Levi Meaden Is Taking On His Most Intense Role Yet

From Cosmopolitan

Canadian actor Levi Meaden has had quite the 2018 so far. He was featured in the blockbuster sequel to Pacific Rim, Pacific Rim: Uprising, and can also be seen acting alongside Gabrielle Union in the just-released thriller Breaking In. It's his upcoming role, however, that he's most excited for.

Earlier this month, it was announced that Levi was cast in the new SundanceTV miniseries, Unspeakable. The eight-part drama follows the the tainted blood crisis in Canada in the 1980s, during which nearly 2,000 Canadians were diagnosed with HIV after being given infected blood-including one hemophiliac played by Levi.

"It's a fascinating role, it's just a lot to dig in to. I'm excited to get out there and get started," he tells Cosmopolitan.com. "He becomes very isolated, very hurt, and just takes that pain out in a lot of different ways."

Read on to hear more about his exciting new role, affinity for cheesy horror films, and three adorable, fluffy dogs.

On his new movie Breaking In and working with Gabrielle Union

I just went to the premiere the other night and I was just an audience member along for the ride. [Gabrielle] is great. She was pulling double duty on this one as a producer, too, so she was kicking ass off screen as well as on screen. We were filming this big stand-off on a roof and everybody's having trouble just trying to stay standing, let alone in the moment. But she never faltered for a second. She was there, ready to kick some ass at four in the morning. It was really cool to see.

On his love for all things nerdy and horror movies:

I'm a huge movie geek, sci-fi geek. Horror was, I think probably my first geeky thing I got into when I was, like, thirteen. There’s something about the schlocky 70s and 80s horror movies. I don't know, I just found them so much fun, the comic-book-esque nature of the whole thing spoke to me.

On how studying abroad in the Czech Republic helped him get his start in acting:

I went to school there for writing and directing, and when I was there, we had a really intense film schedule, so we had to do pretty much a film a month. We were kind of low on English-speaking actors, so I ended up doing a lot.

After that, I returned to Vancouver and started acting. It took a while. You know, I worked a job as a cook for a number of years to support myself while I took classes, found an agent. Then I started to do whatever I could. I helped out in the casting rooms, behind the camera; helped out reading other people's short films, feature films, shooting, just try to do whatever I could to understand every facet of the industry.

On booking his first major role in The Killing:

I was a huge fan already, so I was happy I got to be in the final season. I got to work with Joan Allen, who's just a powerhouse as an actress.

It was a brooding show, which Vancouver can be. Especially in the middle of winter, it rains all the time. I certainly look back on it fondly, but it took over my life for a little while, for sure.

On his upcoming role in Unspeakable:

Obviously I'm Canadian, so it's a really important story. It’s really intense and it’s kind of a story that deserves to have a lot of catharsis, and I'm trying to bring some real weight and realism to it. I’m doing a lot of research, trying to understand the families, reading interviews.In the '80s, AIDS came with a lot of social stigmas. And there're still social stigmas today, but back then you might as well be put out on an island alone. It's kind of a lot to carry.

Hopefully after this I'll do something kind of fun or light. Doing stuff like this is a challenge and I really think you learn a lot about yourself doing it, about kind of who you are.

On romance and his girlfriend, Modern Family’s Ariel Winter

Every once in a while, when we haven't had time for each other just because of everything going on, we really make an effort to make sure we set up a date night. We've even planned a little trip, just for us, because it's going to get crazy again.

We've recently been obsessed with escape rooms. We're running out of them honestly. We've gotten almost all of them within an hour of us. So, probably dinner, an escape room, maybe a movie.

On their three dogs:

One of them we got from a place called West Side German Shepherd Shelter which, if anybody is in L.A. or is looking around, they should check it out because they have a ton of adorable, loving dogs that need homes, and we try to donate when we can.

There's Casper, which is our big fluffy white one, Chloe, which is our German Shepherd, and Cash, which is our little Australian Shepherd. Two guys and a girl.

We don't have room for another dog but I'm hoping we can get maybe a ranch or something and we can get as many dogs as she can have. I can never say never. It might happen.

This interview has been edited and condensed.

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