Ethan Hawke took a little breather from acting during the Pandemic, something he found as a challenge since he has been working since he was 15 years old. In and interview with Entertainment Weekly, Hawke explains how the hiatus changed his mindset on acting but not his passion for the craft, 

"It was strange to stop acting [during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020], and I've just thrown myself back at it with abandonment. The pandemic really made me look at, Why do I work so hard? What the hell am I doing this for? Sometimes I feel like a stage coach riding downhill and I'm still whipping the horses. The short answer is, it makes me happy. I'm a pretty restless person and one of those really lucky people that get turned on by what I'm doing - I really love it. I do think there might be something gained by working a little less hard. Like, checkout these dogs. They're just so relaxed. I aspire to be more like them."

What makes him so interesting is the choices Hawke has made in recent years. Normally, his projects were arthouse fare or quiet indies the likes of Before Sunrise, Before the Devil Knows You're Dead, and Boyhood. Starting with films such as The Purge and Sinister, Hawke has found a strange niche in the world of horror which has been leading him to take on roles as the heavy in his recent slate of projects coming out this year. 

One of the more surprising, not to mention, terrifying heel turns is his character The Grabber in the supernatural thriller The Black Phone, where he pretends to be a children's magician in order to abduct and kill kids in a sleepy 1970's town. Early looks at the film show off a side of the actor we don't always get to see, maniacal,  unhinged, and terrifying. 

Hawke is also bringing his new found flare for being the bad guy in the dark new Marvel series Moon Knight starring along side Oscar Isaac. The series has him portraying Author Harrow, a pain therapy doctor with a controversial past. Little is known of his full backstory on the show, though the trailers display the range of emotions this new character possesses, going from calm and collected to enraged at the drop of a hat.

"I've always had this theory that when you teach an audience how to see the demon inside you, they don't unsee it for the rest of your career. Jack Nicholson can be playing an accountant and you're still waiting for him to explode like he did in The Shining. But I realized I'm on the other side of 50 and it's time to put a new tool in the tool kit. Villains might be my future."

It is always so refreshing to watch an actor step out of their comfort zone to be the villain. The role of the baddie gives the actor a chance to flex, take chances, and tap into a part of themselves which doesn't always get explored otherwise. Powerful acting choices are a growth tool, for both the player and the audience. It gives us a new perspective of their talent while adding another weapon to an actor's arsenal. A sentiment Hawke seems to agree with,

"Like, Paul McCartney doesn't try to write a pop song, he loves popular music. And so he does it - and he does it really well. I try to find things that have something new to offer me and make me feel like a student again. I always think it's important that no matter if you succeed or fail, you're proud of the attempt. And it's been really fun to put on my hard hat and bring my packed lunch and work with a lot of different kinds of directors."

Whatever the role, Ethan Hawke has constantly brought his best work to the table, but like any vocation, there is always a chance to grow. At age 51, he is proving his point and shows no signs of stopping.

Tags: Ethan Hawke Moon Knight The Black Phone Marvel