2010 seems like it was the year the tide turned for James Badge Dale, and in a way came to define him as a screen actor. It saw him take the lead role in two rather successful television series. He was the featured performer in The Pacific, the Band of Brothers follow-up produced by Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks, and he was leading CIA analyst Will Travers in AMC’s one-season wonder, Rubicon. Rubicon in particular put a lot of its narrative weight on Dale’s shoulders, relying on his everyman likeability to draw viewers into the conspiracy story.
Viewers didn’t take to him very much at all in this role, as it happened. Rubicon was canceled after just one season and The Pacific did not reach the cultural heights of its predecessor. Despite having these two leading roles on critically acclaimed series, Dale was not propelled into stardom. He did, however, seem to generate interest within the business, given his subsequent meaty character roles that followed the conclusion of these two series. Perhaps he can follow a similar path to that taken by Damian Lewis, breakout star of Band of Brothers who has gone on to headline one of today’s hottest shows, Homeland.
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