. (The song had been written before he signed onto the film.)
For Lemtov's personality, though, he brought experience of a more personal encounter: Russian supermodel Irina Shayk, whom he once met at a party in Manhattan and says had a "very interesting attitude to the world."
As he describes, she asked him where he lived, and he responded: Brooklyn.
"And she said [Russian accent] 'Brook-lyn. Too far.' And then I said, 'Well, where do you live?' and she went [Russian accent] 'West Village. Best place.'" Stevens says. "And there’s a certain kind of snobbery that comes with a certain level of wealth, and how that—particularly European—money set, how that warps your taste and attitude."
To get even closer to his character, Stevens' workout routine had to change, too. The sequence in the film where he performs "Lion of Love" required tons of endurance, he says; he learned several song-and-dance routines for the scene and filming took place over several days just to get everything that director David Dobkin needed.
When the cameras weren't rolling, and to boost his dance endurance, Stevens got into calisthenics, focusing on workouts surrounding TRX and resistance bands, but also managed to find exercises he could just do with body weight. "Obviously, Lemtov is a chest-heavy guy, so there was quite a lot of focus on that," he says.
But the most important part, he says, was just keeping up with the crew of pro dancers. "That was a big way into the movie, for me—keeping up with the dancers, frankly," Stevens says. "And doing as much of their routine as I could. Obviously, they’re working a lot harder than I was on stage. But we’re all moving around a fair amount,"
One would never expect when watching the scene—Stevens is a dominating presence, stepping over dancers, mugging and smiling for the camera—that he was actually the one just trying to keep up. But as he says, between following their leads, learning the choreography, wearing a very heavy rockaded coat (and fighting through a bout of food poisoning) he was basically the one hoping he would manage to get everything right.
"I love working with professional dancers, how disciplined they are, and just how much you can learn from them physically," he says. "And those guys are in insane shape. I could never quite get to their level."
The "Lion of Love" track that Lemtov sings throughout the movie was recorded by Erik Mjönes before Stevens was even brought into the role. But while the final version of the performance in the movie was a sync, the plan originally was for Stevens to record his own vocals to merge with what was already taped. But coronavirus limitations made that an impossibility, so the original track wound up as the final track.
Stevens clarified, though, that he really was singing during filming—but no one wants to hear his live vocals, really. "The plan was always to get me to sing—generally, you will sing to a track when you’re recording, because no one wants to hear anyone singing live in that scenario, and I think Les Miserables proved that that’s pointless."
Making fans go wild on the Eurovision stage wasn't the only lasting memory that Stevens cultivated when on set—while he got to work closely. with both Will Ferrell and Rachel McAdams on the film, it was the movie's song-a-long sequence, with the past real-life Eurovision contestants, that he won't forget. "Standing in a circle with those guys, singing along," he says. "I’ll never forget that. It was a really extraordinary sequence, and we had a really fun time."
Before we ended our chat, though, there was one more important question to ask Stevens. If he—not as Alexander Lemtov, but as Dan Stevens—found himself in any sort of singing competition, big or small, what would his song of choice be?
He laughed, hesitated just a little, but clearly knew what his answer at this point had to be. "I mean, I’d probably have to sing 'Ja Ja Ding Dong' now," he said.
Just like his Eurovision character, Stevens sure knows how to be a crowd pleaser.
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