Damian Lewis has revealed his one major regret about acting as he opened up about his incredible career on Wednesday.
The Emmy Award-winning actor, 53, admitted he was ‘divided’ between acting and sports at school as he ‘enjoyed both equally’.
The Homeland star said he made the decision to pursue acting at the age of 16 and attended the Guildhall School of Music & Drama.
After graduating, Damian admitted that he became “quite impatient” and decided not to go to college because it “wasn’t happening fast enough” for him.
Now the British actor says he has ‘a twinge of regret’ over not going to university, but is currently ‘taking several Open University courses’.
Damian Lewis has revealed his one major regret about acting as he opened up about his incredible career on Wednesday
The Emmy Award-winning actor, 53, admitted he was ‘divided’ between acting and sports at school as he ‘enjoyed both equally’; pictured 2012
In conversation with Nick Grimshaw and Angela Hartnett about their Guest on dish podcast, Damian said: ‘I’ve always loved acting. I went to boarding schools, so there was a lot of sports. I did a lot of sports and a lot of acting.
‘I think I always felt a bit divided about that. It’s two very different worlds, two very different groups of people doing these things, but I enjoyed both equally.
‘And then I was sixteen, then I thought: this is it, I want to do it. I want to do it. And then I stopped worrying about university and went to the Guildhall School of Music and Melodrama, down the road from town. It’s in the Barbican.
‘I was there for three years. I just wanted to get on with it and do it, I think it was quite impatient, it felt like maybe university wasn’t for me, that it wasn’t happening fast enough.
‘Every now and then I have a bit of regret and maybe I should have spent three years at university, but overall that’s not the case, I’m quite happy that I just got on with it. And I’m doing several Open University courses.’
Damian began his career in 1995 working at the Royal Shakespeare Company starring in Henrik Ibsen’s Little Eyolf before later appearing in Jonathan Kent’s production of Hamlet.
The production of Hamlet was seen by Steven Spielberg, who later cast Damian in Band of Brothers in 2001, which earned him a Golden Globe nomination for his portrayal of US Army Major Richard Winters.
From 2011 to 2013, Damian played the role of Sergeant Nicholas Brody in the series Homeland, for which he won his first Primetime Emmy Award. and a Golden Globe Award in 2012.
The Homeland star admitted he was “pretty impatient” and decided not to go to college because it wasn’t “moving fast enough” for him, which he now has a “stab of regret”
He said: ‘I just wanted to get on and do it, I was quite impatient and felt like university might not be for me. Every now and then I have a little regret and maybe I should have studied at university for three years’; pictured in September
Damian added: “On the whole I’m quite happy to just get on with it. And I’m doing several Open University courses’; pictured in March
His performance as Henry VIII in Wolf Hall earned him his third Primetime Emmy nomination and fourth Golden Globe nomination.
Earlier this month, Damian looked unrecognizable while filming new WWII drama Pressure Camber Sands Beach in East Sussex.
The actor, who will play Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery, sported a bushy mustache and hid his eyes behind dark sunglasses.
Damian was dressed in a khaki army uniform on set and was pictured chatting to the crew as they fixed his microphone.
The upcoming film, which will also star Andrew Scott as Royal Air Force meteorologist James Stagg, follows the true story of the Normandy Invasion and is based on the play by David Haig.
The synopsis reads: ‘In the seventy-two hours leading up to D-Day, all the pieces of the puzzle are in place, except for one key element: the British weather.
‘British meteorological officer James Stagg (Andrew Scott) is called upon to make the most consequential forecast in history, leaving him in a tense standoff with the entire Allied leadership.
Damian began his career with the Royal Shakespeare Company and was seen in a production of Hamlet by Steven Spielberg, who later cast him in Band of Brothers in 2001; pictured 2001
From 2011 to 2013, Damian played the role of Sergeant Nicholas Brody in the series Homeland, for which he won a Primetime Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award in 2012; pictured with co-star Claire Danes in 2013
Earlier this month, Damian looked unrecognizable while filming new WWII drama Pressure Camber Sands Beach in East Sussex
“The wrong circumstances could devastate the largest seaborne invasion in history, while any delay risks German intelligence catching on.”
“With only his trusted aide Captain Kay Summersby (Kerry Condon) to confide in, and tormented by a catastrophic D-Day rehearsal, the final decision rests with Supreme Allied Commander Dwight D. Eisenhower (Fraser).
“With just hours to go, the fate of the war and the lives of millions hang in the balance.”
The release date for the upcoming film is not yet known.