Steven Strait makes a plausible centre for an ensemble that needs someone to take its troubles seriously. We value that steadiness in The Expanse, though the writing too often leaves him with solemnity and little else.
Fi1m perspective
There is little relief from Steven Strait's seriousness as Jim Holden in The Expanse (2015). He gives the crowded science-fiction series a steady centre, and makes Holden's moral conviction credible. We can see why a long-running story about an idealistic leader would need him, but we would not ask him to make heavy exposition entertaining on his own. The performance benefits from other actors supplying contrasts that the writing does not always give Holden.
His early casting repeatedly put that intensity to work in supernatural and heroic roles. His feature debut, Sky High (2005), cast him as teenage superhero Warren Peace; leading roles followed in The Covenant (2006) and Roland Emmerich's 10,000 BC (2008). Those parts established a recognisable type, but did not settle the question of how much he could carry as a leading actor. Stevie Evans in Magic City (2012) marked the turn towards more mature television material, before Holden gave him a character to develop across six seasons.
The useful comparison in The Expanse is with the people beside him. Dominique Tipper gives Naomi Nagata directness, while Wes Chatham makes Amos Burton's edge a reason to keep watching. Shohreh Aghdashloo's firmness as Chrisjen Avasarala supplies another kind of authority, and helps when the early storytelling is difficult to follow. Strait is less immediately engaging, but his steadiness has a purpose alongside these more sharply drawn performances. Holden's vulnerability and moral conviction give him something worth developing, provided the scripts allow more than another demonstration of how seriously he takes his responsibilities.
We grew weary of Holden's solemnity when the explanatory dialogue gave Strait so little else to play. That is partly a writing problem, but it also marks the limit of an actor whose intensity can become repetitive without enough variation in the part. His contribution helps make the series worth persevering with, although the tangled opening remains a substantial obstacle. Start with The Expanse if detailed science fiction interests you, and give the ensemble time; expecting Strait to carry the evening alone would be asking too much.
Biography
Steven Strait is an American actor and singer. He was born on 23 March 1986 in New York City and raised in Greenwich Village. He studied acting at the Stella Adler Studio of Acting and began his career with modelling work before moving to California.
Strait made his feature film debut in Sky High (2005) as Warren Peace. He later appeared in The Covenant (2006) as Caleb Danvers, 10,000 BC (2008) as D’Leh and other films including City Island (2009). From 2015 to 2022 he played James Holden in the science fiction series The Expanse, also serving as producer on later seasons. He has appeared in television series such as Magic City (2012–2013) and Chicago Fire.
