Outer Banks Star Drew Starkey Discusses Rafe’s Wickedness and Staying Grounded as an Actor
rafe #rafe
While viewers might see Rafe on Jonas Pate’s Outer Banks as a villain, Drew Starkey thought of his character differently. The 29-year-old actor shared that somewhere in Rafe’s heart, there is a goodness hidden and trumped by his darker side. The actor discusses his character on Outer Banks and the success he’s achieved by starring on the show with his recent interview with People.
For Starkey, Rafe has some hidden goodness in his heart. He told People, “What me and showrunners [Josh Pate, Jonas Pate and Shannon Burke] wanted to establish early on was not making some bad guy just for the sake of making a bad guy. He’s constantly at a push-and-pull with what he’s going through internally and even though he makes some pretty insanely stupid decisions, he struggles with those.”
He believes in the goodness of Rafe and thinks that his bad side just overpowers his kindness. He said, “There’s just a little hint of maybe he’s still a good person, but ultimately he gives into his internal thoughts too much.”
Rafe will soon reach his breaking point as the conflict with his father intensifies. To prepare for these kinds of scenes, Starkey revealed that he listens to heavy metal songs to get into character and pretty much drew rage from these songs. He said, “I’m sure if someone took one of my earbuds out on set and put it in their ear, they’d be like, ‘Jesus. Man, are you OK?’ But it helps me get amped up.”
RELATED: Netflix Releases the First 8 Minutes of Outer Banks Season 3
Despite the massive success of the series, Starkey wanted to stay grounded. With all the fame and attention he’s been getting, he’s definitely been enjoying every minute of it. But he apparently never would have imagined that the series would receive so much love from the viewers. When they started in 2020, he had no idea that they’re up to something this big. The fame and opportunities that came with it are things he could have never predicted.
He said, “All we knew the first season was we were all together making this show and it was really, really fun to do. So whatever came of it was just a bonus. Seeing how people respond to the show and these characters has been such a rare thing. The more opportunities we get to do it, the better. I love working with this group of people. I would do it for 10 seasons if they gave us that option.”
The cast members of the series have developed tight friendships over the years and Starkey treats his fellow cast members as his best friends who also help him stay grounded. He said “We have each other to keep each other grounded, very humbled. We knock each other down a few pegs when need be. If we were going through this alone it would be a lot tougher.”