The iconic actor Mark Strong always wanted to emulate: “Failing that, an astronaut”
Every actor has an idol they deeply admire, one who inspires them to greatness with their captivating on-screen presence. They might not even realise it at the time, but watching a specific actor during a formative stage of life can spark something inside of them, planting a seed that will later bloom into a career under the spotlight.
Mark Strong has had a pretty impressive career since he started acting in the 1990s (even if he often gets mistaken for Stanley Tucci), with roles in everything from RocknRolla and Stardust to The Imitation Game and 1917. More recently, the British actor has appeared in the DC Universe with a role in Shazam!, signalling his continued steps towards Hollywood stardom, although it was a certain European star who has always been his ultimate acting inspiration.
Like many young actors, Strong was enamoured by Alain Delon’s indomitable screen presence. The French actor is widely considered one of the finest the country has ever produced. He is both a well-respected star and a beloved sex symbol, known for his tanned skin, piercing eyes, and impeccable sense of style.
Delon emerged on screens in the 1950s, but it wasn’t until the following decade that he truly became a star. He appeared in René Clément’s Purple Noon in 1960, a French adaptation of the novel The Talented Mr Ripley, which capitulated him to fame, and over the coming years he starred in the likes of L’Eclisse, directed by Michelangelo Antonioni, Jean-Pierre Melville’s Le Samouraï, The Girl on a Motorcycle alongside Marianne Faithfull, and the sizzling summer thriller The Swimming Pool with Jane Birkin.
While the actor continued to appear in many hits during the 1970s and 1980s, such as Le Cercle Rouge, Delon’s career became more sporadic over the coming years, although his position as an icon of cinema, representing a time of cinematic innovation and increased sexual freedom, has never faded.
It’s no surprise that Strong found himself captivated by Delon when he was young – many men do. Talking to The Independent, Strong revealed that when he was a child, he always wanted to be “the French actor Alain Delon. I remember watching him in films, and though I couldn’t understand a word he was saying, I remember thinking he looked great.”
He added, “Failing that, an astronaut, after watching the moon landing on a tiny, portable, black-and-white TV at my gran’s house.”
Strong managed to pursue his dream of being a star, and while he might not be Delon, he has appeared in many acclaimed films over the years. Perhaps he wouldn’t have had the idea to become an actor if not for watching Delon’s movies when he was a kid, gleaning an effortless sense of cool from the actor as he commanded the screen.
The legendary French actor passed away in 2024 at the age of 88, leaving behind a legacy as one of cinema’s most indelible stars, inspiring countless actors over the years with his mixture of commercially successful and more artistically driven movie choices.
