Rupert Friend

Rupert Friend plays Peter Quinn in Homeland. His performance has a practical stillness: Quinn watches, listens and doesn't spend many words announcing what he thinks. Friend keeps that economy from becoming emptiness by making the attention behind it apparent.

The English actor's early film roles include Mr Wickham in Pride & Prejudice and Prince Albert in The Young Victoria. Those period performances offer a contrast to Quinn's contemporary, unadorned manner. His other work includes The Death of Stalin and The French Dispatch, where he operates in very different comic registers.

Homeland gives him a substantial place in an ensemble driven by forceful personalities. Friend doesn't have to match their volume to make an impression. His scenes often work because you believe Quinn has been assessing the situation before anyone has asked him to explain it.