Birthday Boy: Sebastian Stan

Quick drive-by post to wish my new-ish obsession a happy birthday as the totally adorable Sebastian Stan celebrates his 29th birthday today. Currently I'm watching him weekly in USA's new show Political Animals where he plays T.J. Hammond, the gay child of an ex-president (played by Ciarán Hinds) and current Secretary of State (played by Sigourney Weaver). Randomly, it's not the first time he played the gay son of a head state since it was just a few years ago when he had that same role in the short-lived NBC show Kings.

The very first time I saw him was on Gossip Girl most likely playing some snotty rich boy character. He definitely gives off that elitist preppy air which makes him well suited for those types of role. And yet he can go deeper, much deeper which also usually mean that his party boy persona is usually just the mask he puts on to hide some deep-seated insecurity. More recently, he has done part-time stints on Once Upon a Time as the scene-stealing Mad Hatter as well as dipped his toes in the Marvel universe playing Captain America's best friend Bucky Barnes. He's set to return to the sequel much to my delight.

If you haven't checked out any of those TV shows or movies, then you might have seen him in very bit roles in Black Swan, Rachel Getting Married, or The Education of Charlie Banks. Or if you're willing to admit to seeing it, he was also in that film The Covenant which was awful despite having lots of vampy eye candy. In any case, Stan has definitely come a long way from those days. I'm looking forward to seeing more of him, either on TV or films, in the years to come.