For years, Grant had a reputation as a charming playboy. Reports of his romantic life, coupled with his wink-y, roguish interview style, gave him an appearance more like one of his bad-boy characters than a woke activist. But though his dimples are the same, his behavior has changed over the years. Grant’s Twitter account, complete with a picture of Audrey Hepburn dressed as a nun, posts constant political content. He’s also an active board member at Hacked Off, a campaign to hold press in the UK accountable. His quotes these days contain fewer and fewer witticisms about tea with the Queen and more comments like his August tweet in which he raged against current Prime Minister Boris Johnson, “You will not f**k with my children’s future. You will not destroy the freedoms my grandfather fought two world wars to defend.”
Asked by reporters about his habit of knocking on random doors, Grant referenced a gig from long before his Love Actually days. “I did used to sell fire extinguishers door-to-door,” he said. “I was very good.”
Ah, Hugh! Same dry humor, new desire to make the world a better place for his grandchildren. It’s just like he says—“If you look for it, I’ve got a sneaky feeling you’ll find that love actually is all around.” And if you open your door in London this week, Hugh Grant might actually be all around.
Jenny Singer is a staff writer for Glamour.