It's the movies, people. The movies have built our expectations that bad men turn into the best loverboys. We all have seen the turn Chuck Bass took in Gossip Girl. From a badass to a romantic hero that every woman was frothing over. It might come across as a surprise, but Ed Westwick is far more poetic in real life than he is as Chuck Bass.
Not like anything beats flying all the way to Paris to buy macaroons for Blaire, but Westwick is one of the rare romantic souls left on this planet. He is charming, he plays guitar, and he was voted as the Sexiest Man Alive. Could you be asking for more? We did not think so.
Here are some facts about Ed Westwick that you did not know.
15 Musician At Heart
Not many would know, but Ed Westwick is a die-hard musician at heart. Before acting, he created music with his buddies and is often caught saying how much he loves music over anything. He also considers himself an artist before anything else. If you check out his page on Youtube, you will find plenty of hidden treasures.
14 Started Learning Music And Art At Six
Well, not like it is not evident from Westwick’s passion for music that he has been doing this since he was a child. He has been taking music lessons and attending Saturday morning drama school since he was six. And we don’t doubt that. He is extremely good at whatever he does. Clearly he has had some fantastic training.
13 Studied Law
We always have this opinion of celebrities that they must have always been into acting, drama, and nothing else. Well, let’s break that stereotype, shall we? Ed Westwick went to the Barclay School and North Hertfordshire College. He has A-levels in Business, Law, and Communication.
12 Trained At The National Youth Theatre
But like they say, no matter what you do in life, you always end up on the path you were always supposed to follow. So did, Westwick. After completing his education, he finally moved to London to follow his dreams. He then trained at the National Youth Theatre in London.
11 Big Debut In 2006
Who doesn’t love Chuck Bass? That character is the biggest badass who turns out to be the best romantic hero in a series. Of course, we love Chuck Bass. However, before we could recognize Ed as Chuck, he made his debut in 2006 in Breaking and Entering, a straight casting call from the National Youth Theatre.
10 Initially Auditioned For The Role Of Nate
This is surprising, isn’t it? We cannot imagine Chuck Bass not being Ed Westwick or vice-versa now. But when Westwick auditioned for the first time for the famous series Gossip Girl, he auditioned for Nate’s role. We speak for all when we say how glad we are that he did not settle on it.
9 Member Of A British Band
We have already established that Ed considers himself a musician before an actor. Before following his acting trail, he built a British indie rock band called Filthy Youth with his chaps, namely, Ben Allingham, Jimmy Wright, Tom Bastiani, and John Voight. In one of his interviews with Popsugar, he confessed that the band is inspired by the Rolling Stones, The Doors, and Kings of Leon.
8 Fond Of Silver Jewelry
Ed Westwick is not your regular white boy now, is he? We all know he is unusual in many ways than just one. But did you know that he is fond of jewelry? No, not for gifting to others but for himself. He often wears unique silver jewelry that he claims to have collected from all over the world - from places like New York, Brazil, and Egypt.
7 Fell In Love With Gossip Girl Co-star
We all loved the chemistry between Chuck and Vanessa. Even if we don’t want to admit to that because we are all obsessed with Chuck and Blaire. Turns out, the chemistry was steaming off-screen as well. Ed Westwick and Jessica Szohr dated for a long time, and the couple was much adored.
6 Sexiest Man Alive
Well, his seven million followers on Instagram will surely agree to this. Ed Westwick has the most unusual look as well as personality. Besides, he has been voted as a major man-crush for a long time. We can totally see why. In fact, as per TV Fanatic, he was listed as the Sexiest Man Alive, but the title later went to Hugh Jackman.
5 Chuck Actually Lived With Nate
Isn’t this too cool? Chuck and Nate were living together, even in real life. It’s true, we are not making this up. Chace Crawford and Ed Westwick shared an apartment in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan from the beginning of the Gossip Girl series. They lived together for two years, and after that, Chace moved out.
4 Bagged Awards
Gossip Girl has been a show for a lifetime for Westwick. The actor has been loved and praised across the world. And he has won many awards for his performance in the series. He won the Young Hollywood Award for Breakthrough Performance - Male in 2009. And then he was Teen Choice Award for Choice TV Villain back to back in 2008 and 2009. Guess we all love a good, bad boy.
3 Football Fan
We have all gushed over the pictures of Ed Westwick playing football. Haven’t we? We also know that football is his favorite sport. In fact, he is a die-hard supporter of Chelsea FC and has been known to not miss matches or adjust his schedules to make sure he doesn’t miss the game.
2 Almost Played Heathcliff
Westwick also is a much deeper soul than all the bad boy image that he portrays on TV. He is really attached to the play Wuthering Heights and was, in fact, keen on playing the role of Heathcliff in 2009. But the director, Peter Webber, left the project in 2010, and then it never happened.
1 Guest Appearance In Californication
We all remember Hank Moody from Californication. Don’t we? Another bad boy but still a gem at heart. Well, you’d be pleased to know that Ed Westwick has briefly shared the screen with David Duchovny in Californication. Westwick played a lovesick student who loved poetry for an episode in the series. For many of you who don’t know this, Westwick actually calls him one of the last romantics left on the planet. Suits him, right?
Source: FanWorld, TV Guide, Wet Paint, The Famous People