How The 100 season 5 can make the most of Bob Morley’s Bellamy Blake
In this edition of our month-long Unsung Heroes article series here at CarterMatt, we are putting the focus on The 100 and, to be more specific, we area talking here about Bellamy Blake who has evolved substantially since the start of the series.
When we first met Bellamy back in the first season, this was a character who seemed to be very much within a Lord of the Flies mindset. He was fine with the world being a little bit chaotic, just because of the fact that he was a young guy in a new world with no rules. As time progressed, we saw him grappling with the concept of doing what he thought was the right thing. He is certainly imperfect, and at times his own thirst for redemption may have clouded his judgment.
When you make mistakes in life, that can stick with you. It can impact you and cause you to become defined by them. After making some of the choices that he did, it could have been easy for Bellamy to just settle into the fact that this was who he is — that he is a product of miscalculations and would continue to make wrong choices rather than someone trying to move beyond the past and focus on the present.
Instead, what we’ve seen from Bellamy over time is that he is someone who is ready to step forward. We’ve seen a change in his thinking and, beyond that, a different approach to the world. This is a man who lives so much more within the moment, he’s determined, and he’s willing to sacrifice himself in order to ensure the safety of others. He’s still focused on trying to do the right thing, but seems to be a little more aware of the fact that there will be consequences for every action and not all of them are expected.
What makes someone a hero is that you can’t always make the popular choice; you just have to make the right choice and in this universe it has to be one that you can live with. That’s what makes Bellamy the unsung hero that he is — he has learned how to shoulder the responsibility for his past and be the best person he can moving forward into the future. With every step forward is yet another test, and we certainly think that Bellamy is now ready for them. Given that there is a massive time jump ahead leading into season 5’s premiere later this month, it’s hard to know what the next iteration of Bellamy is like. He may have adopted even more of what he has learned in an effort to be a stronger, more capable leader than ever.
The strength of Bob Morley
A character this nuanced and with different degrees of heroism is not always easy to play. Even when there is a move made that produces an unexpected, adverse result, you do still need to be able to see the intention in it. This is where Morley comes into play as this character. He is an actor who can rip out your heart one moment and make you stand up and cheer the next. He’s built a beautiful world around this multifaceted character and it’s one that we want to see continue to grow.