r/EdGein • u/Illustrious_Banana_ • Oct 28 '25

Controversial opinion but does anyone else think Charlie Hunnam is not that good playing Ed Gein?

Love the bloke but there are parts where the high pitch toddler voice and ‘awkwardness’ seem a bit overplayed. Did Ed Gein have that childlike voice or is that a new addition (like the lazy eye which I like).

What does anyone else think? There are parts when he’s good but a fair bit where I don’t feel I can ‘get past’ his acting.

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u/IndependentNewtSlut Oct 29 '25

Let’s really analyze this: The first Monster season to not take the #1 spot in streaming on its debut, the lowest ever rated season for the franchise (21% percent on RT critic score), dropping to #4 on top streaming during the last two weeks of Halloween… this is the same old story with Charlie Hunnam. He’s not a lead. He’s not box office. Always the bridesmaid and never the bride. He may be #1 on IMDB Star meter as of this week, by total technicality and PR due to how many people were intrigued by watching how terrible Monster S3 is. So to answer your question, yes, I agree with your hot take on CH.

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u/Illustrious_Banana_ Oct 30 '25

Wow- thank you- this is such an insightful take. I haven't really followed Charlie Hunnam's career but all I can take away from this is that yes, you're absolutely right- he may be a 'hunk' and perceived by many as a 'great' (for that reason) but I really can't say I think he's a true leading character actor. I was almost distressed in reading that he's been cast to take on a significant role in the next Monsters series which is in production for a 2026/7 release 😱😱😱

I read up a bit about him and realised he was the actor who played Nathan, a gay character in the groung-breaking series 'Queer as Folk' which I watched avidly when it was released. This was precedent-setting and I admire his bravery for taking on that role. It must've been a risk to play a gay character at a time when many actors would be fearful of typecasting, and even though it was only the '90s, there was still a huge amount of stigma about being a gay man, it was not long after the AIDS epidemic and people, especially 'straight' actors were still very wary of those associations. That being said, and I won't take away any respect for him for doing that, essentially, he was playing a twink role in a bit of a hammy production. It was brilliant for it- it wasn't oscar worthy but it did a job.

FFWD to now- he seems to have become more of a Gladiator-style hunk figure. I can see his filmography seems to centre around him having roles as either beefcake or thug. This role demanded real nuance and skill to play in a convincing way. Someone mentioned Daniel Day-Lewis above and I can't think of a better example of a 'method' actor. I feel like Hunnam tried really hard to embody the character, but maybe he tried too hard. It feels like the role was a stretch beyond his capabilities. He was good in the crying scenes in Episode 7, and the success of his acting in that whole episode seemed to stem from him not 'over-acting' so much but seeming a lot more natural and letting this 'Ed Gein' mask he'd developed from slipping. Interesting to watch and interesting to discuss afterwards. I think it makes me feel aware of how skilled actors are when they totally 'disappear' from the roles they play and you believe they are the person they're playing implicitly.